Kently History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Scotland

Kently is a name of ancient Anglo-Saxon origin and comes from the family once having lived in the village of Cantley in either the counties of Norfolk or Yorkshire. Both parishes date back to the Domesday Book of 1086 when they were known as Cantelai (in Norfolk) and Canatela (South Yorkshire.) 1

Early Origins of the Kently family

The surname Kently was first found in Norfolk, where Wimer de Cantele was listed in the Feet of Fines for 1198. 2 The Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 include Rogerus de Cantelay as holding lands there at that time. 3A very rare name the next entry we found was in 1581 where Peter Cantley was listed as a Freeman of York. 2

In Scotland, the family is from "the Yorkshire place of the name. William Cantuli was admitted burgess of Aberdeen, 1452, and William Cantuly or Cantuli held land there before 1497. Andrew Cantly was admitted burgess in 1508. Master John Cantly or Cantely appears as archdeacon of St. Andrews, 1524 ant 1541. Gilbert Cantlie, witness in Shetland, 1626." 4

Early History of the Kently family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Kently research. Another 170 words (12 lines of text) covering the years 1086, 1198, 1379, 1452, 1500, 1581, 1626, 1790, 1797, 1806 and 1854 are included under the topic Early Kently History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Kently 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 Kently family name include Cantlay, Cantley, Cantele, Cantelay, Cantuli, Cantlie, Gantlet, Gantley and many more.

Early Notables of the Kently family

Notables of the family at this time include John Cantley, the Archdeacon of St. Andrews in Scotland in the early 1500s, and Sir Proby Thomas Cantley, a lieutenant-colonel in the Bengal artillery and director of the Ganges Canal who was knighted in 1854.Henry John Gauntlett, eldest son of the Rev. Henry Gauntlett, was born in...
Another 55 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Kently Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Kently family

For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, Canada, 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 Kently surname or a spelling variation of the name include: Alexander Cantley who arrived in Philadelphia in 1852.

Citations +

Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
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)
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)