Whillans

Whillans One-Name Study

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Study details

Study: Whillans

Variants: Wealands, Wealleans, Wheelans, Whellens, Whillance, Whillas, Whillis, Willans, Willins

Category: 3 - A study where research using core genealogical datasets and transcriptions is well under way on a global basis.

DNA website: www.familytreedna.com/public/Whillans

Contact: Dr Frank Whillans

About the study

The Whillans One-Name Study commenced seriously in 1983 and concentrated on using parish and census records to link all those surnamed as or descended from Whillans to the family of James Whillans born in Roxburghshire Scotland during 1688. To mid 2024, some 4,540 persons have been identified by name as his descendants. This research has been founded upon 'The Chronological Table of the Whillans Family of Jedwater, Parish of Southdean Roxburghshire Scotland', compiled by Rev William Whillans of London Ontario over two centuries ago during August 1823.

In 1997, this study extended to its homonyms. Since then, as examples, two groups of Wealleans (numbering 1,210 and 1,175 descendants) and one Whillis group (numbering 2,050 descendants) have been compiled, and work continues to link Whillans with Wealleans & Whillis and its other homonyms.

Variant names

Several homonyms for the Whillans surname exist, with the principal of these being Wealleans, Whellans, Whillance, Whillas, Whillis, Willans, as well as Wheelands/Wheelans/Weelands & Whealands/Whealans/Wealands. It is hypothesised, correctly or incorrectly, that all these different spellings occur due to different regional and temporal influences on how the name was heard and recorded by ministers. With the considerable support from scores of other genealogists, research on some of these has been well progressed, eg Whillans from Roxburghshire, Whillas from Berwickshire, Wealleans/Whellens/Whillis from Northumberland, Weelands/Wealands from Durham, and Willans from Leeds Yorkshire.

There is very strong Y-DNA evidence that Whillans, Whellens, and one of the two Wealleans families, are genetically related.

The surname Williams, though a very common misspelling of Whillans, is unconnected.

DNA data indicate no connection with Willing, Whalen, nor McQuillans surnames.

Name origin

Considerable discussion on the origin of these homonyms has occurred. The most likely hypothesis argues that the last part of our surname 'lands' is quite obvious, with the first part arising from the Anglo-Saxon for 'well/fountain/spring' appearing to be 'wiell/wiella/wielle', and 'boil/bubble' to be 'weallan'. Therefore the 'spring-lands' emerging near the headwaters of the Liddel River within the Castleton parish of SW Roxburghshire has led us to the present day surname. We were, it is argued, the people who farmed those holdings in the early days. Another associated explanation is that Middle English for 'cart, wagon' is 'whele', and as a consequence, Liddesdale features included the Wheel Causeway (a Roman road fit for wheeled traffic), Wheelrig Head (a 448m hill rising next to the Causeway), and Wheel Kirk (erected about 1170AD, probably on the nearby Wheelrig Ridge and near the still unplaced Whele village, with its adjoining lands referred to as Over and Nether Wheelkirk).

Another hypothesis is that the name derives from MacQuhillans of the 'Route' in northern Antrim of NE Ireland, however this has struggled due to the lack of any match to date between MacQuillans Y-DNA and Whillans Y-DNA.

In the early 1600s, King James I successfully stymied the practice of rievers who had raided properties across the English-Scottish border for centuries. In his ruthless dispersal of these rievers and their folk, it is postulated that our clan moved out to adjoining districts. There is no known evidence about how those with our name might have been caught up with the rievers, if indeed they were. It might simply have been necessary for our families to get away from all the turmoil during those early decades of the 1600s.

Historical occurrences of the name

The Whillans surname has been located in written records as early as 1622 in Coldingham Berwickshire Scotland, when a James Quhillans was a witness at a granting of legal possession of feudal property ('Qu' = 'W' in old Scotland).

Whillans forebears:
* Don Desbrow Whillans (English mountaineer): Whillans Hut (UK), Whillans Harness.
* Ken Gilmour Whillans (Brampton Ontario mayor): Ken Whillans Square, Whillans Lake (both in Ontario).
* Ian Morley Whillans (Antarctic glaciologist): Mount Whillans, Whillans Ice Stream, Lake Whillans (all in Antarctica).

The earliest Wealleans progenitor was born during the 1630s. Many of his descendants lived in Flotterton House at Harbottle Peels of Northumberland overseeing their very significant land & stock properties. While this group is not genetically linked to Whillans, it is integral to the study.

The one other Wealleans group originated with John (b1793 in Wooler) and Anna in Northumberland with both interred in St Michael’s churchyard in Alnwick. The memorial inscription there shows that all those buried before June 1847 were inscribed as Whillans on the gravestone, while those after that date were Weallans; only three months separated the last Whillans and the first Weallans. The surname had changed quickly to be the same as that of the more established Wealleans family.

One Whillis group, from Richard Whillis b~1735 Berwick-upon-Tweed, has as one descendant, Flight Engineer Samuel Leslie Whillis, who lost his life during the WW2 dambuster raid.

One Willans group, hypothesised to be from William Willans b~1672 & Susanna Rhodes of Hunslet Yorkshire, has as one descendant, UK Prime Minister Herbert Henry Asquith.

Name frequency

The surname Whillans originally was most frequent in Roxburghshire, while Whillas was most frequent in Berwickshire (to its north-east), Wheelans in Lanarkshire (to its north-west), Wealleans & Whillis in Northumberland (to its south), Weelands & Wealands in Durham (further to the south), and Willans in Yorkshire's West Riding (even further to the south).

Expanding on the above, the Journal of One-Name Studies article 'From Genesis to Whillans and Back' published in late 2012 (JOONS Volume 11 Issue 3) is available on the internet. A follow-up article in the Journal 'Willins - A Mutation?' was published in mid 1023 (JOONS Volume 14 Issue 10) and is available from Frank Whillans.

Distribution of the name

Both the use of telephone books in 1983 and the International Genealogical Index placed the main concentration of the Whillans surname within Roxburghshire Scotland, especially in or near Hawick & Jedburgh. After the substantial emigrations during the 19th century, two main clusters were to be found, in Vancouver British Columbia Canada and Brisbane Queensland Australia.

The Inaugural Whillans Family Reunion, pictured above, was held over 15-16th August 1998 in New South Wales Australia, to celebrate the birthdays of Jessie Putland nee Whillans (95yo, b12aug1903), Eric Whillans (90yo, b14aug1908), and Anne Crockett nee Whillans (60yo, b14aug1938). Jessie Roesler nee Whillans (75yo, b09aug1923), in attendance, remarkably escaped our attention. Mark Augustine Whillans (28yo) met his seventh cousin Mark Alexander Whillans (30yo), and Teresa Whillans (27yo) met her seventh cousin Kylie Whillans (25yo).

Data

Frank collects all references to the surname and its several homonyms up to the present day. Excerpts can be provided as soft copy to those with a genuine genealogical interest in these surnames. Frank manages the Whillans Family Tree DNA Project and also produces an annual e-newsletter. The Whillans Rootsweb List, which is now defunct, can no longer have its Archive accessed. It was replaced in 2020 by the Whillans Groups.io List.

DNA

A DNA study commenced during 2007 in order to determine whether the names Whillans, Wealleans, and other homonyms (Wealands, Wealens, Wheallens, Wheelens, Whellens, Whillance, Whillas, Whillis, Willans), are genetically related, as hypothesised, that is, only differing due to the spellings used by different ministers in different counties.
The DNA Study to date shows a very strong match between the limited number of Whillans, Whellens, and Wealleans participants.

These DNA results do not support the literature which indicates that Whillans may have been a sept of (and presumably intermarried with) the MacDonald clan, nor part of the McQuhillans of the 'Route' in Antrim. Likewise, testing has so far shown no link with the surnames Willing nor Whalen.

If you are a male with one of the above homonyms or one very similar, you can greatly assist our project by taking a simple and painless Y-DNA test involving simple swabbing inside your cheek. The FamilyTree Y-DNA37, a 37-marker paternal test, is the test recommended. Because this is a group study (under the auspices of GOONS and Family Tree DNA), the cost (2020) is about US$120. Request a Y-DNA test.

Links

Potential contributors to the Whillans Groups.io List may subscribe at no cost by sending an email to <whillans+subscribe@groups.io>.

If you would like to receive the annual e-newsletter, send Frank an email request - you will probably receive the most recent in reply.

Contact Details

Dr Frank Whillans

General Search Results

Occurrences of the surname Whillans in the Guild Indexes

(Click on the number to view the search results in each index. Indexes marked by * are only accessible by logged in Guild members.)

Global Marriages 3
References to the name Whillans in the Guild Journal 2

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