Show ContentsColthart History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

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  • Scotland
Colthart Family Crest Download (JPG) Heritage Series - 600 DPI

Family Crest Download (JPG) Heritage Series - 600 DPI

Early Origins of the Colthart family

The surname Colthart was first found in Galloway (Gaelic: Gall-ghaidhealaibh), an area of southwestern Scotland, now part of the Council Area of Dumfries and Galloway, that formerly consisted of the counties of Wigtown (West Galloway) and Kirkcudbright (East Galloway.)

"Explained as from Coltard-Colt herd, Old English colt + hierde. Of the Coultharts of Galloway a ridiculous genealogy has been published, in which the family are traced to one Coulthartus, a Roman soldier who fought in the battle of Mons Graupius." 1

We prefer to say that this legendary origin is in question and while the phonetic comparison is undeniable, we concur that this origin of the name is quite dubious. One source claims the name was actually an occupational name as in 'the coltherd' 2 and another claims the name is from Coudhart, a village in the department of Orne, of Argentan in Normandy. 3

Early History of the Colthart family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Colthart research. Another 122 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1467, 1530, 1602, 1619, 1627, 1657, 1663, 1666, 1684, 1686 and 1687 are included under the topic Early Colthart History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Colthart Spelling Variations

In Medieval times, spelling and translation were not nearly so highly developed as today. They were generally carried out according to the sound and intuition of the bearer. For that reason spelling variations are extremely common among early Scottish names. Colthart has been spelled Coltart, Colthart, Colthard, Colthert, Coltert, Coulthard and many more.

Early Notables of the Colthart family

Another 39 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Colthart Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Colthart migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Colthart Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
  • Mr. Robert Colthart, (b. 1840), aged 22, Scottish shepherd, from Wigtonshire travelling from London aboard the ship "Queen of Mersey" arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, Southland, South Island, New Zealand on 20th October 1862 4
  1. Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
  2. Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
  3. Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
  4. New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html

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