Tilmans History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Etymology of Tilmans

What does the name Tilmans mean?

The Tilmans name was originally an Anglo-Saxon name that was given to a farmer having been derived from the Old English word tilman, which means husbandman or farmer. 1 2 Reaney postulates that the name could also have originated for the occupation "tile-man," as in "maker of tiles." 2

"'Because there were so fewe tylmen, the erde (earth) lay untitled': Capgrave's Chron. sub. A.D. 1349." 3

"Tilmon was the name of one of the English priests who accompanied the ill- fated Hewalds in their mission to the Continental Saxons A.D. 690." 4

Early Origins of the Tilmans family

The surname Tilmans was first found in Gloucestershire where Alexander Tileman was listed in the Pipe Rolls of 1204. A few years later, Alan Tileman was recorded in Assize Rolls for Cambridgeshire in 1260. Early in the 14th century, Adam Titleman was found in the Subsidy Rolls for Yorkshire in 1301. 2

We found only one record of the family in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273, that of Geoffrey Tileman in Huntingdonshire and in London, the Munimenta Gildhallæ Londoniensis recorded Walter Tileman. 1

Early History of the Tilmans family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Tilmans research. Another 45 words (3 lines of text) covering the years 1666, 1684, 1708, 1724 and 1734 are included under the topic Early Tilmans History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Tilmans Spelling Variations

Only recently has spelling become standardized in the English language. As the English language evolved in the Middle Ages, the spelling of names changed also. The name Tilmans has undergone many spelling variations, including Tillman, Tilman, Tilmanstone, Tilghman, Tileman and others.

Early Notables of the Tilmans family

Peter Tillemans (1684-1734), Belgium-born, English painter and draughtsman, born at Antwerp in 1684, was son of a diamond-cutter, but studied landscape-painting when young. He was brother-in-law to Peter Casteels, and in 1708 the two young men were brought over to England by a dealer...
Another 43 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Tilmans Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Tilmans family

To escape the unstable social climate in England of this time, many families boarded ships for the New World with the hope of finding land, opportunity, and greater religious and political freedom. Although the voyages were expensive, crowded, and difficult, those families that arrived often found greater opportunities and freedoms than they could have experienced at home. Many of those families went on to make significant contributions to the rapidly developing colonies in which they settled. Early North American records indicate many people bearing the name Tilmans were among those contributors: J. Henry Tillman arrived in Philadelphia in 1751; Peter Tillman settled in Philadelphia in 1754; Nicholas Tilman settled in Philadelphia in 1754; Christopher Tilman settled in Virginia in 1638..

The Tilmans 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: Spes alit agricolam
Motto Translation: Hope nourishes the farmer.

Sources +

Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Harrison, Henry, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary Baltimore: Geneological Publishing Company, 2013. Print