This unusual surname is of early medieval English origin, and derives from one of the diminutive forms of the male given name Joseph, itself coming from the Hebrew "Yosef", may He (God) add another son. In England the personal name occurred very occasionally before the Norman Conquest of 1066, as the name of a cleric, and is recorded in its Latinized form, "Josephus", in the Domesday Book of 1086. The name was usually given in honour of St. Joseph, husband of the Virgin Mary, and Joseph of Arimathea, who buried the body of Jesus and whom legend connects with Glastonbury Abbey and the Holy Grail.
"Joses", a Greek adaption of the name, and "Giuseppe", the Italian form, influenced the various diminutive and pet forms which arose. These include: Joe, Josey, Jessel, Jessop and Jessett. Early recordings of the surname are: William Joseph (Hampshire, 1191), and John Jesop (Yorkshire, 1379). On August 7th 1614, William, son of Thomas Jessett, was christened at St. Margaret's, Westminster, London. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Nic Jeset, which was dated November 20th 1571, marriage to Joan Rogers, at Tonbridge, Kent, during the reign of Queen Elizabeth 1, known as "Good Queen Bess", 1558 - 1603. 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.
The origin, the coat of arms or the different heraldic shields, and the bibliography in which the surname jessett is mentioned are part of this exciting investigation.
The list of countries with a higher presence of people with the surname jessett provides us with a perspective on the history of the surname, beyond its origins, focusing on its migrations.
For those like you, who are interested in the history hidden behind the surname jessett, it is essential to find all kinds of information, both direct and tangential, that helps to construct a solid narrative of how the birth and expansion of jessett developed.
We keep our website updated through our own research and also thanks to contributions from people like you, after verification; so if you have information about jessett and send it to us, we will update it on this website.
Sadly, not all the contributions of those who bore the surname jessett were recorded by the chroniclers of the time.
The origin, history, coat of arms or different coats of arms, and the heraldry of jessett are recorded in a wide variety of sources and documents that are essential to know for better compilation.
These sources are essential for initiating the understanding of jessett, and at the same time, of surnames in general.