Pettegree History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Scotland
Ireland
England

The name Pettegree comes from the ancient Norman culture that was established in Britain after the Conquest of 1066. It was a name for a small man. The name was originally derived from the Old French words "petit," meaning "small or little," and "cru," meaning "growth." Alternatively, the name could have be Anglo-French in origin from "pee de grue," meaning "foot of a crane." In this case, it would have been a nickname literally meaning "Crane-Foot." 1

Another source notes the was at one time "Petygrerve," but he believed the name is in reality derived from the manor of Pettigrew, near Gerans, in Cornwall. 2

On this latter source, we feel compelled to add the comments of P.H. Reaney: "The common belief that this name derives from a place in Cornwall is clearly untenable. There is no place of that name in that county, early forms have no preposition, and come from the eastern countries. Nor can the name be identical with 'pedigree' Fr: 'ped de grue' 'crane-foot'. " 3 While we are hesitant to give an added opinion to this squabble, we would add that we too could not find any place so named in Cornwall.

Reaney goes on to note that the first record of the name that he could find was in the Assize Rolls of Essex in 1227 where Andrew Peticruw was listed at that time. Richard and Roger Peticruw was listed in the Assize Rolls of Essex and Staffordshire in 1283 and 1298. 3

Despite the aforementioned, the name is generally understood to have a closer affinity to Scotland than England as we shall explore later.

Early Origins of the Pettegree family

The surname Pettegree was first found in Lanarkshire (Gaelic: Siorrachd Lannraig) a former county in the central Strathclyde region of Scotland, now divided into the Council Areas of North Lanarkshire, South Lanarkshire, and the City of Glasgow.

One of the first records of the name was Thomas Petykreu of the county of Lanark, who rendered homage to King Edward I of England in 1296. "John Petty grew witnessed the promulgation of a papal bull at Linlithgow in 1461. A booth was leased to John Pedecrw in 1488 for half a mark, and the same year, as John Pethecrew, he was made a burgess of Lanark." 4

Early History of the Pettegree family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Pettegree research. Another 80 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1497, 1515, 1518, 1791, 1865 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Pettegree History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Pettegree Spelling Variations

Anglo-Norman names are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. When the Normans became the ruling people of England in the 11th century, they introduced a new language into a society where the main languages of Old and later Middle English had no definite spelling rules. These languages were more often spoken than written, so they blended freely with one another. Contributing to this mixing of tongues was the fact that medieval scribes spelled words according to sound, ensuring that a person's name would appear differently in nearly every document in which it was recorded. The name has been spelled Pettigrew, Pettegrew, Pettergrew and others.

Early Notables of the Pettegree family

Another 44 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Pettegree Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Pettegree family to Ireland

Some of the Pettegree family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 79 words (6 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Pettegree family

For many English families, the political and religious disarray that plagued their homeland made the frontiers of the New World an attractive prospect. Thousands migrated, aboard cramped disease-ridden ships. They arrived sick, poor, and hungry, but were welcomed in many cases with far greater opportunity than at home in England. Many of these hardy settlers went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Among early immigrants bearing the name Pettegree or a variant listed above were: William Pettegrew, who settled in Boston in 1767; James Pettigrew settled in Philadelphia in 1855; William Pettigrew settled in Boston in 1822.

The Pettegree Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Sine sole nihil
Motto Translation: Nothing without the sun.

Citations +

Harrison, Henry, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary Baltimore: Geneological Publishing Company, 2013. Print
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)