Catelle History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The generations and branches of the Catelle family share a name that has its roots in the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture of Britain. The name Catelle comes from Chetel, an Old Norse and Old English given name. "The Welsh Annals (Annales Cambriae, Mon. Hist. Brit.) mention a Catell, king of Powys, in A.D. 808, and other eminent personages of the same Christian name. Cattal is, however, the name of a township in the West Riding of Yorkshire. " 1

Early Origins of the Catelle family

The surname Catelle was first found in Norfolk, where Chetel Frieday, a freeman was listed in 1087. 2 Early records were more often than not of the name as a forename as almost two hundred years later, the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 list Cattle Bagge in Cambridgeshire. 3 The same rolls include Hervey Catel in Norfolk and Geoffrey Cattel in Huntingdonshire. 4

Later in Yorkshire, the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 include: Thomas Chetill; and Johannes Chetel. 3

Again in Yorkshire, we found John Cattle in 1653, John Cattell in 1683, and John Cattall in 1707, all listed as Freemen of York. 4

"The name of Cattell is now well established around Birmingham: it is also found in the contiguous county of Oxford. Six hundred years ago it occurred as Catel and Katel in Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire, Hunts, Norfolk, and Lincolnshire." 5

Early History of the Catelle family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Catelle research. Another 237 words (17 lines of text) covering the years 1275, 1279, 1500, 1530, 1561, 1653, 1683, 1707, 1773, 1780, 1781, 1787, 1790, 1792, 1802, 1810 and 1814 are included under the topic Early Catelle History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Catelle 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 Catelle include Cattell, Cattle, Catel, Cattall, Catell, Cattelle and many more.

Early Notables of the Catelle family

Notables of this surname at this time include: Geoffrey Catel, a prominent 13th century landholder in Huntingdonshire.Back in France, where some of the family remained, Charles Simon Catel, born June 1773 at l'Aigle (Orne); began his studies very early under Sacchini, Gobert, and Gossec, in the 'Ecole royale de chant et de déclamation,' at Paris. In 1787 he was made accompanist and 'professeur-adjoint' of the School, and in 1790 accompanist at the Opera. The same year he became chief, conjointly with Gossec, of the band of the Garde Nationale, for which he wrote a vast quantity of military music, which was...
Another 106 words (8 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Catelle Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Catelle family

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 Catelle or a variant listed above: Thomas Cattle who arrived in Virginia in 1635.

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Rye, Walter, A History of Norfolk. London: Elliot Stock, 62, Paternoster Row, 1885. 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)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.