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Sutcliffe History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables World Ranking

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Motto Citations

Sutcliffe History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The name Sutcliffe is an old Anglo-Saxon name. It comes from when a family lived in the area known as Sutcliffe which had three locations in the county of Yorkshire. The surname Sutcliffe is a habitation name that was originally derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads. The surname originated as a means of identifying individuals from a particular area. In the Middle Ages people often assumed the name of the place that they originally lived as their surname during the course of travel. In this case the surname was originally derived from the Old English words sùd meaning south and clif meaning slope or cliff. Therefore the original bearers of the name were referred to as the dwellers by the south cliffs.

Early Origins of the Sutcliffe family

The surname Sutcliffe was first found in Lancashire where they held a family seat from very ancient times, some say well before the Norman Conquest and the arrival of Duke William at Hastings in 1066 A.D.

The name was originally spelled Cartcliff, later becoming Skatcliffe, late Scaytcliffe, later Scaitliffe, later Scaytcliffe, later Skaitcliff, and later particularly when the branches included Yorkshire, Sutcliffe. From about 1470 the Crossleys acquired Skatclyffe Hall in the parish of Rochdale in Lancashire, and continued a series of intermarriages with their cousins in Yorkshire.

Early History of the Sutcliffe family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Sutcliffe research. Another 116 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1550 and 1629 are included under the topic Early Sutcliffe History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Sutcliffe Spelling Variations

Before the last few hundred years, the English language had no fast system of spelling rules. For that reason, spelling variations are commonly found in early Anglo-Saxon surnames. Over the years, many variations of the name Sutcliffe were recorded, including Sutcliff, Sutcliffe, Sutliff, Southcliffe and many more.

Early Notables of the Sutcliffe family

More information is included under the topic Early Sutcliffe Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Sutcliffe World Ranking

In the United States, the name Sutcliffe is the 15,979^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 1 However, in New Zealand, the name Sutcliffe is ranked the 888^th most popular surname with an estimated 825 people with that name. 2 And in the United Kingdom, the name Sutcliffe is the 666^th popular surname with an estimated 9,881 people with that name. 3

Sutcliffe migration to the United States +

To escape oppression and starvation at that time, many English families left for the "open frontiers" of the New World with all its perceived opportunities. In droves people migrated to the many British colonies, those in North America in particular, paying high rates for passages in cramped, unsafe ships. Although many of the settlers did not make the long passage alive, those who did see the shores of North America perceived great opportunities before them. Many of the families that came from England went on to make essential contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. Research into various historical records revealed some of first members of the Sutcliffe family emigrate to North America:

Sutcliffe Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

James Sutcliffe, who settled in Virginia in 1729

Sutcliffe Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

William Sutcliffe, who arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1817 4
George, John, Joseph, Samuel, and William Sutcliffe, who arrived in Philadelphia between 1841 and 1876
Auther Sutcliffe, who landed in Texas in 1850-1906 4

Sutcliffe migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Sutcliffe Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. Thomas Sutcliffe, English convict who was convicted in Lancaster, Lancashire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Dromedary" on 11th September 1819, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 5
Mr. Henry Sutcliffe, English convict who was convicted in York, Yorkshire, England for life, transported aboard the "Champion" on 24th May 1827, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 6
Mr. Henry Sutcliffe, British convict who was convicted in Lancaster, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Henry Tanner" on 27th June 1834, settling in New South Wales, Australia 7
Mr. Edward Sutcliffe, English convict who was convicted in West Riding, Yorkshire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Eden" on 8th July 1840, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 8
Mr. Thomas Sutcliffe, English convict who was convicted in York, Yorkshire, England for 15 years, transported aboard the "Eden" on 8th July 1840, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 8
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Sutcliffe 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:

Sutcliffe Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Richard Sutcliffe, aged 22, a shoemaker, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "New Zealand" in 1842
Sarah Sutcliffe, aged 28, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "New Zealand" in 1842
Mr. William Sutcliffe, British settler, as the 2nd Detachment of New Zealand Corps of Royal New Zealand Fencibles travelling from Gravesend aboard the ship "Minerva" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 8th October 1847 9
Mr. Thomas Sutcliffe, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Harwood" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 4th November 1858 9
W.H. Sutcliffe, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "John Scott" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 7th March 1858 9
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Sutcliffe (post 1700) +

Charles Inigo "Butch" Sutcliffe (1915-1994), American Major League Baseball player
Elmer Ellsworth "Sy" Sutcliffe (1862-1893), American Major League Baseball catcher who played from 1884 to 1892
Richard Lee "Rick" Sutcliffe (b. 1956), nicknamed "The Red Baron," American former Major League Baseball starting pitcher, current television sportscaster, winner of the National League Cy Young Award in 1984
Harry Sutcliffe (b. 1972), American-British sound engineer, songwriter and musician
Robert C. Sutcliffe, American fighter pilot and flying ace in the U.S. Army Air Forces, during World War II, credited with 5 aerial victories
Thomas Sutcliffe (1790-1849), English adventurer, son of John Sutcliffe of Stansfield, parish of Halifax, Yorkshire, great-grandson of John Kay of Bury, the inventor; he was severely wounded at the Battle of Waterloo and died in great indigence in lodgings at 357 Strand on 22 April 1849, aged 59
Irene Sutcliffe (b. 1930), English actress, best known for playing Maggie Clegg on Coronation Street (1968-1975)
William "Billy" Herbert Hobbs Sutcliffe (1926-1998), English amateur first-class cricketer
Tom Sutcliffe (b. 1943), English opera critic, author and journalist
Francis Meadow "Frank" Sutcliffe (1853-1941), English photographic artist
... (Another 19 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Sutcliffe family +

SS Atlantic

Patrick Sutcliffe, who was traveling aboard the ship "SS Atlantic" when it struck rocks off Nova Scotia in 1873, survived the sinking

The Sutcliffe Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Foy en tout
Motto Translation: Faith in all

Citations +

"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
"Most Common Last Names in New Zealand." Forebears, https://forebears.io/new-zealand/surnames
"UK surname ranking." UK Surname map, https://www.surnamemap.eu/unitedkingdom/surnames_ranking.php?p=10
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 16th July 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/dromedary
Convict Records of Australia. Retreived 18th January 2021 from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/champion
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 7th January 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/henry-tanner
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 20th October 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/eden
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html