Origin of the Name Parsons
The ancient history of the name
Parsons was found in the allfamilycrests.com archives.
Over the centuries Surnames developed a wide number of variants. Different spellings of the same name can be traced back to an original root. Additionally when a bearer of a name emigrated it was not uncommon that their original name would be incorrectly transcribed in the record books at their new location. Surnames were also often altered over the years based on how they sounded phonetically and depending on the prevailing political conditions it may have been advantageous to change a name from one language to another.
Variants of the name Parsons
include Parson, Parsonson, Parsone and Parsan. This is an name of occupational origin, describing a servant of a parish priest, or church-worker. This name is usually of Anglo-Saxon descent spreading to the Celtic countries of Ireland , Scotland and Wales in early times and is found in many mediaeval manuscripts throughout these countries. Examples of such are a Clemens filius Persone of County Norfolk, who was recorded in the 'Hundred Rolls', England , in the year 1273. A Johannes Parsonson was recorded in the 'Poll Tax' of the West Riding of Yorkshire, in the year 1379. In Scotland an Adam le Parson rendered homage in the year 1296. A family of the name settled in Ireland in 1590, when two brothers, William and Laurence Parsons, were granted large estates in what is today the townland of Birr in County Offaly but which was originally called Parsonstown. The Gaelic McPherson name was also occasionally changed to Parsons.
The Parsons coat of arms came into existence centuries ago. The process of creating coats of arms (also often called family crests) began in the eleventh century although a form of Proto-Heraldry may have existed in some countries prior to this. The new art of Heraldry made it possible for families and even individual family members to have their very own coat of arms, including all Parsons descendants.