Name: Willoughby Origin: Local Comment: From the lordship of Willoughby, in Lincolnshire, England, given to a Norman knight by William the Conqueror. Willoughby: The town or habitation by the willows. *English: habitational name from any of the various places called Willoughby, for example in Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire, and Warwickshire. They are named from an Old English wilig 'willow' + Old Norse býr 'farm', 'settlement', or perhaps in some cases from wilig + Old English beag 'ring'. *The Norman conquest of England in 1066 added many new elements to an already vibrant culture. Among these were thousands of new names. The Willoughby name was first found in Lincolnshire where Sir William de Willoughby, a Norman knight who was granted the estates by William the Conqueror, was Lord of Willoughby. *The Willoughby crest has the motto: "Verite sans peur" which means "Truth without fear."