Timperley Family History and Genealogy
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The Timperley surname is certainly rare and undoubtedly ancient. These two conditions alone give reason enough for it to exist in several variations. Furthermore, it seems quite difficult for those unaccustomed to it, to even begin to spell it correctly (a rather anecdotal statement, but I'm sure you will agree).
I have chosen to use the spelling of Timperley as the title for this web site because it is the way in which the majority of those with similar names spell it, and because it is most often listed with that spelling in authoritative works.
I do not wish to imply that there is only one correct spelling of Timperley. Each family certainly has a long tradition of spelling their name in a particular way, and for each, it is undoubtedly correct. It may be, however, that those with this particular surname and all of its variations, share a common ancestor or place of origin (at the time that the use of the surname became common). For many, that place may be the town of Timperley in Cheshire, England. For others, their name may originate with one of the individuals recorded in the various ancient works as having that name (many of which the spellings vary, even for the same individual).
The different spellings most likely originate from inaccuracies in medieval records or their more modern counterparts (government, parish or employment records). Many medieval manuscripts often refer to the same person using different spellings. Unfortunately, it seems that the clerks of the time often substituted e, i, and y freely. They also added or dropped vowels between generations and even between siblings. In the US, it is known that the surname Timperley has even transformed itself into Templeton, although in this case it may have been more of a deliberate corruption, rather than an accidental one.
The Social Security Administration of the United States (Death Index, 1937-1995) lists the following names which I have taken to be variations on Timperley. After each, I have noted the number of occurrences for each name.
- Timberley 2
- Temperle 7
- Temperley 16
- Temperli 6
- Temperly 30
- Timperley 58
- Timperly 6
These additional spelling variations are known:
- Timporly
- Timporley
And these variations can be seen in several of the ancient works:
- de Tymperlegh
- de Timperley
- Tymperlegh
- Tymperley
- Tymperly
Other surname connections (or lack thereof):