Brame History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The name Brame is an old Anglo-Saxon name. It comes from when a family lived in any one of a number of similarly named settlements. Bramham and Braham were found in the West Riding of Yorkshire and Brantham was found in Suffolk. Braham Hall was in Essex, as was Bream's Farm.

Early Origins of the Brame family

The surname Brame was first found in the West Riding of Yorkshire, at Braham, a parish, in the Upper division of the wapentake of Barkstone-Ash. "A battle was fought here in 1408, between Sir Thomas Rokeby, sheriff of Yorkshire, and the Earl of Northumberland, in which the earl was defeated and slain, and by which the possession of the county was secured to Henry IV. " 1

Early rolls revealed a wide-spread use of the name with a variety of spellings: Eustace de Braham in Colchester, Essex (1189-1199); Matthew de Bramham, de Braham in the Assize Rolls for Yorkshire in 1219; and Agnes de Brame in the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379. 2

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 included: Alan de Braham, Suffolk; Richard de Brahain, Suffolk and Roger de Braham, Suffolk. 3

Early History of the Brame family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Brame research. Another 232 words (17 lines of text) covering the years 1086, 1379, 1500, 1555, 1600, 1602, 1660, 1681, 1707, 1718 and 1751 are included under the topic Early Brame History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Brame Spelling Variations

Before the last few hundred years, the English language had no fast system of spelling rules. For that reason, spelling variations are commonly found in early Anglo-Saxon surnames. Over the years, many variations of the name Brame were recorded, including Braham, Braim, Bramham, Brame, Braem and others.

Early Notables of the Brame family

Notables of this surname at this time include:

Johannes de Brame, a prominent 14th century landholder in Yorkshire

Brame Ranking

In the United States, the name Brame is the 9,157^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 4

Brame migration to the United States +

To escape oppression and starvation at that time, many English families left for the "open frontiers" of the New World with all its perceived opportunities. In droves people migrated to the many British colonies, those in North America in particular, paying high rates for passages in cramped, unsafe ships. Although many of the settlers did not make the long passage alive, those who did see the shores of North America perceived great opportunities before them. Many of the families that came from England went on to make essential contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. Research into various historical records revealed some of first members of the Brame family emigrate to North America:

Brame Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Richard Brame, who arrived in Virginia in 1653 5
John Brame, who arrived in Virginia in 1657 5
Christopher Brame, who landed in Maryland in 1667 5

Brame Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

John Brame, who landed in New Orleans, La in 1813 5
C F Brame, who arrived in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 1851 5
Cetha Brame, aged 6, who landed in New York in 1854 5

Brame migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Brame Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

John Brame, aged 30, a carpenter, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Rodney" in 1875
Benjamin Brame, aged 19, a carpenter, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Rodney" in 1875

Contemporary Notables of the name Brame (post 1700) +

Erv Brame (1901-1949), American Major League Baseball player
Charlotte Mary Brame (1836-1884), English novelist who used many pseudonyms including Bertha M. Clay
Peter Brame (b. 1979), English singer-songwriter, and guitarist
Brame Hillyard (1876-1959), British tennis player who was the first tennis player to appear at Wimbledon wearing shorts rather than trousers

Citations +

Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
"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)