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| Origins Available: |
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The Cawdor surname was a habitational name, taken on from any of the various places called Calder, Caldor, or Cawdor; such as Calder in Thurso, which is recorded from the early 13th century, and Calder in Cumbria. Some of these place names are thought to come from the Old Norse "kalfr," meaning "calf," and "dalr," meaning "valley;" while others likely derive from the Welsh words "caled" meaning "hard" or "violent" and "dwfr," meaning "water," or "stream."
The surname Cawdor was first found in Inverness-shire, thought to have been a Pict stronghold, where they held a family seat from very ancient times. Hugh de Cadella (Klaedouer) is said to have aided Scottish King Malcolm Ceanmore, for which he was granted the Nairnshire thaneship of Cawdor, and made a Baron in 1060. Records show that a Hugh de Kaledouer, perhaps a descendant, was a witness to a charter of land near Montrose in, Angus, around 1178. 1
Cadder, or Calder is a parish, in the Lower ward of the county of Lanark. "This place derives its name from its situation in the midst of a district abounding with wood and water, of which its appellation in the old British language, Calder, is significant. It appears to have owed its origin, as a parish, to the foundation of a church by St. Patrick, who was born in the immediate vicinity, and who, towards the close of the 5th century, founded numerous other churches in the neighbourhood, which were subsequently endowed by Convallus II." 2
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Cawdor research. Another 327 words (23 lines of text) covering the years 1054, 1419, 1440, 1454, 1494, 1503, 1510, 1546, 1575, 1650, 1657, 1711, 1723, 1740, 1745, 1792, 1798 and 1818 are included under the topic Early Cawdor History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Spelling variations of this family name include: Calder, Cadder, Caddell, Cawdor, Cauder, Caldell, Caldille and many more.
Notable amongst the Clan at this time was
Some of the first settlers of this family name or some of its variants were: Thomas Calder who settled in Virginia in 1619, one year before the "Mayflower"; Will Calder, who settled in Georgia in 1735; Alex Calder and his wife Henrietta and four children, who came to Georgia in 1775.