Show ContentsDunkerson History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The history of the Dunkerson family goes back to the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture of Britain. It is derived from the family living in the region of Dinkley in the county of Lancashire. The surname Dunkerson is a topographic surname, which was given to a person who resided near a physical feature such as a hill, stream, church, or type of tree. Habitation names form the other broad category of surnames that were derived from place-names. They were derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads. Other local names are derived from the names of houses, manors, estates, regions, and entire counties. As a general rule, the greater the distance between an individual and their homeland, the larger the territory they were named after. For example, a person who only moved to another parish would be known by the name of their original village, while people who migrated to a different country were often known by the name of a region or country from which they came.

Early Origins of the Dunkerson family

The surname Dunkerson was first found in Lancashire where they held a family seat from very ancient times, some say well before the Norman Conquest and the arrival of Duke William at Hastings in 1066 A.D.

Early History of the Dunkerson family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Dunkerson research. Another 68 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Dunkerson History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Dunkerson Spelling Variations

Until quite recently, the English language has lacked a definite system of spelling rules. Consequently, Anglo-Saxon surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. Changes in Anglo-Saxon names were influenced by the evolution of the English language, as it incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other languages. Although Medieval scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded, so it is common to find one person referred to by several different spellings of his surname, even the most literate people varied the spelling of their own names. Variations of the name Dunkerson include Dunkley, Dunkerly, Dunkleigh, Dunklee, Dunkersley, Dunkerley and many more.

Early Notables of the Dunkerson family

More information is included under the topic Early Dunkerson Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Dunkerson family

Searching for a better life, many English families migrated to British colonies. Unfortunately, the majority of them traveled under extremely harsh conditions: overcrowding on the ships caused the majority of the immigrants to arrive diseased, famished, and destitute from the long journey across the ocean. For those families that arrived safely, modest prosperity was attainable, and many went on to make invaluable contributions to the development of the cultures of the new colonies. Research into the origins of individual families in North America revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Dunkerson or a variant listed above: William Dunkerley who settled in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1880; Benjamin Dunkerly settled in Philadelphia in 1849; followed by James in 1852; and William in 1860.



Houseofnames.com on Facebook