Barnby History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Barnby is a name whose history is connected to the ancient Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. The name is derived from when the Barnby family once lived in Barnby Hall, in the North Riding of Yorkshire. The name of that place is derived from the Old English personal name Beornwald, which comes from the words beorn, meaning young warrior, and wald, meaning rule. 1 Today, Barnby is also a village and civil parish in the Waveney district of Suffolk.

Early Origins of the Barnby family

The surname Barnby was first found in Yorkshire, where the earliest record is at Barnby Hall, in the parish of Calthorne, in the east riding of Yorkshire. 2 "The township anciently belonged to a family of the same name; mention occurring of Robert de Barneby, who held the lands under Peter de Mauley, lord of Mulgrave." 3

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 lists: Richard de Barneby in Yorkshire; and Henry de Barneby in Lincolnshire. Later the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 listed: Thomas de Barmby; and Thomas de Barnby. 4

Barnby in the North Riding of Yorkshire was an ancient family seat. "The township anciently belonged to a family of the same name; mention occurring of Robert de Barneby, who held the lands under Peter de Mauley, lord of Mulgrave." 3

Early History of the Barnby family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Barnby research. Another 64 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1000, 1550, 1838 and 1875 are included under the topic Early Barnby History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Barnby Spelling Variations

Sound was what guided spelling in the essentially pre-literate Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Also, before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Therefore, spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Barnby family name include Barneby, Barnby, Barnaby, Bernaby, Burnaby and many more.

Early Notables of the Barnby family

Notables of the family at this time include

Joseph Barnby, born at York Aug. 12, 1838, a chorister in York Minster, and student at the Royal Academy of Music: was for nine years organist of St. Andrew's, Wells Street, London, and contributed mu...

Migration of the Barnby family

For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, Canada, the America colonies, and many of smaller tropical colonies in the hope of finding better lives abroad. Although the passage on the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving, those families that survived the trip often went on to make valuable contributions to those new societies to which they arrived. Early immigrants bearing the Barnby surname or a spelling variation of the name include: John Barnabie who settled in Virginia in 1620; James Barnaby who settled in Virginia in 1640; Sarah Barnaby who settled in Virginia in 1640.

Contemporary Notables of the name Barnby (post 1700) +

Sir Joseph Barnby (1838-1896), British composer and conductor

The Barnby Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Virtute non vi
Motto Translation: By virtue not by force.

Citations +

Hanks, Patricia and Flavia Hodges, A Dictionary of Surnames. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1988. Print. (ISBN 0-19-211592-8)
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)