Show ContentsSutliff History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Etymology of Sutliff

What does the name Sutliff mean?

The name Sutliff has a long Anglo-Saxon heritage. The name comes from when a family lived in the area known as Sutcliffe which had three locations in the county of Yorkshire. The surname Sutliff 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 Sutliff family

The surname Sutliff 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 Sutliff family

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

Sutliff Spelling Variations

Spelling variations in names were a common occurrence before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago. In the Middle Ages, even the literate spelled their names differently as the English language incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other European languages. Many variations of the name Sutliff have been found, including Sutcliff, Sutcliffe, Sutliff, Southcliffe and many more.

Early Notables of the Sutliff family

Distinguished members of the family include

  • Sir John Sutliffe

Sutliff Ranking

In the United States, the name Sutliff is the 16,323rd most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 1


Sutliff migration to the United States +

Families began migrating abroad in enormous numbers because of the political and religious discontent in England. Often faced with persecution and starvation in England, the possibilities of the New World attracted many English people. Although the ocean trips took many lives, those who did get to North America were instrumental in building the necessary groundwork for what would become for new powerful nations. Some of the first immigrants to cross the Atlantic and come to North America bore the name Sutliff, or a variant listed above:

Sutliff Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Abraham Sutliff, who arrived in Virginia in 1704 2
Sutliff Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Edward Sutliff, who landed in New York, NY in 1811 2
  • Henry Sutliff, who arrived in New York in 1825 2

Contemporary Notables of the name Sutliff (post 1700) +

  • H.W. Sutliff, American founder of the Sutliff Tobacco Company in San Francisco, California in 1849
  • Bobby Sutliff, America musician, co-founder of the singing group The Windbreakers, an American power-pop group from Mississippi
  • Milton Sutliff (1806-1878), American Republican politician and jurist, Justice of the Ohio Supreme Court (1858-1863) 3
  • Phebe T. Sutliff, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate for U.S. Representative from Ohio 19th District, 1924 4
  • Milton Sutliff, American Republican politician, Justice of Ohio State Supreme Court, 1858-61; Delegate to Republican National Convention from Ohio, 1860 4
  • Lloyd G. Sutliff, American politician, U.S. Vice Consul in Winnipeg, 1916-19 4
  • Henry Sutliff Jr., American Republican politician, Presidential Elector for Virginia, 1972 4
  • Calvin G. Sutliff, American politician, Mayor of Lockport, New York, 1900 4
  • Michael Sutliff (b. 1975), English retired cricketer who played from 1999 to 2002


The Sutliff 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


  1. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  2. 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)
  3. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2012, March 16) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
  4. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, December 8) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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