Witely History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

Witely is one of the many new names that came to England following the Norman Conquest of 1066. The Witely family lived in Devon, in the township of Whitleigh. Today Whiteley Bank, also spelled "Whitely Bank", is a small hamlet on the Isle of Wight, England and Whiteley is a community in the county of Hampshire founded in the 1980s.

Early Origins of the Witely family

The surname Witely was first found in Devon where they held a family seat from 1066, and Robert d'Aumale held the village of Whitleigh from Bishop Odo. The village is now a part of the city of Plymouth, and conjectural descent from Robert is most likely.

Early History of the Witely family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Witely research. Another 75 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1340, 1618, 1638, 1660, 1681, 1685, 1689, 1690 and 1697 are included under the topic Early Witely History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Witely Spelling Variations

Anglo-Norman names are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. When the Normans became the ruling people of England in the 11th century, they introduced a new language into a society where the main languages of Old and later Middle English had no definite spelling rules. These languages were more often spoken than written, so they blended freely with one another. Contributing to this mixing of tongues was the fact that medieval scribes spelled words according to sound, ensuring that a person's name would appear differently in nearly every document in which it was recorded. The name has been spelled Whitley, Whiteley, Whitleigh, Whytleigh, Whyteleigh, Wytley, Whitlie and many more.

Early Notables of the Witely family

Another 31 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Witely Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Witely family to Ireland

Some of the Witely family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 31 words (2 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Witely family

For many English families, the political and religious disarray that plagued their homeland made the frontiers of the New World an attractive prospect. Thousands migrated, aboard cramped disease-ridden ships. They arrived sick, poor, and hungry, but were welcomed in many cases with far greater opportunity than at home in England. Many of these hardy settlers went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Among early immigrants bearing the name Witely or a variant listed above were: Mitchell Whitley, who settled in Virginia in 1635; Richard Whitley, who settled in Virginia in 1646; Thomas Whitley, who settled in Pennsylvania in 1682.