Aldritt History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Aldritt is a name of Anglo-Saxon origin. It was a name given to a person noted for giving good counsel 1 or perhaps it was "an Anglo-Saxon personal name." 2

Early Origins of the Aldritt family

The surname Aldritt was first found in Cambridgeshire, at Aldreth, a hamlet that dates back to 1170 when it was listed as Alrehetha in the Pipe Rolls. The name literally means "landing-place by the alders" from the Old English words for "alor" and "hyth." 3 4

However, the surname dates back further and is recorded in the Domesday Book as Ældred, Ældret, Aldret, Eldred, Eldret 5 as holding lands under the Norman King William soon after the Conquest in 1086. 6 In fact, Aldred was a famous ecclesiastic, who was Bishop of York from 1044-1060, and Archbishop of York from 1060-1069, and it was he who crowned the Conqueror.

"Edred or Eadred (died 955) was an ancient Saxon king of the English, youngest son of Eadward the elder and Eadgifu, and was chosen in 946 to succeed his brother Eadmund. At his coronation he received the submission of the Northumbrians, the Northmen, the Welsh, and the Scots. " 7

Aldred the Glossator (10th cent.) was the "writer of the glosses in the Northumbrian dialect which are inserted in the Latin manuscript of the Gospels, known as the 'Lindisfarne Gospels,' or 'Durham Book,' and written about the year 700 in honour of St. Cuthberht. " 7 Aldred (d. 1069), was an early English divine, Archbishop of York who first appears as a monk of Winchester. 7

Early feudal rolls provided the king of the time a method of cataloguing holdings for taxation, but today they provide a glimpse into the wide surname spellings in use at that time. Freqently found in early rolls in Latin, as a forename or in the singular from, we found Aldret de Windegate c. 1145-1165 in Northumberland, Eldredus in 1161-1177 in Herefordshire, Golding Aldred c. 1224 in Clerkenwell, Isle of Man, and William Aldret in the Subsidy Rolls for Worcestershire in 1275. Eilredus de Mannest was listed in the Curia Regis Rolls for Kent in 1198, William Eyldred in the Assize Rolls for Kent in 1317, and Maud Aildred was found in the Subsidy Rolls for Essex in 1327. 5

The Excerpta e Rotulis Finium in Turri Londinensi (London) listed Aldred filius Roger and the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 listed Aldred Ander in Cambridgeshire. 8 In Somerset, we found two early records: Nicholas Alrede and William Aired, both listed 1 Edward III (during the first year of the reign of King Edward III.) 9

Early History of the Aldritt family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Aldritt research. Another 59 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1198, 1200, 1552, 1561, 1563, 1586, 1588, 1624, 1632, 1646 and 1653 are included under the topic Early Aldritt History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Aldritt Spelling Variations

Before the last few hundred years, the English language had no fast system of spelling rules. For that reason, spelling variations are commonly found in early Anglo-Saxon surnames. Over the years, many variations of the name Aldritt were recorded, including Aldred, Aldreth, Aldret and others.

Early Notables of the Aldritt family

Notables of the family at this time include John Eldred (1552-1632), an English traveler and merchant. Born in New Buckenham, Norfolk, after his parents moved from Suffolk, he traveled to Tripoli and returned home with a ship full of goods that were sold making him a wealthy man with a large fortune. His son, Sir Revett Eldred, 1st Baronet of Saxham Magna Suffolk (d. c. 1653) held the title but became extinct on his death. Thomas Eldred (1561-1624)...
Another 77 words (6 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Aldritt Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Aldritt family

To escape oppression and starvation at that time, many English families left for the "open frontiers" of the New World with all its perceived opportunities. In droves people migrated to the many British colonies, those in North America in particular, paying high rates for passages in cramped, unsafe ships. Although many of the settlers did not make the long passage alive, those who did see the shores of North America perceived great opportunities before them. Many of the families that came from England went on to make essential contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. Research into various historical records revealed some of first members of the Aldritt family emigrate to North America: Robert Aldred, who settled in Virginia in 1635; William Aldred arrived in Philadelphia in 1834 and moved westward.

Citations +

Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Barber, Henry, British Family Names London: Elliot Stock, 62 Paternoster Row, 1894. Print.
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Dickinson, F.H., Kirby's Quest for Somerset of 16th of Edward the 3rd London: Harrison and Sons, Printers in Ordinary to Her Majesty, St, Martin's Lane, 1889. Print.