Show ContentsKillwech History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The name Killwech is of Anglo-Saxon origin and came from when a family lived in Kilnwick or Kilnwick Percy in the East Riding of Yorkshire. They are now found in Humberside, a new county formed after the reorganization of local government in England in 1974. The place-name is based on the Old English personal name Cylla, and means "farm of a man named Cylla." 1 Kilnwick was recorded as Chileuuit 2 in the Domesday Book in 1086, and as Killingwic in the 12th century. Kilnwick Percy was named Chelingewic in 1086, as is recorded in the Domesday Book. The surname means "of Kilnwick."

Early Origins of the Killwech family

The surname Killwech was first found in Yorkshire at Kilnwick (or Kilnwick-on-the-Wolds), a village and parish in the Yorkshire Wolds. "Many provincial dialects drop the final N of Kiln; and the W in the termination, as in War(w)ick, Nor(w)ich." 3

Early History of the Killwech family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Killwech research. Another 86 words (6 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Killwech History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Killwech Spelling Variations

Sound was what guided spelling in the essentially pre-literate Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Also, before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Therefore, spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Killwech family name include Killick, Killwick, Killik, Killicke and others.

Early Notables of the Killwech family

More information is included under the topic Early Killwech Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Killwech family

For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, the Canadas, the America colonies, and many of smaller tropical colonies in the hope of finding better lives abroad. Although the passage on the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving, those families that survived the trip often went on to make valuable contributions to those new societies to which they arrived. Early immigrants bearing the Killwech surname or a spelling variation of the name include : James Killicke settled in Virginia in 1648.



  1. Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
  2. Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
  3. Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.


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