|
UP to 50% OFF
- Weekly Specials
An excerpt from www.HouseOfNames.com archives copyright © 2000 - 2012
Where did the Irish Dowdell family come from? What is the Irish Dowdell family crest and coat of arms? When did the Dowdell family first arrive in the United States? Where did the various branches of the family go? What is the Dowdell family history? Ireland already had an established system of hereditary surnames when the Strongbownians arrived. Often the two traditions blended together quite well due to some of their basic similarities, but the incoming Anglo-Norman system brought in some forms that were uncommon amongst the Irish. One of these Anglo-Norman anomalies was the prevalence of local surnames, such as Dowdell. Local names were taken from the names of a place or a geographical feature where the person lived, held land, or was born. Originally, the place names were prefixed by de, which means from in French. This type of prefix was eventually either made a part of the surname if the place name began with a vowel or was eliminated entirely. The local surnames of these Strongbownian invaders referred to places in Normandy, or more typically England, but eventually for those Anglo- Normans that remained in Ireland, the nicknames referred to places or geographical features of the island: they became true local names. The Dowdell family appears to have originally lived in a place called Dovedale or Dowdale in Yorkshire. The surname Dowdell belongs to the large category of Anglo-Norman habitation names, which are derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads. The Gaelic form of the Dowdell surname is Dubhdal, this is one of the few instances where the element dubh is not derived from the adjective which means black. Church officials and medieval scribes spelled names as they sounded; therefore, single person, could have his name spelt many different ways during their lifetime. While investigating the origins of the name Dowdell, many spelling variations were encountered, including: Dowdall, Dovedale, Dowdale, Dowdell, Dowdle and others. First found in Yorkshire, where they held a family seat from very ancient times, some say well before the Norman Conquest and the arrival of Duke William at Hastings in 1066 A.D. This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Dowdell research. Another 203 words(14 lines of text) covering the years 1172, 1482, 1600, 1584, 1487, 1558, 1658 and 1641 are included under the topic Early Dowdell History in all our PDF Extended History products. Another 161 words(12 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Dowdell Notables in all our PDF Extended History products. Ireland's Great Potato Famine left the country's inhabitants in extreme poverty and starvation. Many families left their homeland for North America for the promise of work, freedom and land ownership. Although the Irish were not free of economic and racial discrimination in North America, they did contribute greatly to the rapid development of bridges, canals, roads, and railways. Eventually, they would be accepted in other areas such as commerce, education, and the arts. An examination of immigration and passenger lists revealed many bearing the name Dowdell: Dowdell Settlers in the United States in the 18th Century
Dowdell Settlers in the United States in the 20th Century
The Dowdell Family Crest was acquired from the Houseofnames.com archives. The Dowdell Family Crest was drawn according to heraldic standards based on published blazons. We generally include the oldest published family crest once associated with each surname. This page was last modified on 12 April 2012 at 14:15. ©2000-2012 Swyrich Corporation. See Terms of Use for details. houseofnames.com is an internet property owned by Swyrich Corporation. Tools
UP to 50% OFF
- Weekly Specials
SHOPPING SERVICES
Gift Card Balance International Help Coat of Arms & Family Crest Search History Search 
Home | About Us | Our Guarantee | Privacy Statement | Terms of Use Policy | Contact Us | Name Search | Site Map Call us Toll free: 888-468-7686 xt 222 or (613)384-9986 xt 222 Copyright © 2000 - 2012 Swyrich Corporation, all rights reserved |
||
