Recorded in a wide range of spellings including Tye, Tie, Tight, Tyt, Titt, Tittle, Tythe, and Tyght, this interesting surname is English. It is topographical originating from lands known as "tye", which were common lands usually near to a village. It may also originate as a short form of a village name such as Tytherleigh, in Devonshire. Redisential name were developed when former inhabitants of a place moved to another area, usually to seek work, and were best identified by the name of their birthplace. In this case the name development since the early Elizabethan period has included Raffe Tyte and Thomazine Tyght in London in 1588, William Tight also in London in 1620, and Joan Tighte of Bedfordshire in 1621. Other recordings include Hestor Tyte, the daughter of Lewis Tyte, christened at St Olvas, Hart Street, in the city of London, on devcember 31st 1644, and Hannah Titt, the daughter of Thomas Titt, christened at St Margarets, westminster, on March 1st 1667. An interesting namebearer was the architect Sir William Tite (1798 - 1873). He built the Royal Exchange in London in 1844, and was largely responsible for the Thames Embankment. The first recorded spelling of the family name is probably that of Hugh de la Tye, of the county of Sussex, in 1273 or John Tye of Norfolk in the same year. 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.

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