Vout History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Wales

The old Welsh surname Vout comes from the popular personal name Fulk. This forename of Norman origin originally came from one of a number of Germanic personal names with the first portion "folk-," which means "people."

Early Origins of the Vout family

The surname Vout was first found in Denbighshire (Welsh: Sir Ddinbych), a historic county in Northeast Wales, created by the Laws in Wales Act 1536, where they held a family seat at "Yr Eifiad" from very ancient times, some say before the 9th century.

Another source notes "the pedigree is deduced from Marchudd ap Cynan, lord of Brynffenigi, who flourished in the ninth century. The name appears to have been borrowed from Ffoulk ap Thomas, who lived early in the sixteenth century, and whose descendants have ever since borne it." 1 And that "an early form of a capital F was ff." 2

Sir Martin Browne ffolkes, 1st Baronet, FRS (1749-1821) was an English Baronet and Member of Parliament. Son of William Folkes, he chose to revert his name back to the ffolkes spelling to better note his heritage. The Baronetcy continues to today using the same spelling with Sir Robert Francis Alexander ffolkes, 7th Baronet (born 1943.)

Early History of the Vout family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Vout research. Another 92 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1290, 1660, 1661, 1676, 1678, 1679, 1691 and 1747 are included under the topic Early Vout History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Vout Spelling Variations

There are relatively few surnames native to Wales, but they have an inordinately large number of spelling variations. Early variations of Welsh surnames can be explained by the fact that very few people in the early Middle Ages were literate. Priests and the few other literate people were responsible for recording names in official documents. And because most people could not specific how to properly record their names it was up to the individual recorder of that time to determine how a spoken name should be recorded. Variations due to the imprecise or improper recording of a name continued later in history when names originally composed in the Brythonic Celtic, language of Wales, known by natives as Cymraeg, were transliterated into English. Welsh names that were documented in English often changed dramatically since the native language of Wales, which was highly inflected, did not copy well. Occasionally, however, spelling variations were carried out according to an individual's specific design: a branch loyalty within the family, a religious adherence, or even patriotic affiliations could be indicated by minor variations. The spelling variations of the name Vout have included Foulke, Foulks, Foulkes and others.

Early Notables of the Vout family

Prominent amongst the family during the late Middle Ages was William Foulkes (died 1691), a Welsh cleric and writer, Rector of Cwm in Denbighshire in 1660, of Llanfyllin and of Llanbrynmair in 1661, positions he held until his death. Peter Foulkes (1676-1747), was a scholar and divine, was the third son of Robert Foulkes of Llechryd, Denbighshire, deputy Baron of the court of exchequer of Chester. 3 On the infamous side...
Another 68 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Vout Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Vout migration to Australia +

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

Vout Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Charles Vout, English convict from Norfolk, who was transported aboard the "Andromeda" on November 13, 1832, settling in New South Wales, Australia 4

The Vout 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: Jure, non dono
Motto Translation: By right, not by gift.

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2014, November 27) Andromeda voyage to New South Wales, Australia in 1832 with 186 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/andromeda/1832