Recorded as Strettell, Stretall, Strethill, Strettle and others this is an English surname. It is locational from the village of Strethall in the county of Essex. This place was first recorded in the famous Domesday Book of 1086 as Strathala and later in the year 1212 as Strethale which does bear some resemblance to the modern form. The name means 'The hall on the (Roman) road' from the pre 7th century 'straet - halh'. A hall was probably a stone building which might have had some civic use or may have referred to a manor house, at a time when most buildings were mere wattle and daub. Locational surnames were usually 'from' names. That is toi say names given to people after they left their original homes to move somewhere esles and were best identified by the name of the place wfrom whence they came. The name has been quite well recorded in the city of London since Stuart times and recordings include Anne Strathill who married Richard Copper at Allhallows, London Wall, on September 1st 1659, and Tabitha Strettell who married Samuel Gibson at the famous church of St Mary-le-Bone on September 2nd 1678.