Swette History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

Swette is an ancient Anglo-Saxon name. It was a name given to a person who was a person who was referred to as swete, which is an Old English word used to describe a sweet or gentle person. 1 Another source claims the name was "probably an Anglo-Saxon personal name, having reference to character." 2

Early Origins of the Swette family

The surname Swette was first found in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 where the name was found as both a forename and a surname: Swet le Bone, Norfolk; Adam Swet, Oxfordshire; and Roger Swet, Cambridgeshire. 3

In Somerset, Walter Swete was listed there 1 Edward III (during the first year of the reign of King Edward III) 4 and later the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 listed Johannes Suete and Johannes Swete as holding lands there at that time. 3

Early History of the Swette family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Swette research. Another 265 words (19 lines of text) covering the years 1578, 1583, 1660, 1672, 1685, 1700, 1708, 1712, 1752, 1770, 1774, 1777, 1781 and 1821 are included under the topic Early Swette History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Swette Spelling Variations

One relatively recent invention that did much to standardize English spelling was the printing press. However, before its invention even the most literate people recorded their names according to sound rather than spelling. The spelling variations under which the name Swette has appeared include Sweit, Sweet, Swete, Sweete, Sweett and others.

Early Notables of the Swette family

More information is included under the topic Early Swette Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Swette family to Ireland

Some of the Swette family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 34 words (2 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 Swette family

At this time, the shores of the New World beckoned many English families that felt that the social climate in England was oppressive and lacked opportunity for change. Thousands left England at great expense in ships that were overcrowded and full of disease. A great portion of these settlers never survived the journey and even a greater number arrived sick, starving, and without a penny. The survivors, however, were often greeted with greater opportunity than they could have experienced back home. These English settlers made significant contributions to those colonies that would eventually become the United States and Canada. An examination of early immigration records and passenger ship lists revealed that people bearing the name Swette arrived in North America very early: Robert Sweet who settled in Virginia in 1623; George settled there in 1653; Thomas Sweet settled in Boston Massachusetts in 1633; William Sweet settled in Virginia in 1654.

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.
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Dickinson, F.H., Kirby's Quest for Somerset of 16th of Edward the 3rd London: Harrison and Sons, Printers in Ordinary to Her Majesty, St, Martin's Lane, 1889. Print.