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The Sweetmind surname came to Ireland from Britain with the Anglo-Norman (Strongbow) invasion of the 12th century. The surname Sweetmind is derived from the Old English word "swete," which meant "sweet," "pleasant," or "agreeable;" along with the suffix -man. As such, it was a nickname surname, created for a popular person. Most of the native Irish surnames were patronymics created from the Gaelic names of an ancestor, and some of the Anglo-Norman naming practices of these settlers were seen as rather unusual. The Gaelic form of the surname Sweetmind is Suatman.
The surname Sweetmind was first found in County Killkenny, where they settled about the year 1177 where they were granted lands originally belonging to the native Irish for their contribution to the defeat of the Irish by Strongbow, Earl of Pembroke.
One of the first records of the family was Milo Sweetman (died 1380), Archbishop of Armagh, "a native of Ireland, came of an Anglo-Irish family. A Maurice Sweetman was Archdeacon of Armagh in 1365. Milo was appointed treasurer of the cathedral of Ossory or Kilkenny before 1360, in which year the chapter elected him bishop of that diocese. " 1
While the name is now generally regarded as Irish, not all of the family emigrated to Ireland with Strongbow. The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 listed: Swetman (without surname), Oxfordshire; Swetman filius Edith, Oxfordshire; Swetman de Helignam, Norfolk; Sweteman Textor, Buckinghamshire; and Adam Swetman, Oxfordshire, 1273. 2
Another source notes that the parish of Swettenham is in the union of Congleton, hundred of Northwich, Cheshire. 3 This parish derives its name from "the servant of Swet (sweet); one who came from Swettenham (Sweta's homestead.)" 4
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Sweetmind research. Another 60 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1360, 1361, 1380, 1584 and 1874 are included under the topic Early Sweetmind History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Church officials and medieval scribes often simply spelled names as they sounded. As a result, a single person's name may have been recorded a dozen different ways during his lifetime. Spelling variations for the name Sweetmind include: Suatman, Sweetman, Swetman and others.
More information is included under the topic Early Sweetmind Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Ireland went through one of the most devastating periods in its history with the arrival of the Great Potato Famine of the 1840s. Many also lost their lives from typhus, fever and dysentery. And poverty was the general rule as tenant farmers were often evicted because they could not pay the high rents. Emigration to North America gave hundreds of families a chance at a life where work, freedom, and land ownership were all possible. For those who made the long journey, it meant hope and survival. The Irish emigration to British North America and the United States opened up the gates of industry, commerce, education and the arts. Early immigration and passenger lists have shown many Irish people bearing the name Sweetmind: Margeret Sweetman settled in Virginia in 1656; Ann Sweetman settled in Annapolis, Maryland in 1722; M.C. Sweetman settled in Charleston South Carolina in 1794.