Howsmane History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The ancient name of Howsmane finds its origins with the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture of Britain. It comes from a name for a person employed "at the house." In most cases, this was a religious house or convent. The surname Howsmane is derived from the Old English word hus, which means house, and the word man, which means servant. 1

Early Origins of the Howsmane family

The surname Howsmane was first found in Yorkshire where Johannes Howsman was listed in the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379. A few years earlier John Houseman was found in Colchester, Essex in 1365. 2

"This surname, early found in Yorkshire, crossed the border and settled in the neighbourhood of Lancaster. A well-known vicar of Lancaster bore this name at the beginning of the century. Two hundred years earlier the name occurs in local Wills." 3

Early History of the Howsmane family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Howsmane research. Another 61 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1365, 1604, 1622, 1630, 1636, 1696, 1714, 1759 and 1838 are included under the topic Early Howsmane History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Howsmane Spelling Variations

Sound was what guided spelling in the essentially pre-literate Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Also, before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Therefore, spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Howsmane family name include Houseman, Housemayne, Houssemayne, Housman, Howseman and many more.

Early Notables of the Howsmane family

Another 35 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Howsmane Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Howsmane family

For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, the Canadas, the America colonies, and many of smaller tropical colonies in the hope of finding better lives abroad. Although the passage on the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving, those families that survived the trip often went on to make valuable contributions to those new societies to which they arrived. Early immigrants bearing the Howsmane surname or a spelling variation of the name include : William Houseman, who sailed to Barbados in 1635; John Houseman to Virginia in 1699; William Howsman to Nova Scotia in 1749; Henry Houseman to Carolina in 1774.

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)