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![Show Contents]() Waitt History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
The ancient name of Waitt finds its origins with the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture of Britain. It comes from a name for a watchman. This surname comes from the Anglo-Norman-French word waite, which means watch. 1 "To the former title of this official duty it is we owe the fact of our still terming, any company of night serenaders 'waits,' and especially those bands of strolling minstrels who keep up the good old custom of watching in Christmas morning. A good old custom, I say, even though it may cost us a few pence, and rouse us somewhat rudely, may be, from our slumbers." 2 Waits or Waites were British town pipers. Up until 1835, every British town and city of note had a band of Waites and more often than not, they played and instrument called the Wait-pipe. Early Origins of the Waitt familyThe surname Waitt was first found in the Norman Exchequer Rolls of 1180, where Robert La Waite is entered. 3 The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 included: Robert le Weyte, Oxfordshire; Sarra le Weyte, Oxfordshire; and Ralph le Weyte, or Wayte, Essex. Later the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 listed Johannes Wayte; and Willelmus Wayte. 2 Roger le Wayte was listed in Suffolk in 1221; Hugh le Weyt was listed in the Assize Rolls for Staffordshire in 1251; Roger le Wate in the Subsidy Rolls for Sussex in 1296; and Adam le Whaite was registered in Gloucestershire in 1349. 4 "Adam de Wayte, in 1306, held in Lincolnshire; and a monumental brass in Stoke-Charity Church commemorates Thomas Wayte, who died in 1482." 3 Further to the north in Scotland, the name had the same meaning so accordingly, early records were founds there too. Adam Wayt, was a witness in Aberbrothoc, 1312, and Thomas dictus Weyt, was a chaplain in Inverness in 1361. Huchown the Wate was a tacksman in Grenyng and Bankis in Marwek, 1492. 5 Early History of the Waitt familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Waitt research. Another 178 words (13 lines of text) covering the years 1505, 1525, 1595, 1610, 1611, 1634, 1636, 1642, 1643, 1665, 1684, 1688, 1699, 1747, 1777 and 1795 are included under the topic Early Waitt History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Waitt Spelling VariationsSound was what guided spelling in the essentially pre-literate Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Also, before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Therefore, spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Waitt family name include Waite, Wait, Wayte, Waits, Waight and others. Early Notables of the Waitt familyNotables of the family at this time include Sir Nicholas Waite; and Thomas (Wayte) Waite, (fl. 1634-1688) an English soldier who fought for Parliament in the English Civil War, a member of the Long Parliament, and one of the regicides of King Charles I. "According to Royalist authors, he was the son of an alehouse-keeper at Market Overton in Rutland. He was more probably the Thomas Waite, son of Henry Waite of Wymondham, Leicestershire...
Another 74 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Waitt Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.  Migration of the Waitt family to Ireland
Some of the Waitt 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.
| Waitt migration to New Zealand | + |
Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include: Waitt Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century- Robert Waitt, who landed in Wellington, New Zealand in 1840
| Contemporary Notables of the name Waitt (post 1700) | + |
- Robert W. Waitt Jr., American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Virginia, 1948 6
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: Pro aris et focis
Motto Translation: For our altars and our home.
- 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)
- Cleveland, Dutchess of The Battle Abbey Roll with some Account of the Norman Lineages. London: John Murray, Abermarle Street, 1889. Print. Volume 3 of 3
- Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
- 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)
- The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 11) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
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Waitt migration to New Zealand 
England
Ireland
Scotland
