The ancestors of the bearers of the Briddestwysil family name are thought have lived in ancient
Anglo-Saxon England. They were first found in
Birtwisle, near Padiham, in the county of
Lancashire. The town was named for the Old English words
bird or
brid, meaning young bird or nestling, and twissel, which referred to a fork in a stream.
[1]CITATION[CLOSE]
Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)Early Origins of the Briddestwysil family
The surname Briddestwysil was first found in
Lancashire, where one of the first records of the family was Ellis de Birtwisle, rector of the church of St. Elphin, Warrington,
Lancashire from 1368 to 1370.
[2]CITATION[CLOSE]
'Townships: Scarisbrick', in A History of the County of Lancaster: Volume 3, ed. William Farrer and J Brownbill (London, 1907), pp. 265-276. British History Online http://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/lancs/vol3/pp265-276 [accessed 21 January 2017].
Early History of the Briddestwysil family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Briddestwysil research.
Another 182 words (13 lines of text) covering the years 1285, 1329, 1379, 1397, 1460, 1594, 1618 and 1619 are included under the topic Early Briddestwysil History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Briddestwysil 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 Briddestwysil include Birdwhistle, Bertwhistle, Berdwhistle, Birtwisill, Birtwhistle, Birtwisle, Birdwistle, Birdwisle, Birdwistle, Brittwissill, Birktwysell, Brytwesle, Brytwesele, Birtwistell, Birtwessel, Briddestwysill, Briddestwyssle, Burtwisle and many more.
Early Notables of the Briddestwysil family (pre 1700)
More information is included under the topic Early Briddestwysil Notables in all our
PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Migration of the Briddestwysil family to Ireland
Some of the Briddestwysil family moved to
Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 78 words (6 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Migration of the Briddestwysil 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 Briddestwysil or a variant listed above: Thomas Birdwistle, who sailed to Maryland in 1670.