Withers (surname)
| Withers | |
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| Family name | |
 Wither Arms and Crest |
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| Meaning | Unknown, possibly "wood", "warrior", "willow tree" or "to withstand" |
| Region of origin | England |
| Language(s) of origin | Old English |
| Related names | Wither, Wyther |
Withers (earlier variants Wither, Wyther) is an English surname of Anglo-Saxon origin. It is today a not uncommon family name throughout the Anglosphere.
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[edit] History
The family name appears on various early documents such as in a charter of Æthelred II, dated 1005 A.D. where one of the witnesses signs his name as "Ego Wi[th]er minister". In the Domesday Book of 1089 the name is shown as a tenant prior to that date. In the 11th century, the name showed no prefix, suggesting that it was not derived from a place, as were many names at that time. Rather, the name was apparently personal. The meaning of the name is uncertain. Various authorities have proposed wider (Old English, "wood"), or words meaning "to withstand", "warrior" or "willow tree".
Records of the 11th century indicate the holding of land in many counties of England by persons named Wyther. A continuous record of a Wyther family does not appear until the time of Henry II (reigned 1154-89). This was a Wyther family of County Lancaster (now Lancashire) including Sir Robert Wyther, Knight, of Pendleton Hall, Lancashire, and of Halton, Cheshire, Seneschal to Roger de Lucy, Constable of Chester (1179–89). He married Joan, daughter of Sir Adam de Bostock, Knight, of Davenham, County Chester (now Cheshire).
By the 15th century, Wyther families descended from Sir Robert Wyther were living in Cheshire, Lancaster, Wiltshire, Essex, London, Somersetshire, and Hampshire Counties. (For the Hampshire County branch, see Berry's Hampshire County Genealogy.)
[edit] Coat of arms
A Withers family coat of arms was granted in the reign of Queen Mary (1553–1558) to Sir Richard Withers of East Sheen (ancestor of the poet George Wither) and registered in the College of Arms, London. [1] The blazon has “Argent, a chevron gules between three crescents sable” (i.e., White/silver field, red chevron between 3 black crescents). [2]
[edit] Notable people named Withers, Wither, or Wyther
[edit] Actors
- Googie Withers (1917–2011), British movie actress
- Grant Withers (1905–1959), American movie actor
- Isabel Withers (1896–1968), American actress
- Jane Withers (born 1926), American radio, television and movie actress
- Mark Withers (actor) (born 1947), American television actor
[edit] Ambassadors
- Charles D. Withers (born 1916), American diplomat, U.S. Ambassador to Rwanda (1963–1966)
- John L. Withers, II, US Ambassador to Albania
[edit] Artists
- Ernest Withers (1922–2007), African-American photographer
- Frederick Clarke Withers (1828–1901), British-American Gothic Revival architect
- George Withers, American illustrator
- Walter Withers (1854–1914), Australian landscape artist
[edit] Athletes
- Bob Withers, Australian Rules footballer during 1950s–1960s
- Charlie Withers (1922–2005), English footballer
- Colin Withers (born 1940), English footballer
- David D. Withers (1821–1892), American racehorse breeder
- Gadwin Withers, British athlete in the 1908 Summer Olympics.
- H. W. Withers, American college basketball and football coach
- Josh Withers (born 1986), American wrestler, a.k.a. Jeremy Hyde, The Crybaby
- Lincoln Withers (born 1981), Australian rugby league player
- Mark Withers (footballer) (born 1964), Australian Rules footballer
- Michael Withers (born 1976), Australian rugby league footballer
- Ted Withers (1915–1994), English footballer who played for Southampton and Bristol Rovers
[edit] Military
- Jones M. Withers (1814–1890), Confederate major general; lawyer and politician
- Ramsey Muir Withers (born 1930), Canadian soldier, former Chief of the Defence Staff
[edit] Musicians
- Bill Withers (born 1938), African-American singer-songwriter
- Elisabeth Withers, American jazz/R&B singer
- Pick Withers (born 1948), British drummer for the band Dire Straits
- Steve Withers (born 1961), American pianist
[edit] Politicians
- Garrett L. Withers (1884–1953), American politician
- Reginald Withers (born 1924), Australian politician
- Robert E. Withers (1821–1907), physician, US Senator and diplomat
- Thomas Jefferson Withers (1804–1865), Confederate politician during the American Civil War
- William Withers (1657–1720), English politician, Lord Mayor of London (1707–1708)
- William A. Withers (died 1887), mayor of Cumberland, Maryland, USA
[edit] Writers
- Alexander Scott Withers (1792–1865), American historian of early Appalachian Indian-white warfare
- Charles W. J. Withers (born 1954), Scottish historical geographer
- George Wither (1588–1667), English poet and satirist
[edit] Fictional characters
- Hildegarde Withers, in novels by Stuart Palmer
[edit] References
[edit] Citations
- ^ Crozier, William Armstrong, Editor (1908), Virginia Heraldira, Being a Registry of Virginia Gentry Entitled to Coat Amor, Reprinted Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co, 1965, pp 62-63..
- ^ Newton, William (1846), A Display of Heraldry, London: William Pickering, pg 230.
[edit] Other sources
- Withers Family of the County Lancaster, England, and of Stafford County, Virginia Establishing the Ancestry of Robert Edwin Withers, III Presented by Mr. Robert Edwin Withers, Sr. of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (1947). Virginia Historical Magazine review (1948).
- Berry's Hampshire County Genealogy
- Bigg-Wither, Reginald Fitz Hugh, Materials for a History of the Wither Family, Winchester: Warren & Son, 1907.
- Gatewood, Virginia Pierce and Robert L., A Withers-Downey Genealogy: A Withers History With Allied Lines, Conway, AR: 1966.
- Recum, Franz V., Withers -- America or A Collection of Genealogical Data Concerning the History of the Descendants in the Male Line of James Withers (1680/1-1746) of Stafford County, Virginia, New York: 1949.
[edit] See also
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This page or section lists people with the surname Withers, Wither, Wyther. If an internal link intending to refer to a specific person led you to this page, you may wish to change that link by adding the person's given name(s) to the link. |
