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Possible Origins of the Ballinger family Name
The German surname Ballinger had two distinct orgins. Firstly, the surname Ballinger is of patronyic origin, dericing from the name of the father of the original bearer. In this instance, the surname Ballinger derives from the German personal name Baldo, which in turn derives from the Gothic "balds", the Old High German "bald" meaning "courageous, bright". Here, the surname Ballinger literally translates into "son of Baldo". Alternatively, the surname Ballinger is of toponymic origin, deriving from the name of the place, where the original bearer of the name once lived or held land. Here, the surname Ballinger derives from the cith of Balingen, which is located in the southweatern German. The city of Balingen, was probably founded by someone with the personal name Ball or Baldo. The ending "inger" is usually found being of toponymic or patronymic origins meaning "coming from" a town or a family. The surname Ballinger and its variant forms of Balle and Balinger can be found in documents dating back to the fourteenth century. One Heinrich dictus de Baldinger was a monk of the monastery of Saint Trubert, as documents for the year 1309 indicate. One Konrad Ball was a resident and citizen of Mengen, near Saulgau, in the yeart 1377. Documents for the year 1432 indicate one Johannes Balinger, he was a notary and resident in Hechingen. One Melchior Balles was a resident of Semmesweiler, near Oberkochen, in the year 1680.
Another possible name origin for the New Zealand Ballingers is from the French word 'boulanger' which means baker. According to Esme Ballinger, the ancesters of the NEw Zealand Ballingers were bakers from France who left for England after the Normandy evasion. One Joseph Ballinger (born1822) emigrated to Melbourne, Australia from England in 1853 with his wife Elizabeth, then to New Zealand in 1864.
A coat of arms was granted to a family named Ballinger. |