Bran History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Scotland

Bran is one of the many names that the Normans brought with them when they conquered England in 1066. The Bran family lived in Gloucestershire. The family is believed to have been from Brain, near Hainaut in Normandy where they were nobles of the order of St. Empire or at Brain in Anjou. 1

Early Origins of the Bran family

The surname Bran was first found in Norfolk where Ketell Brain was recorded in the Pipe Rolls of 1166. Later Walter Brayn was found in the Subsidy Rolls for Worcestershire in 1275. 2 Matthew de Brain occurs in Yorkshire 1199. 1

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 recorded Alicia Brayn, Cambridgeshire; Helena Brayn, Huntingdonshire; and John Brayn, Cambridgeshire. 3

"A family of Brain held lands in the parish of Little Dean [Gloucestershire] from the time of Elizabeth up to last century, and the name still occurs there. The Brains also owned the manor of Stanton [Chippenham, Wiltshire] 300 years ago. This is an ancient English name: it was represented in Hunts in the reign of Edward I." 4

Further to the north in Scotland, Thomas Brayne of Baldowy was witness in 1462, and David Brane, artium magister, 1477. David Brane was witness in Aberdeen, 1492. John Brane signed the Band of Dumfries, 1570, Roger Brain in Allegawin, parish of Glenbervie, 1601, and four more of the name are recorded in Brechin Commissariot Record. 5 In Scotland, the name often appears as MacBryane. 2

Early History of the Bran family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Bran research. Another 125 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1580, 1605, 1686 and 1751 are included under the topic Early Bran History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Bran Spelling Variations

Anglo-Norman names tend to be marked by an enormous number of spelling variations. This is largely due to the fact that Old and Middle English lacked any spelling rules when Norman French was introduced in the 11th century. The languages of the English courts at that time were French and Latin. These various languages mixed quite freely in the evolving social milieu. The final element of this mix is that medieval scribes spelled words according to their sounds rather than any definite rules, so a name was often spelled in as many different ways as the number of documents it appeared in. The name was spelled Brain, Braine, Brayne, Brane, Brayn and others.

Early Notables of the Bran family

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

Bran migration to the United States +

Because of the political and religious discontent in England, families began to migrate abroad in enormous numbers. Faced with persecution and starvation at home, the open frontiers and generally less oppressive social environment of the New World seemed tantalizing indeed to many English people. The trip was difficult, and not all made it unscathed, but many of those who did get to Canada and the United States made important contributions to the young nations in which they settled. Some of the first North American settlers with Bran name or one of its variants:

Bran Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Theodus Bran, who arrived in Virginia in 1665 6

Bran Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Abraham Bran, who arrived in Virginia in 1718 6
Jean Baptiste Bran, aged 30, who landed in Louisiana in 1719 6
Nicolas Bran, aged 26, who arrived in Louisiana in 1719 6
Pierre Bran, who landed in Connecticut in 1763 6
Mrs. Francois Bran, who arrived in Connecticut in 1763 6
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Bran Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Johann Friedrich Bran, who arrived in Texas in 1845 6
Johann Heinrich Bran, who landed in Texas in 1846 6
Joseph Bran, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1847 6
Lorenzo Bran, aged 37, who landed in New Orleans, La in 1847 6
Mr. Eilert Bran, aged 33, German who arrived in Galveston, Texas in 1847 aboard the ship "Helen & Elise"
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Bran (post 1700) +

Bran Ferren (b. 1953), American technologist, artist, architectural designer, vehicle designer and engineer, former President of Research and Development of Walt Disney Imagineering

Citations +

The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
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)
Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
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)