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The vast movement of people that followed the Norman Conquest of England of 1066 brought the Cantrel family name to the British Isles. They lived in Lancashire. The family descend from a Norman noble who arrived from the area of Chantarel, Normandy with the 1066 invasion. The name is possibly derived from the Old French words chanterelle, which translates in English to "a small bell" or from canterellus which means "the little singer." 1
By way of confirmation, researchers found William and Roger Cantarel, of Normandy, 1198 listed in the Magni Rotuli Scaccarii Normanniae. 2
The surname Cantrel was first found in Yorkshire. "Most of my instances hail from Yorkshire. I could have adduced others. It is there the surname is still most largely represented." 3
The first record of the family in Britain was found in the Rotuli Curiae Regis. There Alberic Chanterhill, of England, 1199 was listed. 2
The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 listed Alice Cainterel, Yorkshire; William Chanterel, Northamptonshire; Richard Chaunterel, Wiltshire; and Martin Chanterrl, Yorkshire. Later the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 included: Johannes Quayntorell; and Johanna Quayntell. 3
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Cantrel research. Another 120 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1200, 1503, 1569, 1632, 1673, 1685, 1700 and 1773 are included under the topic Early Cantrel History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
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 Cantrell, Cantrel, Cantrill, Cantril, Chantrell and many more.
Outstanding amongst the family at this time was
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 Cantrel or a variant listed above were: