Prescott Family History & Genealogy

Summary

Prescott family history has a rich and complex origin whose details have been accumulated over the years by Prescott family members. This Prescott history and genealogy page contains the contributed history of the Prescott family name made up of user-submitted content from other AncientFaces users. The Prescott family name is an old heredity that has migrated all across the world for many generations, and as the name Prescott has migrated, it has evolved making it's etymology tricky to unearth.

History

The name Prescott can be traced back to The Anglo-Saxon people that came to settle in England and remained throughout year 550 AD and 1066; The Norman Conquest. The Anglo-Saxons were formed from 2 Germanic Tribes who came mostly from what is now West Germany, but also Belgium, The Netherlands, Luxembourg and parts of northern France.
There are alternate spellings of the name and also different surnames that are likely to have originally been the same name. In a time when not everybody could write, recordings of names would often be written as they sounded to the scribe. Other spellings of Prescott or surnames likely to have changed through recording are Prescot, Preskett and Priscott.
Places called Prescott or names similar to it include The Parish of Prescott in Gloucestershire, which was recorded as "Prestecote" in the 1287 Pipe Rolls of the county, Prescott, probably best described as a hamlet north west of Culmstock, in Devon, Prescott, Shropshire, which is now forms the southern part of the village of Baschurch, Prescote, a Hamlet/Civil Parish in Oxfordshire; and the town of Prescot in south west Lancashire, now part of Merseyside, recorded as "Prestecota" in the 1178 Pipe Rolls of Lancashire.
Early recordings of the name include: Richard de Prestecote (Lancashire, 1192); Heredes de Prestecote (Oxfordshire, 1273); and Robert Prescott, of Standish, a yeoman, who was recorded in the Wills Records, Chester, dated 1596. The earliest known recorded spelling of the surname is Gilbert de Prestcota, dated 1175, in The Pipe Rolls of Devonshire, during the reign of King Henry 11, known as The Builder of Churches, from 1154 until 1189. Prescott family history has a rich and complex origin whose details have been accumulated over the years by Prescott family members. This Prescott history and genealogy page contains the contributed history of the Prescott family name made up of user-submitted content from other AncientFaces users. The Prescott family name is an old heredity that has migrated all across the world for many generations, and as the name Prescott has migrated, it has evolved making it's etymology tricky to unearth.

Name Origin

Prescott is a name that would have been given to a person or family based on where they lived or were employed. The name is formed from two terms in The Olde English language, the pre 7th Century term "preost", meaning a priest, parson, or person of the clergy, plus "cot", a cottage or dwelling. There are various cities, towns, parishes, hamlets, and villages called Prescott or with names similar to it, throughout the world, however the earliest known use of the term was in England. It stands to reason that persons from the places called Prescott were given the name Prescott, however it is plausible that any person living near or working within the residence of a clergyman could have taken or been given the name.

Spellings & Pronunciations

Modern spelling variations of Prescott include: Prescot, Preskett and Priscott.
Older variations of Prescott include: Prestecote, Prescote, Prestcota, Presdecote, Prestecode, and Presdecode.

Nationality & Ethnicity

Prescott is a name of Anglo-Saxon origin, and it's earliest known recording is in England. The name Prescott is still in heavy use all over England, most commonly in the north of the country. Descendents of English Prescotts still carrying the surname can be found throughout the world in countries such as New Zealand, Australia, and The USA.
The Anglo-Saxons were an age of residents in England, who descended from two Germanic Tribes that travelled to and settled in England. The Angle Tribe (Anglo) probably came from Angeln, and are believed to have been a mass of human movement, with all of The Angle Tribe leaving Angeln and settling in England, or Briton as it was then known, leaving their former land empty. The name England (Old English: Engla land or Ængla land) originates from this tribe. The Saxon Tribe were from Lower Saxony in West Germany and the Low Countries (now Belgium, The Netherlands, Luxembourg and parts of northern France). The name Prescott derives from the Olde English language developed and used by these settlers, which in a massive part formed The English Language used today. It is possible that the name Prescott was used by these persons before settling in England, however this is unlikely as it is a  name normally based on where somebody lived or was employed, and the name would not have been necessary or in use during the times of Germanic Tribes. It is most likely that it was created when surnames became necessary in England. The name Prescott originates from England. Since its first use, it has spread to a worldwide name throughout many of the world's countries. The original ethnicity of persons with the name Prescott would have most likely been White Caucasian Anglo-Saxon descendents in England, with a less likely chance that it was in use by Germanic Tribes in their languages. Prescott is now a surname that can be found in use by people of any ethnic background.

Famous People named Prescott

Albert Benjamin Prescott, American chemist.
Benjamin Franklin Prescott, American governor.
Breidis Enrique Prescott Consuegra, Colombian boxer.
Edward Christian Prescott, American economist.
George Alan Prescott, English rugby league footballer.
Hilda Frances Margaret Prescott, English author.
Henry Prescott, English govenor of Canadian Newfoundland.
Jacquelyn Prescott, American model.
James Prescott Joule, English physicist.
John Leslie Prescott, British politician.
John Robert Victor Prescott, Australian author.
Paul Prescott, English rugby league footballer.
Peter Prescott, American musician.Prescott Sheldon Bush, American Senator.
Robert Prescott, British Military General.
Samuel Prescott, American rebel.
Samuel Cate Prescott, American scientist.
Samuel Prescott Bush, American industrialist.
Stefany Marisa Quintos Prescott, American actress.
William Prescott, American colonel.
William Hickling Prescott, American historian.
William Warren Prescott, American educator.

Early Prescotts

These are the earliest records we have of the Prescott family.