Show ContentsShifflett History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Medieval Austria is the ancient homeland of the Shifflett family. Austria, which was originally home to a Celtic people, was conquered by the Roman Empire in about 15 BC. Following the fall of Rome, Austria was repeatedly invaded by barbarian tribes, such as the Vandals, Visigoths, and Huns, who swept in from the east. During the 5th and 6th centuries, the Alemanni, Avars and Slavs settled Austria. The Avars were defeated in 785 by the Frankish emperor Charlemagne, who set up the East Mark, which later became known as the Österreich. Austria was ruled by the Babenburger dynasty until 1278, when they were succeeded by the Hapsburg dynasty, which ruled Austria until the 20th century.

Early Origins of the Shifflett family

The surname Shifflett was first found in Austria, where the name could be considered to make a great early contribution to the feudal society which became the backbone of early development of Europe. The name became prominent in Austrian affairs and branched into many houses which played important roles in the savage tribal and national conflicts, each group seeking power and status in an ever changing territorial profile.

Early History of the Shifflett family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Shifflett research. Another 126 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1708, 1847 and 1920 are included under the topic Early Shifflett History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Shifflett Spelling Variations

One can encounter great variation in the spelling of surnames: in early times, spelling in general, and thus the spelling of names was not yet standardized; and later, spellings would change with branching and movement of families. Variations of the name Shifflett include Schiff, Schiffner, Schifer, Schiffs, Schiffe and many more.

Early Notables of the Shifflett family

Another 36 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Shifflett Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Shifflett Ranking

In the United States, the name Shifflett is the 4,299th most popular surname with an estimated 7,461 people with that name. 1

Migration of the Shifflett family

After the First World War, Austria became a republic. The Treaty of Versailles broke up the empire in 1919 and many of the Sudeten Germans were incorporated into the new nation of Czechoslovakia. In the 20th century, many Austrians migrated to other parts of Germany or Europe, as well as to North America. In the United States, the majority of settlers landed in Philadelphia, and moved on to Ohio, Texas, Illinois, California, New York, and Maryland. Many German settlers also migrated to Canada, particularly Ontario and the Prairies. Amongst the settlers in North America with this distinguished name Shifflett were Philip Schiffer, who arrived in New York in 1709-10; Bernard Schiffer came to Philadelphia in 1738; as well as Paul Schiffer in the same year; Hans Schiff came to Philadelphia in 1751.


Contemporary Notables of the name Shifflett (post 1700) +

  • John M Shifflett (1953-2017), American Jazz Double bass player who worked with Dinah Shore, Mel Torme, Jerry Lewis, Dionne Warwick and the Smothers Brothers
  • Stephen Earl "Steve" Shifflett (b. 1966), American Major League Baseball pitcher who played one season for the Kansas City Royals in 1992
  • Garland Jessie Shifflett (b. 1935), American Major League Baseball pitcher who played from 1957 to 1964 for the Washington Senators and the Minnesota Twins


  1. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/


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