Terret History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

The ancestors of the name Terret date back to the Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. The name is derived from when the Terret family lived in in Dorset at one of the eight places that have the prefix Tarrant. They include: Tarrant Crawford; Tarrant Gunville; Tarrant Hinton; Tarrant Keyneston; Tarrant Launceston; Tarrant Monkton; Tarrant Rawston; and Tarrant Rushton. The place name Tarrant is derived from the "Celtic river-name possibly meaning 'the trespasser' and in 'river liable to floods." 1 All of these parishes and villages are in the Blandford union, hundred of Pimperne 2 and are collectively listed in the Domesday Book as Tarente. 3 It seems that in the 13th century the parishes either expanded or separated and accordingly a suffix was needed to distinguish them. In many cases, the suffix was used to denote the families that lived there as in: Tarrant Gunville, home to the Gundeville family; Tarrant Keyneston, home of the Cahaignes family; Tarant Launceston, home to the Lowin family; Tarrant Rawston, home to the Antioch family; and Tarrant Rushton, home to the de Rusceaus family. The one exception was Tarrant Monkton which denoted as 'estate belonging to the monks of Tewkesbury Abbey.' 1

Early Origins of the Terret family

The surname Terret was first found in one of the aforementioned villages named Tarrant in Dorset. Some of the first records of the surname include Reginald de Tarenta who was listed in Lancashire in 1190, John de Tarent who was listed in the Curia Regis Rolls of Middlesex in 1212 and Ralph Tauraunt who was listed in the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex in 1296. 4 The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 list Abbatissa de Tarento in Dorset in 1273. 5

Early History of the Terret family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Terret research. Another 94 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1086, 1621, 1642, 1646 and 1784 are included under the topic Early Terret History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Terret 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 Terret 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 Terret include: Tarrant, Tarrents, Tarrent, Tarant, Tarent, Tarrat, Tarrett and many more.

Early Notables of the Terret family

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

Terret Ranking

In France, the name Terret is the 6,734^th most popular surname with an estimated 1,000 - 1,500 people with that name. 6

Migration of the Terret family to Ireland

Some of the Terret family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 40 words (3 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Terret migration to the United States +

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 Terret or a variant listed above:

Terret Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Nathaniel Terret, who arrived in Virginia in 1752 7

Terret migration to Australia +

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

Terret Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Miss Ann Terret, (b. ), aged 1812, English servant who was convicted in Gloucester, Gloucestershire, England for 7 years for larceny, transported aboard the "Emu" in October 1812, the ship was captured and the passengers put ashore, the convicts were then transported aboard the "Broxburnebury" in January 1812 arriving in New South Wales, Australia 8

Citations +

Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
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)
http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/nom/
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 3rd November 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/Emu