Titterton - Name

This interesting surname is of Anglo-Saxon origin, and is a locational name from any of three places in Wiltshire called Tytherton, or from some minor, unrecorded or now "lost" place in the Alstonfield area of Staffordshire called Tytterton. Tytherton near Heytesbury (Wiltshire), was recorded as "Tuderinton" in the 1242 Book of Fees for that county, and Tytherton Kelways and Lucas appear respectively as "Tedrintone" in the Domesday Book of 1086, and as "Tuderyngton Caylewey" and "Tuderyngton Lucas" in the 1428 Feudal Aids Rolls. All these places are believed to be so called from the Olde English pre 7th Century male given name "Tidhere", derived from "tuddor", progeny, or from "tiedre", weak, with "-ing", people of, and "tun", enclosure, settlement; hence, "settlement of Tidhere's people". The high incidence of early surname recordings from Staffordshire Church Registers however, suggest that there may have been a medieval settlement in the Alstonfield district named with the above elements. On March 10th 1544, Thomas, son of Nicholas Tytterton, was christened at Alstonfield, and on September 30th 1550, Alyce Tytherton and Robert Moore were married at St. Margaret's, Westminster, London. The christening of George, son of Henry Titterton, took place at Alstonfield, Staffordshire, on January 30th 1611. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Robert Tytterton, which was dated April 25th 1540, a christening witness at Alstonfield, Staffordshire, during the reign of King Henry V111, known as "Bluff King Hal", 1509 - 1547. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.