The ancestors of the bearers of the Bilsdent family name are thought have lived in ancient
Anglo-Saxon England. They were first found in one of several places called
Bilton in the counties of
Northumberland,
Warwickshire,
Essex, or Yorkshire.
Early Origins of the Bilsdent family
The surname Bilsdent was first found in
Yorkshire at Bilton, a chapelry, in the parish of Swine, union of Skirlaugh, Middle division of the
wapentake of Holderness. "This place, called in
Domesday Book Biletone, at an early period gave name to a family resident here."
[1]CITATION[CLOSE]
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print. As previous mentioned, there are numerous places name Bilton and part of the reason is that the place name literally means "farmstead of a man called Bill or Billa."
[2]CITATION[CLOSE]
Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4) Bilston(e) is similarly popular with places in
Staffordshire and Leicestershire.
Early History of the Bilsdent family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Bilsdent research.
Another 55 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 165 and 1650 are included under the topic Early Bilsdent History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Bilsdent Spelling Variations
Until quite recently, the English language has lacked a definite system of spelling rules. Consequently,
Anglo-Saxon surnames are characterized by a multitude of
spelling variations. Changes in
Anglo-Saxon names were influenced by the evolution of the English language, as it incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other languages. Although Medieval scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded, so it is common to find one person referred to by several different spellings of his surname, even the most literate people varied the spelling of their own names. Variations of the name Bilsdent include Bilton, Biltoune, Bilston, Bilson, Bilsden and many more.
Early Notables of the Bilsdent family (pre 1700)
More information is included under the topic Early Bilsdent Notables in all our
PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Migration of the Bilsdent family to the New World and Oceana
Searching for a better life, many English families migrated to British colonies. Unfortunately, the majority of them traveled under extremely harsh conditions: overcrowding on the ships caused the majority of the immigrants to arrive diseased, famished, and destitute from the long journey across the ocean. For those families that arrived safely, modest prosperity was attainable, and many went on to make invaluable contributions to the development of the cultures of the new colonies. Research into the origins of individual families in North America revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Bilsdent or a variant listed above: John Bilson who settled in Virginia in 1654; Stafford Bilson settled in Virginia in 1653; William Bilson settled in New
England in 1752; Henry Billson settled in Philadelphia in 1868..
Bilsdent Family Crest Products
See Also
Citations
- ^ Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
- ^ Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)