Quartment History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The name Quartment is rooted in the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture. It was originally a name for someone who worked as a person who was mail-fisted or perhaps the nickname 'four hands.' 1 The surname Quartment originally derived from the armor that soldiers or knights donned for protection in battle. Occupational names that were derived from the common trades of the medieval era transcended European cultural and linguistic boundaries.

Early Origins of the Quartment family

The surname Quartment was first found in Oxfordshire where the first records of the name were Clare Quatremayns and William Quatremeyns who were both listed in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273. A few years later, Thomas Quatremains was listed in the Writs of Parliament in 1313. 2 Digging further into the 'four hands' reference we found: "French for 'four hands' which form the charge of the family shield." 1 Thame in Oxfordshire was home to one branch of the family.

"About the time of Edward IV., an hospital for destitute persons was endowed with lands by Richard Quatremain, a member of a family of high repute. The north transept [of the church] is the burying place of the Dormer family, and the south transept the sepulchral chapel of the Quatremains; both contain handsome monuments." 3

The Quartermaine family is a fictional family from the ABC soap opera, General Hospital and Al(l)an Quatermain is the protagonist of H. Rider Haggard's 1885 novel King Solomon's Mines. The character was recently reintroduced with the popular series League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (LXG) and in the eponymous film released in 2003, Sean Connery played the character Alan Quatermain.

Quartermaine's Terms is a play by Simon Gray which won The Cheltenham Prize in 1982.

Early History of the Quartment family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Quartment research. Another 68 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1618, 1662 and 1667 are included under the topic Early Quartment History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Quartment Spelling Variations

It is only in the last few hundred years that the English language has been standardized. For that reason, early Anglo-Saxon surnames like Quartment are characterized by many spelling variations. As the English language changed and incorporated elements of other European languages, even literate people changed the spelling of their names. The variations of the name Quartment include Quartermain, Quartermaines, Quarterman, Quartermaynes, Quatermain, Quatermaines, Quaterman, Quatermay and many more.

Early Notables of the Quartment family

Another 40 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Quartment Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Quartment family

Many English families tired of political and religious strife left Britain for the new colonies in North America. Although the trip itself offered no relief - conditions on the ships were extremely cramped, and many travelers arrived diseased, starving, and destitute - these immigrants believed the opportunities that awaited them were worth the risks. Once in the colonies, many of the families did indeed prosper and, in turn, made significant contributions to the culture and economies of the growing colonies. An inquiry into the early roots of North American families has revealed a number of immigrants bearing the name Quartment or a variant listed above: John Quarterman, on record in Virginia in 1742; and Joseph Quartman settled in Philadelphia in 1824.

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.