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Theobald History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

United States Canada Australia New Zealand

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Citations

Theobald History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Germany

The generations and branches of the Theobald family share a name that has its roots in the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture of Britain. The name Theobald comes from the baptismal name Theobald,which was an ancient personal name. After the Norman Conquest, the Old English naming system gradually dissolved. Old English names became less common and were replaced by popular continental European names.

"In the 13th century century Tibbe was used as a pet-name for both men and women, from Isabel or Tibald (Theobald). The latter interchanged with Tebbe." 1

Early Origins of the Theobald family

The surname Theobald was first found in the Domesday Book of 1086; several bearers of Theobald as a personal name were recorded as landowners after the Norman Conquest, particularly in Huntingdonshire, Cambridgeshire, and Suffolk. The first recorded instance as a surname occurred in 1199, where Tomas Teobald was living in Gloucestershire.

Theobald or Tedbaldus (d. 1161), was Archbishop of Canterbury and came of a Norman family of knightly rank who settled near Thierceville, in the neighbourhood of Bec Hellouin. "He became a monk of Bec between 1093 and 1124, was made prior in 1127, and elected abbot in 1137. The see of Canterbury having been vacant since the death of William of Corbeil in 1136, the prior of Christ Church and a deputation of monks were summoned before King Stephen and the legate Alberic, and on 24 Dec. 1138 elected Theobald archbishop. " 2

Early History of the Theobald family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Theobald research. Another 85 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1199, 1601, 1688, 1744 and 1760 are included under the topic Early Theobald History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Theobald Spelling Variations

Until quite recently, the English language has lacked a definite system of spelling rules. Consequently, Anglo-Saxon surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. Changes in Anglo-Saxon names were influenced by the evolution of the English language, as it incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other languages. Although Medieval scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded, so it is common to find one person referred to by several different spellings of his surname, even the most literate people varied the spelling of their own names. Variations of the name Theobald include Theobald, Theobalds, Diebold, Theobold, Tubald, Tudball, Dipple, Diebald, Teupel, Diepelt, Dewalt and many more.

Early Notables of the Theobald family

Notables of this surname at this time include:

Robert Theobald (c.1601), a Latin poet
Lewis Theobald (1688-1744), was an English author most known for "Shakespeare Restored," a work exposing the inaccuracies of Alexander Pope's edition of Shakespeare; and John Theobald (d. 1760), was a...

Theobald Ranking

In the United States, the name Theobald is the 8,235^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 3 However, in France, the name Theobald is ranked the 8,631^st most popular surname with an estimated 500 - 1,000 people with that name. 4

Theobald migration to the United States +

Searching for a better life, many English families migrated to British colonies. Unfortunately, the majority of them traveled under extremely harsh conditions: overcrowding on the ships caused the majority of the immigrants to arrive diseased, famished, and destitute from the long journey across the ocean. For those families that arrived safely, modest prosperity was attainable, and many went on to make invaluable contributions to the development of the cultures of the new colonies. Research into the origins of individual families in North America revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Theobald or a variant listed above:

Theobald Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Clement Theobald, who landed in Virginia in 1641 5

Theobald Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Michel Theobald, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1739 5
Jakob Theobald, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1740 5
Casper Theobald, who arrived in America in 1743 5
Johan Michel Theobald, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1749 5
Johannes Theobald, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1752 5
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Theobald Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Friedrich Theobald, who landed in Texas in 1846 aboard the ship "Friedrich" 5
Daniel Theobald, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1848 5
George Peter Theobald, who arrived in Mississippi in 1858 5
Nicholas Theobald, who landed in St Clair County, Illinois in 1859 5
Peter Theobald, who landed in St Clair County, Illinois in 1860 5
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Theobald migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Theobald Settlers in Canada in the 20th Century

W Theobald, who landed in Saint John, New Brunswick in 1907

Theobald migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Theobald Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

George H. Theobald, aged 20, who arrived in South Australia in 1849 aboard the ship "Indian" 6
George Hart Theobald, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Indian" in 1849 6
Mr. William Theobald, British Convict who was convicted in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, England for 14 years, transported aboard the "Dudbrook" on 17th November 1852, arriving in Western Australia 7
John Theobald, aged 55, who arrived in South Australia in 1852 aboard the ship "Adelaide" 8
George Theobald, aged 22, who arrived in South Australia in 1852 aboard the ship "Steadfast" 9

Theobald migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Theobald Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Frederick Theobald, aged 20, a ploughman, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "Adamant" in 1874 10
Mrs. Theobald, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Tainui" arriving in New Plymouth, Taranaki, North Island, New Zealand in December 1890 11
Mr. E. Theobald, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Tainui" arriving in New Plymouth, Taranaki, North Island, New Zealand in December 1890 11
Mr. Theobald, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Tainui" arriving in New Plymouth, Taranaki, North Island, New Zealand in December 1890 11

Contemporary Notables of the name Theobald (post 1700) +

Robert Alfred Theobald (1884-1957), nicknamed "Fuzzy", a United States rear admiral and author of the book The Final Secret of Pearl Harbor: The Washington Background of the Pearl Harbor Attack (1954)
Robert A. Theobald, American Democratic Party politician, Member of Colorado State Senate, 1950 12
George Anna Theobald, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Delaware, 1964 12
Karl Theobald (b. 1969), English comedian and actor, best known as Dr. Martin Dear in Channel 4 sitcom Green Wing
Frederick Vincent Theobald (1868-1930), English entomologist and author of six volumes on the Diptera, entitled A Monograph of the Culicidae of the World (1901-1910)
William Theobald (1829-1908), English malacologist and naturalist on the staff of the Geological Survey of India in Burma
Nichola Jane "Nikki" Theobald, English film, television and voice-over actress, television presenter and fashion model
David Theobald (b. 1978), English football defender
Densill Theobald (b. 1982), Trinidadian football player
Robert GW Theobald (1929-1999), British author, speaker, and consultant
... (Another 2 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Theobald family +

RMS Titanic

Mr. Thomas Leonard Theobald (d. 1912), aged 34, English Third Class passenger from Strood, Kent who sailed aboard the RMS Titanic and died in the sinking and was recovered by CS Mackay-Bennett 13

Citations +

Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/nom/
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) The INDIAN 1849. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1849Indian.htm
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 23rd July 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/dudbrook
South Australian Register Tuesday 3 February 1852. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) ADELAIDE 1852. Retrieved http://www.theshipslist.com/ships/australia/adelaide1852.shtml
South Australian Register Tuesday 3 February 1852. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) STEADFAST 1852. Retrieved http://www.theshipslist.com/ships/australia/steadfast1852.shtml
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 22) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
Titanic Passenger List - Titanic Facts. (Retrieved 2016, July 13) . Retrieved from http://www.titanicfacts.net/titanic-passenger-list.html