Show ContentsSalkield History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Salkield family

The surname Salkield was first found in Cumberland where the Pipe Rolls of 1210 list Hamo de Salkil as holding lands there at that time. Sixty years later, Thomas de Salkild was listed in the Assize Rolls for Northumberland in 1279. 1

Great and Little Salkeld date back to c. 1110 when they were collectively known as Salchild having been derived from the Old English "salh" + hylte" and literally meant "sallow-tree wood." 2

Another source claims the place name is from the Viking "selia" + "kelda" and literally meant "the willow tree spring."

"There is a mineral spring on the common having chalybeate properties." 3

"The family so called, very influential in Cumberland in the XIV. century, probably derived their name from either Great or Little Salkeld, in that county." 4

"The church tower [of Great Salkeld], which appears to have contained four rooms one above another, was formerly resorted to as a place of security, and under it is a dungeon." 5

The Placita de Quo Warranto, temp. Edward I-III had two listing for the family in Cumberland: John de Salkild; and Thomas de Salkeld. Both were listed "20 Edward I," or in other words "during the twentieth year of King Edward I's reign." 6

Early History of the Salkield family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Salkield research. Another 212 words (15 lines of text) covering the years 1270, 1475, 1544, 1560, 1576, 1593, 1610, 1613, 1635, 1646, 1651, 1652, 1659, 1660, 1671, 1688, 1699 and 1715 are included under the topic Early Salkield History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Salkield Spelling Variations

Until the dictionary, an invention of only the last few hundred years, the English language lacked any comprehensive system of spelling rules. Consequently, spelling variations in names are frequently found in early Anglo-Saxon and later Anglo-Norman documents. One person's name was often spelled several different ways over a lifetime. The recorded variations of Salkield include Salkeld, Salked, Salkeed, Salkelds and others.

Early Notables of the Salkield family

Notables of this surname at this time include: Sir Richard Salkeld of Corby, Thomas Salkeld, High Sheriff of Cumberland in 1544. John Salkeld (1576-1660), was an English Catholic renegade and author, descended from the Salkelds of Corby Castle, Cumberland. "He was possibly of Queen's College, Oxford, but did not graduate, and was soon after sent to Spain, and studied under the Jesuits in the university of Coimbra. After living for a time at the house of Dr. King, Bishop of London, he indulged in speculations as to the nature of angels, and dedicated a treatise on the subject to the king in...
Another 113 words (8 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Salkield Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ireland Migration of the Salkield family to Ireland

Some of the Salkield family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. More information about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Salkield family

Thousands of English families boarded ships sailing to the New World in the hope of escaping the unrest found in England at this time. Although the search for opportunity and freedom from persecution abroad took the lives of many because of the cramped conditions and unsanitary nature of the vessels, the opportunity perceived in the growing colonies of North America beckoned. Many of the settlers who survived the journey went on to make important contributions to the transplanted cultures of their adopted countries. The Salkield were among these contributors, for they have been located in early North American records: Fred and George Salked arrived in New Orleans in 1820; Thomas Salkeld settled in Virginia in 1728.



  1. Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
  2. Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
  3. Harrison, Henry, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary Baltimore: Geneological Publishing Company, 2013. Print
  4. Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
  5. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
  6. Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)


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