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![Show Contents]() Dirt History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
- Origins Available:
 England Wales
Dirt is a name that first reached England following the Norman Conquest of 1066. The Dirt family lived in Devon, near the river Dart, from which the surname derives. 1 Alternatively, the name could have originated from the Old French word "dart 'a pointed missile thrown by hand', perhaps metonymic for a soldier or a hunter." 2 Early Origins of the Dirt familyThe surname Dirt was first found in Devon where Ralph de Derth was recorded in 1242. A few years later Juhelinus de Derte was recorded in the Hundredorum Rolls for Devon in 1275. The name is from Dart Raffe in Witheridge, Devon. Later again, John Dart was recorded in the Subsidy Rolls for Devon in 1524. In Gloucestershire, Walter Dert was listed in the Assize Rolls for 1221. 2 The family may have given birth to the parish of Dartington, in the union of Totnes, hundred of Stanborough, Stanborough and Coleridge, in Devon, two miles from Totnes 3 which is home to Dartington Manor, an historic hall and country estate of 1,200 acres dating from medieval times. One source claims the manor is "one of the most spectacular surviving domestic buildings of late Medieval England." Today it is the home of the Dartington Trust, which currently runs 16 charitable educational programs, including Schumacher College, Dartington Arts School, Research in Practice and the Dartington International Summer School. Early History of the Dirt familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Dirt research. Another 129 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1086, 1730, 1817, 1836, 1838, 1841, 1842, 1851, 1852, 1856, 1860, 1862, 1865, 1871, 1875, 1876, 1877, 1885, 1886 and 1887 are included under the topic Early Dirt History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Dirt Spelling VariationsIt is only in the last few hundred years that the English language has been standardized. For that reason, Anglo-Norman surnames like Dirt are characterized by many spelling variations. Scribes and monks in the Middle Ages spelled names they sounded, so it is common to find several variations that refer to a single person. As the English language changed and incorporated elements of other European languages such as Norman French and Latin, even literate people regularly changed the spelling of their names. The variations of the name Dirt include Dart, Darte, Darth and others. Early Notables of the Dirt familyOutstanding amongst the family at this time was John Dart (d. 1730), English antiquary, "bred an attorney, but meeting with little success in that profession, he turned to the church as a means...
Another 32 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Dirt Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Migration of the Dirt familyFaced with the chaos present in England at that time, many English families looked towards the open frontiers of the New World with its opportunities to escape oppression and starvation. People migrated to North America, as well as Australia and Ireland in droves, paying exorbitant rates for passages in cramped, unsafe ships. Many of the settlers did not make the long passage alive, but those who did see the shores of North America were welcomed with great opportunity. Many of the families that came from England went on to make essential contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. Some of the first immigrants to cross the Atlantic and come to North America carried the name Dirt, or a variant listed above: Ambrose Dart settled in Boston, Massachusetts about the year 1640; and Richard Dart settled in New London in the year 1664; Jane Dart settled in Bermuda in 1635.
- Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
- Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
- Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
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