Where did the surname Stanley originate?

Answer 1

The proud and noble English surname of Stanley first emerged from Cumberland, where the family is recorded to have held a family seat some 40 years prior to the Norman Invasion of 1066 A.D. The name means "stony meadow".

Family motto: "Without changing!"

Answer 2

Boldly proffering the formidable family motto "Without changing!" through the withering mists of time, the proud and noble English surname of Stanley strides forth from the sleepy little hamlet of Stonely, near Kimbolton, in Cambridgeshire.

Three different spelling variations were in existence at the time of the Norman Invasion, but all carry the meaning of "stony wood clearing".

While some of the family is known to have moved off to Ireland during very early times, others of the family took off for the Americas as early as the early 1600s.