Tazewell History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The surname Tazewell is thought have originated in Normandy, France where some of the family were part of the invading force during the Norman Conquest. The Domesday Book lists Wymond de Taissel in Bedfordshire in 1080. 1

But some of the family remained in Normandy as the Magni Rotuli Scaccarii Normanniae lists Richard Tosel or Tossel and Ralph Tossel in Normandy 1180-1195. The same source lists Adeliza, William, Walter de Taissel or Tessel, and the parish of St. German de Tassel, Norm. 1180-1195. 2

Alternatively the name could have been a nickname "from the Hawk [Middle English tassel (l for earlier tercel, Old French t(i)ercel, male hawk; from (with diminutive suff. -el) Old French tierce, tiers, Latin tertius, third]." 3 4

Another source notes that Tessall, Worcestershire may be a source of the name, 5 but this place seems to now be a lost village.

Early Origins of the Tazewell family

The surname Tazewell was first found in Bedfordshire (Old English: Bedanfordscir), where Willmund de Taissel was recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086. Years later, William Tasseli was found in the Curia Regis Rolls for Sussex in 1206 and Bartholomew Tassel in the Feet of Fines for Surrey 1288-1289. 4

Early History of the Tazewell family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Tazewell research. Another 78 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1548 and 1585 are included under the topic Early Tazewell History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Tazewell Spelling Variations

Anglo-Norman names tend to be marked by an enormous number of spelling variations. This is largely due to the fact that Old and Middle English lacked any spelling rules when Norman French was introduced in the 11th century. The languages of the English courts at that time were French and Latin. These various languages mixed quite freely in the evolving social milieu. The final element of this mix is that medieval scribes spelled words according to their sounds rather than any definite rules, so a name was often spelled in as many different ways as the number of documents it appeared in. The name was spelled Tassell, Tassel, Taisel, Taisell, Tasell, Tassle and others.

Early Notables of the Tazewell family

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

Tazewell migration to the United States +

Because of the political and religious discontent in England, families began to migrate abroad in enormous numbers. Faced with persecution and starvation at home, the open frontiers and generally less oppressive social environment of the New World seemed tantalizing indeed to many English people. The trip was difficult, and not all made it unscathed, but many of those who did get to Canada and the United States made important contributions to the young nations in which they settled. Some of the first North American settlers with Tazewell name or one of its variants:

Tazewell Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

William Tazewell, who landed in Virginia in 1752 6

Contemporary Notables of the name Tazewell (post 1700) +

Littleton Waller Tazewell (1774-1860), American Democratic Party politician, Member of Virginia State Legislature, 1796; U.S. Representative from Virginia at-large, 1800-01; U.S. Senator from Virginia, 1824-32; Governor of Virginia, 1834-36; Candidate for Vice President of the United States, 1840
Henry Tazewell (1753-1799), American politician, Member of Virginia State Legislature, 1775; Delegate to Virginia State Constitutional Convention, 1775; Justice of Virginia State Supreme Court, 1785; U.S. Senator from Virginia, 1794-99; Died in office 1799
Tazewell Ellett (1856-1914), American politician, U.S. Representative from Virginia (1895-1897)

Citations +

Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
Harrison, Henry, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary Baltimore: Geneological Publishing Company, 2013. Print
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Barber, Henry, British Family Names London: Elliot Stock, 62 Paternoster Row, 1894. Print.
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)