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Tenant History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables

Tenant History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Scotland
Ireland
England

The chronicles of Scottish history reveal that the first people to use the name Tenant were the Strathclyde-Britons. It was a name for a tenant farmer. The name was applied to those who paid for the rent on their land through working the fields and donating a percentage of the take to the landlord. [1] [2] [3] [4]

Early Origins of the Tenant family

The surname tenant was first found in Linlithgowshire (Gaelic: Lodainn an Iar), former county in south-central Scotland, now the Council Area West Lothian, where they held a family seat at Crestone or Creston from about the year 1150 A.D.

Early records in Scotland include: William tenant of Crestone of county of Linlescu, 1296. His seal shows a large dog and 'S' Will'l Tenavont.' Thomas Tenaunt was one of the witnesses in the inquiry concerning the Templars in 1309, and John Tenant was one of the garrison of Edinburgh Castle, (1339-1340.) John Tennand was one of the burgesses of Stirling who attacked the cruives and fishings of the abbot and convent of Cambuskenneth, 1366. [5]

A little further to the south in England, the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 listed: Willelmus Tenaunt; Johannes Tenant; and Ricardus Tenaunt. [6]

The Subsidy Rolls of Cumbria (Cumberland) in 1332 included Richard Tenand and in the same year, Robert Tenaunt was listed in the Subsidy Rolls for Lancashire. [7]

Early History of the Tenant family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Tenant research. Another 237 words (17 lines of text) covering the years 1296, 1320, 1339, 1366, 1500, 1519, 1539, 1542, 1549, 1550, 1555, 1563, 1564, 1565, 1644, 1649, 1673, 1695, 1706, 1718, 1727, 1740, 1746, 1748, 1761, 1768, 1777, 1781, 1782, 1784, 1785, 1786, 1788, 1789, 1796, 1799, 1801, 1804, 1805, 1806, 1815, 1821, 1824, 1825, 1826, 1831, 1832, 1838, 1848, 1854, 1861 and 1869 are included under the topic Early Tenant History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Tenant Spelling Variations

Prior to the first dictionaries, scribes spelled words according to sound. This, and the fact that Scottish names were repeatedly translated from Gaelic to English and back, contributed to the enormous number of spelling variations in Scottish names. Tenant has been spelled Tennant, tenant, Tennand, Tennan, Tenman, Tennend, Tennent, Tenand and many more.

Early Notables of the Tenant family

Notable amongst the family at this time was John Tennent of Listonshiels (died c. 1549), a servant and companion of James V of Scotland; and William Tennent (1673-1746), an early American religious leader and educator in British North America. Born in Mid Calder, Linlithgowshire, Scotland, he graduated from the University of Edinburgh in...
Another 53 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Tenant Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Tenant family to Ireland

Some of the Tenant family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. More information about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

tenant migration to the United States +

In such difficult times, the difficulties of raising the money to cross the Atlantic to North America did not seem so large compared to the problems of keeping a family together in Scotland. It was a journey well worth the cost, since it was rewarded with land and freedom the Scots could not find at home. The American War of Independence solidified that freedom, and many of those settlers went on to play important parts in the forging of a great nation. Among them:

Tenant Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Edward tenant, who landed in Maryland in 1653 [8]

Tenant Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

John Tenant, who arrived in Texas in 1850-1906 [8]

Tenant migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Tenant Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Lewis Tenant, who landed in Canada in 1834

Tenant migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Tenant Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. George Tenant, English convict who was convicted in Boston, Lincolnshire, England for 10 years, transported aboard the "Earl Grey" on 4th October 1842, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) [9]

The Tenant Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Plena Dabit Deus Vela
Motto Translation: God will fill our sails.

Citations +

Harrison, Henry, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary Baltimore: Geneological Publishing Company, 2013. Print
Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Arthur, William , An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names. London: 1857. 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)
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
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)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 16th August 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/earl-gray