Holt Family Tree
Hans Pederson Holt (1864-1957) and Andrina Louise Roslien (1884-1958)- Lloyd Palmer Holt (1901-1972)
- Ida Agnette Holt (1906-1995)
- Olaf Arnold Holt (1910-2005)
- Helen Louella Holt (1913-1989)
- Myrtle Lillian Holt (1916-1998)
- Karen
- Dorothy
- Don
- Peggy
- Rick
- Marvin (Stub) Tillman Holt (1920-1990)
- Ruth Elaine Holt (1922-2004)
- Ginger
- Jerry
- Kathy
- Daniel
Norwegian History
The following is adapted from the Roslien: Brothers Three Family History Book.
About Norwegian Names
In the early times of Norway, it was customary for a son to use his father's given name and add -sen or -son, and a daughter would add -datter to her father's given name. But, as more and more people moved to the cities and used these names as surnames, there soon were so many people with the same surnames that it was impossible to continue that way. Therefore, many of the people who had lived on farms began to use the farm names as surnames.
The farm names of Norway are permanent and some date back hundreds of years. The name was usually descriptive and expressed the nature and history of the area. If a couple marries and went to live on the wife's farm, it was customary for the husband to drop the name of the farm where he had been living and use the name of the farm on which his wife lived. If, they moved to another farm, they would use that farm name.
When families resided on the same farm for several generations, it is much easier to trace the family geneology. If they moved often from farm to farm, it becomes very difficult to trace the family ancestry.
The Holt Surname
The English surname Holt is of local origin, being one of those names derived from the place where a man once lived or where he once held land. In this instance the name is derived from the Old English term "holt" which simply means "a wood" or "a grove", thus the original bearer of the name lived near of or in a wood or grove. Early instances of the surname are often preceded by the words "de" or "del" which literally meant man "from", thus reinforcing the local origin of the name.
The Roslien Surname
The Roslien name was derived from a farm name in Norway. The Census of Norway in 1865 recorded the name as Røyslien. There are some Norwegian records where the name was spelled Røislien. The Røyslien farm was located in the Faberg Parish near the town of Lillehammer. Those who came to America referred to the area as Gudbrandsdal.
Members of the Roslien family, who came to the United States, stated that their surname, when translated into English, would mean a lot of rocks or stones. This was verified in a letter from the Statsarkivet i Hamar, which stated, "Røislien -- Røys -- means a lot of stones, a heap of stones.
According to the information received from Norway, Ole Olsen, father of Lars, Simon and Hans Roslien, was born on the Fagstad farm near Lillehammer. In 1842, Ole became the owner of Røyslien, and the family was living on the Røyslien farm when Lars, Simon and Hans were born.
In the United States, when the Røyslien name was translated to English, the Norwegian letter Ø became an O and the letters Y or I were dropped. Lars, Simon and Hans, who were brothers, and their nephew, Ole A., began to use the Roslien name after coming to the United States.