The surname Armstrong is of Scottish and Northern English origin. It is derived from the Middle English nickname ‘earm’, arm and ‘strang’, strong, i.e with strong arms.The Armstrongs of the Scottish Borders were a warlike clan famous for centuries for raiding and reiving.It was the most feared and dangerous clan on the whole border and at its height,in the sixteenth century,it could put three thousand men into the saddle.In the decade after 1603 James VI,newly King of England and Scotland,began a ruthless campaign to ‘pacify’ the Borders,as a result the great riding clan of the Armstrongs were broken. After the death of the tenth chief in 1610 the Armstrongs scattered.The first known bearer of this name is Adam Armstrong,who was pardoned at Carlisle in 1235 for causing the death of another man. The name has been used by the Irish as a anglicization of the Gaelic name Trainor, which signifies ‘trean’, strong and ‘fear’, man.The name was brought to America by Scottish and English immigrants. One of the first forefathers to bring this na…
Coat of arms: Gules, three dexter arms vam…