Kidder History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
The name Kidder is tied to the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture of England. It comes from the Dutch personal name Kygeir which meant people's spear. 1 The surname Kidder was adopted in England after the Norman Conquest of 1066. In Old English, patronyms were formed by adding a variety of suffixes to personal names, which changed over time and from place to place. For example, after the Norman Conquest, sunu and sune, which meant son, were the most common patronymic suffixes. In the 12th and 13th centuries, the most common patronymic names included the word filius, which meant son. By the 14th century, the suffix son had replaced these earlier versions. Surnames that were formed with filius or son were more common in the north of England and it was here that the number of individuals without surnames was greatest at this time.
Early Origins of the Kidder family
The surname Kidder was first found in Sussex where another reference claims that name is an occupational name for "one who travels with goods for sale. Most if not all the Kidders of England spring from Maresfield, co. Sussex, where they may be traced back as far as the reign of Edward II." 2
Other early rolls include: Ailric (le) Chidere in the Pipe Rolls for Warwickshire in 1190; Roger Kidere in the Feet of Fines for Lancashire in 1233; Thomas le Kidere in the Subsidy Rolls for Yorkshire in 1301; and Richard le Kedere in Devon in 1310. 1
In Norfolk, early records there show Richard Kideman held lands in 1221 and later Alan Kydeman was listed in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1275. 3
Early History of the Kidder family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Kidder research. Another 73 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1633, 1665, 1691, 1703 and 1739 are included under the topic Early Kidder History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Kidder Spelling Variations
Only recently has spelling become standardized in the English language. As the English language evolved in the Middle Ages, the spelling of names changed also. The name Kidder has undergone many spelling variations, including Kidder, Kidere, Kidman and others.
Early Notables of the Kidder family
Notables of this surname at this time include:
- Richard Kidder (1633-1703), an English Anglican churchman killed in the Great Storm of 1703, Bishop of Bath and Wells (from 1691 to his death.) He was born at East Grinstead in Sussex in 1633. His fat...
- Edward Kidder (1665-1739) was a British 18th century pastry chef, or pastry-master, who worked in the Cheapside section of London. He is remembered for his cookbook "Receipts of Pastry and Cookery For...
Kidder Ranking
In the United States, the name Kidder is the 5,266th most popular surname with an estimated 4,974 people with that name. 4
Migration of the Kidder family to Ireland
Some of the Kidder 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.
Kidder migration to the United States +
To escape the unstable social climate in England of this time, many families boarded ships for the New World with the hope of finding land, opportunity, and greater religious and political freedom. Although the voyages were expensive, crowded, and difficult, those families that arrived often found greater opportunities and freedoms than they could have experienced at home. Many of those families went on to make significant contributions to the rapidly developing colonies in which they settled. Early North American records indicate many people bearing the name Kidder were among those contributors:
Kidder Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
- John Kidder, who settled in Boston in 1633
- James Kidder, who settled in Cambridge in 1633
- James Kidder, who landed in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1649 5
- Thaddeus Kidder, who arrived in Lynn, Massachusetts in 1672 5
Kidder Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
- Benjamin Kidder, who settled in Baltimore in 1775
Kidder migration to Canada +
Some of the first settlers of this family name were:
Kidder Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century
- John Kidder, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1750
Contemporary Notables of the name Kidder (post 1700) +
- Margaret Ruth "Margot" Kidder (1948-2018), Canadian actress from Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, best known for her role as Lois Lane in the 1978 film Superman: The Movie and its sequels
- John Tracy Kidder (b. 1945), American author and Vietnam veteran awarded the 1982 Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction
- Jefferson Parish Kidder (1815-1883), American lawyer and jurist
- Alfred Vincent Kidder (1885-1963), American archaeologist, received Ph.D from Harvard University
- Daniel S. Kidder, American politician, U.S. Consul in Algiers, 1899-1905 6
- Colleen Kidder, American Republican politician, Candidate for Presidential Elector for Michigan, 2000 6
- Clarence P. Kidder, American Republican politician, Member of Massachusetts State House of Representatives Second Middlesex District, 1923-24 6
- Beverly Kidder, American politician, Representative from New Jersey 12th District, 1998 6
- Arthur W. Kidder, American politician, Prohibition Candidate for New Hampshire Governor's Council 4th District, 1902 6
- Arba Kidder (1808-1878), American politician, Member of New Hampshire State House of Representatives, 1849-50 6
- ... (Another 20 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Suggested Readings for the name Kidder +
- The Shepard Genealogy by Lowell Shepard Blaisdell.
Citations +
- Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
- 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)
- "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
- 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)
- The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 6) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html