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![Show Contents]() Swettmen History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
- Origins Available:
 Ireland
The Swettmen surname came to Ireland from Britain with the Anglo-Norman (Strongbow) invasion of the 12th century. The surname Swettmen is derived from the Old English word "swete," which meant "sweet," "pleasant," or "agreeable;" along with the suffix -man. As such, it was a nickname surname, created for a popular person. Most of the native Irish surnames were patronymics created from the Gaelic names of an ancestor, and some of the Anglo-Norman naming practices of these settlers were seen as rather unusual. The Gaelic form of the surname Swettmen is Suatman. Early Origins of the Swettmen familyThe surname Swettmen was first found in County Killkenny, where they settled about the year 1177 where they were granted lands originally belonging to the native Irish for their contribution to the defeat of the Irish by Strongbow, Earl of Pembroke. One of the first records of the family was Milo Sweetman (died 1380), Archbishop of Armagh, "a native of Ireland, came of an Anglo-Irish family. A Maurice Sweetman was Archdeacon of Armagh in 1365. Milo was appointed treasurer of the cathedral of Ossory or Kilkenny before 1360, in which year the chapter elected him bishop of that diocese. " 1 While the name is now generally regarded as Irish, not all of the family emigrated to Ireland with Strongbow. The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 listed: Swetman (without surname), Oxfordshire; Swetman filius Edith, Oxfordshire; Swetman de Helignam, Norfolk; Sweteman Textor, Buckinghamshire; and Adam Swetman, Oxfordshire, 1273. 2 Another source notes that the parish of Swettenham is in the union of Congleton, hundred of Northwich, Cheshire. 3 This parish derives its name from "the servant of Swet (sweet); one who came from Swettenham (Sweta's homestead.)" 4 Early History of the Swettmen familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Swettmen research. Another 60 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1360, 1361, 1380, 1584 and 1874 are included under the topic Early Swettmen History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Swettmen Spelling VariationsChurch officials and medieval scribes spelled names as they sounded; therefore, single person, could have his name spelt many different ways during their lifetime. While investigating the origins of the name Swettmen, many spelling variations were encountered, including: Suatman, Sweetman, Swetman and others. Early Notables of the Swettmen familyMore information is included under the topic Early Swettmen Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Migration of the Swettmen familyA great number of Irish families left their homeland in the late 18th century and throughout the 19th century, migrating to such far away lands as Australia and North America. The early settlers left after much planning and deliberation. They were generally well off but they desired a tract of land that they could farm solely for themselves. The great mass of immigrants to arrive on North American shores in the 1840s differed greatly from their predecessors because many of them were utterly destitute, selling all they had to gain a passage on a ship or having their way paid by a philanthropic society. These Irish people were trying to escape the aftermath of the Great Potato Famine: poverty, starvation, disease, and, for many, ultimately death. Those that arrived on North American shores were not warmly welcomed by the established population, but they were vital to the rapid development of the industry, agriculture, and infrastructure of the infant nations of the United States and what would become Canada. Early passenger and immigration lists reveal many Irish settlers bearing the name Swettmen: Margeret Sweetman settled in Virginia in 1656; Ann Sweetman settled in Annapolis, Maryland in 1722; M.C. Sweetman settled in Charleston South Carolina in 1794.
- Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. 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.
- Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
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