Contents [hide]

Comfort History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Motto Citations

Comfort History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Ireland
England

The 12th century Anglo-Norman Conquest of Ireland lead by Strongbow introduced the first non-Gaelic elements into Irish nomenclature. The surname Comfort came to Ireland from England at that time. It came originally from the name of a village in Staffordshire, and as such belongs to the category of Anglo-Norman habitation names, which are derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads.

Early Origins of the Comfort family

The surname Comfort was first found in Kent, England before making its way to Ireland. The name has become almost nonexistent in England. There are Domesday references to the surname in Kent. 1

Later, just over a century later the name moved to Oxfordshire, and Staffordshire, where there is a village of Comerford. In the year 1210, soon after the invasion of Strongbow, Earl of Pembroke, in 1172, the Comerfords were granted land in Kilkenny and Wexford, in Ireland. The family is listed as 'New Settlers' who joined Strongbow and got large grants of land in the County of Wexford.

Early History of the Comfort family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Comfort research. Another 80 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1542, 1558, 1562, 1575, 1585, 1586, 1599, 1604, 1625, 1652, 1762 and 1832 are included under the topic Early Comfort History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Comfort Spelling Variations

Medieval scribes and church officials spelled the names as they sounded, so a name was often spelled many different ways during the lifetime of a single person. The investigation of the origin of the name Comfort revealed many spelling variations including Comerford, Comfort, Comport, Comberford, Cummerford, Cumerford, Commerford, Cumfort, Cumport, Comfurt, Compart, Cumberford and many more.

Early Notables of the Comfort family

Notable amongst the family up to this time was Dr. Nicholas Quemerfod, Comberford, Comerford (c.1542-1599) of Waterford, religious scholar and lecturer, who was the first of sixteen Jesuits of the name. Born in Waterford, he took the degree of B.A. at Oxford in 1562, after he had spent at least four years in that university. "After completing his degree by determination he returned to Ireland, was ordained priest, and obtained some ecclesiastical preferment from which he was ejected on account of his...
Another 82 words (6 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Comfort Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Comfort Ranking

In the United States, the name Comfort is the 8,586^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 2

Comfort migration to the United States +

Ireland experienced a dramatic decrease in its population during the 19th century. This was in a great measure, a response to England's imperialistic policies. Hunger and disease took the lives of many Irish people and many more chose to leave their homeland to escape the horrific conditions. North America with its promise of work, freedom, and land was an extremely popular destination for Irish families. For those families that survived the journey, all three of these things were often attained through much hard work and perseverance. Research into early immigration and passenger lists revealed many immigrants bearing the name Comfort:

Comfort Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Andrew Comfort, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1762 3
John Comfort, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1762 3

Comfort Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

John Comfort, who settled in Philadelphia in 1839

Comfort migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Comfort Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Mr. John Comfort U.E. from New York, USA who settled in Niagara, Ontario c. 1787, married to Nancy Ann Johnson they had 5 children, he died in 1790 in Niagara, Ontario 4

Contemporary Notables of the name Comfort (post 1700) +

Nathaniel C. Comfort, American historian specialising in the history of biology
George Fisk Comfort (1833-1910), 19th century American scholar and art exponent
Jane Comfort, American choreographer, director, and dancer
Joe Comfort (1917-1988), American jazz bassist
Alexander Comfort, Medical Biologist, poet and novelist, California
Frank J. Comfort, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Iowa, 1936 (alternate), 1940, 1948; Member of Democratic National Committee from Iowa, 1940 5
Frances Comfort, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate for Michigan State Board of Education, 1941 5
Edwin B. Comfort, American politician, Postmaster at Portland, Oregon, 1850-53 5
Chris Comfort, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Nevada, 2008 5
Bernadette Comfort, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Pennsylvania, 2008 5
... (Another 11 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

The Comfort 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: So ho ho dea ne
Motto Translation: God will perform it.

Citations +

Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
Rubincam, Milton. The Old United Empire Loyalists List. Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc, 1976. (Originally published as; United Empire Loyalists. The Centennial of the Settlement of Upper Canada. Rose Publishing Company, 1885.) ISBN 0-8063-0331-X
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, January 12) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html