Show ContentsBrode History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The Anglo-Saxon name Brode comes from when the family resided stout person. The surname Brode is derived from the Old English word brode, which means broad. This in turn is derived from the Old English word brad, which has the same meaning.

Early Origins of the Brode family

The surname Brode was first found in Cornwall in the parish of Helland. "The barton of Brodes or Broads, which appears to have been formerly possessed by a family of that name, was for some time subsequent to the reign of James I. a seat of a younger branch of the family of Glynn." 1

Early History of the Brode family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Brode research. Another 48 words (3 lines of text) covering the year 1233 is included under the topic Early Brode History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Brode Spelling Variations

The English language only became standardized in the last few centuries; therefore,spelling variations are common among early Anglo-Saxon names. As the form of the English language changed, even the spelling of literate people's names evolved. Brode has been recorded under many different variations, including Broad, Brod and others.

Early Notables of the Brode family

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

Brode Ranking

In the United States, the name Brode is the 10,527th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 2


United States Brode migration to the United States +

For many English families, the political and religious disarray that shrouded England made the far away New World an attractive prospect. On cramped disease-ridden ships, thousands migrated to those British colonies that would eventually become Canada and the United States. Those hardy settlers that survived the journey often went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Analysis of immigration records indicates that some of the first North American immigrants bore the name Brode or a variant listed above:

Brode Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Emil Brode, who arrived in Ohio in 1887 3
Brode Settlers in United States in the 20th Century
  • Franz Brode, who landed in Alabama in 1917 3

Contemporary Notables of the name Brode (post 1700) +

  • Wallace Reed Brode (1900-1974), American chemist, President of the American Chemical Society in 1969 and the Optical Society of America in 1961, awarded the Priestley Medal in 1960
  • Robert Bigham Brode (1900-1986), American physicist, who led the group at the Manhattan Project's Los Alamos laboratory
  • Harold L. Brode, American nuclear weapons effects physicist at the RAND Corporation in the 1950s
  • Mrs. Arthur Brode, American Democratic Party politician, Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Tennessee, 1940 4
  • A. B. Brode, American Republican politician, Candidate for West Virginia State House of Delegates from Cabell County, 1916 4
  • Charles Brode (1836-1901), Prussian-born immigrant to America from Australia who later became a merchant and property owner in Los Angeles, California


  1. Hutchins, Fortescue, The History of Cornwall, from the Earliest Records and Traditions to the Present Time. London: William Penaluna, 1824. Print
  2. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  3. 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)
  4. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, February 1) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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