Quatterham History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The name Quatterham has been recorded in British history since the time when the Anglo-Saxons ruled over the region. The name is assumed to have been given to someone who was a person who was mail-fisted or perhaps the nickname 'four hands.' 1 The surname Quatterham originally derived from the armor that soldiers or knights donned for protection in battle. Occupational names that were derived from the common trades of the medieval era transcended European cultural and linguistic boundaries.

Early Origins of the Quatterham family

The surname Quatterham was first found in Oxfordshire where the first records of the name were Clare Quatremayns and William Quatremeyns who were both listed in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273. A few years later, Thomas Quatremains was listed in the Writs of Parliament in 1313. 2 Digging further into the 'four hands' reference we found: "French for 'four hands' which form the charge of the family shield." 1 Thame in Oxfordshire was home to one branch of the family.

"About the time of Edward IV., an hospital for destitute persons was endowed with lands by Richard Quatremain, a member of a family of high repute. The north transept [of the church] is the burying place of the Dormer family, and the south transept the sepulchral chapel of the Quatremains; both contain handsome monuments." 3

The Quartermaine family is a fictional family from the ABC soap opera, General Hospital and Al(l)an Quatermain is the protagonist of H. Rider Haggard's 1885 novel King Solomon's Mines. The character was recently reintroduced with the popular series League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (LXG) and in the eponymous film released in 2003, Sean Connery played the character Alan Quatermain.

Quartermaine's Terms is a play by Simon Gray which won The Cheltenham Prize in 1982.

Early History of the Quatterham family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Quatterham research. Another 68 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1618, 1662 and 1667 are included under the topic Early Quatterham History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Quatterham Spelling Variations

The first dictionaries that appeared in the last few hundred years did much to standardize the English language. Before that time, spelling variations in names were a common occurrence. The language was changing, incorporating pieces of other languages, and the spelling of names changed with it. Quatterham has been spelled many different ways, including Quartermain, Quartermaines, Quarterman, Quartermaynes, Quatermain, Quatermaines, Quaterman, Quatermay and many more.

Early Notables of the Quatterham family

Another 40 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Quatterham Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Quatterham family

Thousands of English families in this era began to emigrate the New World in search of land and freedom from religious and political persecution. Although the passage was expensive and the ships were dark, crowded, and unsafe, those who made the voyage safely were rewarded with opportunities unavailable to them in their homeland. Research into passenger and immigration lists has revealed some of the very first Quatterhams to arrive in North America: John Quarterman, on record in Virginia in 1742; and Joseph Quartman settled in Philadelphia in 1824.

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. 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)
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.