Ochiltree

This interesting surname of medieval Scottish origin, with the variant (modern) spellings of Ocheltree, Ochiltrie, and Ockeltree, is habitational from the village of Ochiltree in the parish of Linlithgow, West Lothian. Originally the name was recorded under many spellings, including that of the (circa 1550) MacUchtres, who held lands from the Dukes of Argyll, and gradually Anglicized their names to Ochiltrie. Earlier in 1423 Michael Wchyltre, the Dean of Dunblane, was recorded as Owning "a tenement" in Perth. The first proven dating was late 14th Century (see below). Recordings of the surname in Scotland include Uchiltre (1501), Ouchiltre (1550), Vcgiltrie (1567), and Uchiltree (1576). Parish Registers show one Archebald Ochiltrie who married Easther Scotte on September 9th 1652 in Edinburgh, Scotland; Margaret, daughter of Archibald and Anne Ockeltree, who was christened on March 27th 1681 in the Church of St. Dunstan, Stepney, London, and Christian Ochiltree who was christened in Edinburgh on September 30th 1694. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of John de Vchiltre, which was dated 1399, in the "Liber Cartarum Sancte Crucis", during the reign of King Robert 111 of Scotland, 1390 - 1406. 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.