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Witherby Family History

Witherby Surname Meaning

The variant of Weatherby (1) suggests that some early bearers in SE England could alternatively belong at (2). In E Anglia, it perhaps represents an altered form of the Middle English surname Witherpin, which has been attested in Norfolk since the 13th century and was later re-interpreted as a locative name ending in -by.

Witherpin appears to consist of Middle English witheren, meaning ‘to resist’, wither relating to ‘hostility, violence, adversity, combat, battle’, or wither in the sense of ‘opposite, adverse, fierce, hostile, contrary’, combined with Middle English pin, which denotes ‘pin, peg (of wood or metal), nail, bolt, spike’.

The sense of the compound is unclear; however, it may be interesting to compare it with Witherspoon, which apparently originated as a name for a quarrelsome person.

Source: The Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain and Ireland, 2016


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Where is the Witherby family from?

You can see how Witherby families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Witherby family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Witherby families were found in United Kingdom in 1891. In 1891 there were 38 Witherby families living in London. This was about 39% of all the recorded Witherby's in United Kingdom. London had the highest population of Witherby families in 1891.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Witherby surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.
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What did your Witherby ancestors do for a living?

In 1939, Unpaid Domestic Duties was the top reported job for people in the United Kingdom named Witherby. 82% of Witherby women worked as an Unpaid Domestic Duties.

View Census Data for Witherby | Data not to scale

*We display top occupations by gender to maintain their historical accuracy during times when men and women often performed different jobs.

Top Female Occupations In 1939

  • Unpaid Domestic Duties
    82%
  • Private Means
    19%

What Witherby family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 4,000 census records available for the last name Witherby. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Witherby census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

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Passenger Lists

There are 408 immigration records available for the last name Witherby. Passenger lists are your ticket to knowing when your ancestors arrived in the UK, and how they made the journey - from the ship name to ports of arrival and departure.

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Draft Cards

There are 482 military records available for the last name Witherby. For the veterans among your Witherby ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

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What is the average Witherby lifespan?

Between 1962 and 2004, in the United States, Witherby life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1970, and highest in 1993. The average life expectancy for Witherby in 1962 was 88, and 85 in 2004.

View Social Security Death Index (SSDI) for Witherby

An unusually short lifespan might indicate that your Witherby ancestors lived in harsh conditions. A short lifespan might also indicate health problems that were once prevalent in your family. The SSDI is a searchable database of more than 70 million names. You can find birthdates, death dates, addresses and more.

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