Tayl History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Scotland
Ireland

During the Middle Ages, the surname of Tayl was used in Scotland. While the patronymic and metronymic surnames, which are derived from the name of the father and mother respectively, are the most common form of a hereditary surname in Scotland, occupational surnames also emerged during the late Middle Ages. Many people, such as the Tayl family, adopted the name of their occupation as their surname. However, an occupational name did not become a hereditary surname until the office or type of employment became hereditary. The surname Tayl was an occupational name for a tailor. Interestingly, the name Tayl was originally derived from the Anglo Norman French word taillour, meaning tailor. 1

Early Origins of the Tayl family

The surname Tayl was first found in many places throughout Scotland. Some of the early records include: Alexander le Tayllur who was valet of Alexander in 1276; John le Taillur who was held the mill of Selkirk as firmar in 1292; and Brice le Taillur who was one of the Scottish prisoners taken at the capture of Dunbar Castle in 1296. The last entry's year is of great significance to the surname and indeed to much of Scotland; for it was that year that King Edward I invaded Scotland and insisted that the native Scots pay homage to him.

Six persons of this name in the counties of Roxburgh, Dumfries, Edinburgh, Lanark, and Angus all rendered homage, 1296. 2 They held lands in Forfar, Cesseworth, Cunningham, Lanark, and Stirling in Scotland.

Early History of the Tayl family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Tayl research. Another 117 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1292, 1376, 1645, 1729, 1779, 1784, 1850, 1890 and 1920 are included under the topic Early Tayl History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Tayl Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Taylor, Taylour, Taylur, Tailler, Taillefer and many more.

Early Notables of the Tayl family

Notable among the family at this time was

Edward Taylor (1645-1729), who was hailed as the finest American poet of the 17th century upon the publication of his work in 1920, Sir Hubert Taylor, aid-de-camp to the King in 1779, George Taylor of...

Migration of the Tayl family to Ireland

Some of the Tayl family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 60 words (4 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Tayl migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Tayl Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

William Tayl, who landed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1685 3

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)