Origins Available: English,
Irish
Although the Garatt surname came to Britain with the
Normans, it derives from the Germanic personal names Gerard, or Gerald, composed of the elements "gar," or "ger," meaning "spear," "hard," meaning "brave," or "strong," and "wald," meaning "rule."
[1]CITATION[CLOSE]
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6) Not all of the family made the crossing with the Conqueror as Roger and William Garet were both listed in
Normandy in 1180. A few years later, Arnulph and William Garet were also listed there in 1198.
[2]CITATION[CLOSE]
The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)Early Origins of the Garatt family
The surname Garatt was first found in
Lincolnshire, where a Geraddus
filius Simonis is on record in 1242 in Liber Feodorum. A John Gerad was listed in the
Pipe Rolls of
Somerset in 1230.
[3]CITATION[CLOSE]
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Early History of the Garatt family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Garatt research.
Another 221 words (16 lines of text) covering the years 1379, 1086, 1511, 1551 and are included under the topic Early Garatt History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Garatt Spelling Variations
It is only in the last few
hundred years that the English language has been standardized. For that reason, Anglo-Norman surnames like Garatt are characterized by many
spelling variations. Scribes and monks in the Middle Ages spelled names they sounded, so it is common to find several variations that refer to a single person. As the English language changed and incorporated elements of other European languages such as Norman French and Latin, even literate people regularly changed the spelling of their names. The variations of the name Garatt include Garrett, Garratt, Garret, Garrat, Garet, Garitt, Garatt and many more.
Early Notables of the Garatt family (pre 1700)
More information is included under the topic Early Garatt Notables in all our
PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Migration of the Garatt family to Ireland
Some of the Garatt family moved to
Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 162 words (12 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 Garatt family to the New World and Oceana
Faced with the chaos present in
England at that time, many English families looked towards the open frontiers of the New World with its opportunities to escape oppression and starvation. People migrated to North America, as well as
Australia and
Ireland in droves, paying exorbitant rates for passages in cramped, unsafe ships. Many of the settlers did not make the long passage alive, but those who did see the shores of North America were welcomed with great opportunity. Many of the families that came from
England went on to make essential contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. Some of the first immigrants to cross the Atlantic and come to North America carried the name Garatt, or a variant listed above: Hannah and Richard Garrett, who came to Salem, Massachusetts in 1630; Eliz. Garrett, who came to Virginia in 1632; Richard West Garrett, who arrived in St. Christopher in 1635.