Kitting History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

In ancient Anglo-Saxon England, the ancestors of the Kitting surname lived in either of the settlements called Ketton in Durham or Rutland, or in the place called Keaton in Ermington, in Devon. 1 The surname Kitting belongs to the large category of Anglo-Saxon habitation names, which are derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads.

Early Origins of the Kitting family

The surname Kitting was first found in Leicestershire. One of the first records of the family was Robert of Ketton (Latin: Robertus Cetenensis) (c. 1110-1160), an English medieval theologian, astronomer, translator and Arabist. His is thought to have been from village in Rutland, near Stamford, Lincolnshire. Today Ketton is a village and civil parish in Rutland in the East Midlands but dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086 when it was known as Chetone. 2 It is thought that the village name originated from "an old river name, possibly a derivation of the Celtic "ced" meaning "wood" + the Old English word "ea" meaning "river." 3

The second record of the family was Robert de Keton who was listed in the Calendar of Inquisitiones post mortem from Nottinghamshire in 1362. 4 The Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 list: Johannes de Keton; and Henry de Ketton. Thomas Keton was rector of Langale and Kirksted, Norfolk in 1506. 5

Early History of the Kitting family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Kitting research. Another 248 words (18 lines of text) covering the years 1134, 1143, 1362, 1379, 1397, 1399, 1423, 1500, 1506 and 1805 are included under the topic Early Kitting History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Kitting Spelling Variations

It is only in the last few hundred years that the English language has been standardized. For that reason, early Anglo-Saxon surnames like Kitting are characterized by many spelling variations. As the English language changed and incorporated elements of other European languages, even literate people changed the spelling of their names. The variations of the name Kitting include: Keaton, Keeton, Ketton, Keton, Ketyn, Keetyn and many more.

Early Notables of the Kitting family

Notables of the family at this time include Robert of Ketton, a medieval theologian, who traveled to France, the Byzantine Empire, and the Crusader States in Palestine with fellow scholar Herman of Carinthia, in 1134. In...
Another 35 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Kitting Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Kitting migration to the United States +

Many English families tired of political and religious strife left Britain for the new colonies in North America. Although the trip itself offered no relief - conditions on the ships were extremely cramped, and many travelers arrived diseased, starving, and destitute - these immigrants believed the opportunities that awaited them were worth the risks. Once in the colonies, many of the families did indeed prosper and, in turn, made significant contributions to the culture and economies of the growing colonies. An inquiry into the early roots of North American families has revealed a number of immigrants bearing the name Kitting or a variant listed above:

Kitting Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

James Kitting, who landed in Virginia in 1704 6

Citations +

Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)