Wardlaw Explained

Wardlaw is a first name and surname of Scottish origin.

Wardlaw loosely translates to "watcher of the hill". The original Wardlaws resided in the Scottish highlands, hence "watch of the hill," where as Wardlows resided in the Scottish lowlands.

The modern placenames of Wardlaw stem from the old English combination of watch and mound hill. Those being weard ‘watch’ + hlāw ‘mound hill’.^[1] Other representations of Wardlaw throughout history are "Geard-hlaw", and "Wardelaue".^[2]

Family Motto:"Famalias Firmat Pietas." ("Religion Strengthens Families.")^[3]

Origins

Wardlaw according to Playfair in his British Family Antiquity, Vol. VIII, published in 1811^[4] is amongst the oldest in Scotland. The surname most likely traces it place of origin to Kirkhill, Highland within the Inverness region. There the parish was formally called Wardlaw with origins tracing back to the 13th century.^[5] The first recordings of Wardlaw are said to have occurred around 1210 AD but the first certain recording appeared when "Henricus de Wardlaw was given a charter for half of the barony of Wiltone, in the county of Roxburgh."^[2] Though the surname appeared as Wardelaue.

Persons

• Alan Wardlaw (1887–1938), Australian politician
• Barbara Wardlaw (contemporary), Canadian politician of the First Nations
• Chris Wardlaw (born 1950), Australian long-distance runner
• Claude Wardlaw (1901–1985), British botanist
• Elizabeth, Lady Wardlaw (1677–1727), Scottish noblewoman and poet
• Helen Wardlaw (born 1982), English cricketer
• Henry Wardlaw (died 1440), Scottish church leader, Bishop of St Andrews, founder of the University of St Andrews
• Iain Wardlaw (born 1985), Scottish cricketer
• Jack Wardlaw (1937–2012), American journalist
• Jesse Wardlaw (born 2000), Australian rules footballer
• Joanna Wardlaw (born 1958), Scottish physician, radiologist, and academic
• John Wardlaw-Milne (1879–1967), British politician for Kidderminster
• Kim McLane Wardlaw (born 1954), American jurist in the federal courts
• Lee Wardlaw (contemporary), American author of children's books
• Ralph Wardlaw (1779–1853), Scottish Presbyterian clergyman and writer
• Robert Wardlaw (1889–1964), Australian politician from Tasmania
• Walter Wardlaw (died c. 1387), Scottish Bishop of Glasgow, uncle of Henry Wardlaw
• Gareth Wardlaw (born 1979), Scottish former footballer.

Peerage

• Wardlaw baronets, a title in the Baronetage of Nova Scotia

Places

• Wardlaw-Hartridge school in Edison, New Jersey
• Ward Law, hill with a Roman fort, near Shearington, Dumfries & Galloway
• Wardlaw Museum, located in, St Andrews, Scotland
• Pitreavie Castle, bought by Henry Wardlaw in 1608.
• Lochore Castle, one of the earliest Wardlaw places.^[6]

Notes and References

1. Web site: Wardlaw Name Meaning & Wardlaw Family History at Ancestry.com®. www.ancestry.com.
2. Web site: Surname Database: Wardlaw Last Name Origin. The Internet Surname Database.
3. Web site: Home. ClanCentral.
4. Web site: Barter Books : Playfair, William : The Baronetage of Scotland. British Family Antiquity: Illustrative of the Origin and Progress of the Rank Honours and Personal Merit of the Nobility of the United Kingdom, .. Volume VIII. Containing the Baronetage of Scotland.. www.barterbooks.co.uk.
5. Web site: History - Kirkhill Church.
6. Web site: Clan Wardlaw - Scotland. www.clanwardlaw.com.