Spafford Family Crest and Name History

Text Size

Spafford PDF Surname History


The Ancient History Of The Distinguished Surname Spafford

Complete PDF History

Spafford

Contents

Spafford history with Spafford Family Crest
Spafford Motto Translated
Surname Notables
About Family Crests
Spafford Products

Origin Displayed: English

Where did the English Spafford family come from? What is the English coat of arms/family crest? When did the Spafford family first arrive in the United States? Where did the various branches of the family go? What is the history of the family name?

The name Spafford has a history dating as far back as the Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. It is derived from when the Spafford family lived in the parish of Spofforth in Knaresborough in Yorkshire. The surname Spafford is a habitation name that was originally derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads. The surname originated as a means of identifying individuals from a particular area. In the Middle Ages people often assumed the name of the place that they originally lived as their surname during the course of travel. 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.

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 Spafford include Spaford, Spafford, Spafforde, Spafforth and others.

First found in Lancashire where they were Lords of the manor of Spafford from very ancient times, some say, before the Norman Conquest in 1066 A.D.

Searching for a better life, many English families migrated to British colonies. Unfortunately, the majority of them travelled 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 Spafford or a variant listed above: David Spafford arrived in San Francisco Cal. in 1850.

Motto Translated: Faithful to the extreme.

For more information on the last name Spafford, the PDF Surname History is available for purchase as well as other products.

Some noteworthy people of the name Spafford

Eugene H "Spaf" Spafford (b. 1956), Professor of computer science at Purdue University
Horatio Gates Spafford (1828-1888), author of the hymn "It Is Well With My Soul"

Tell Me More About Family Crests

Family Crests: the Heraldic Artist

We have researched the Spafford family crest in the most recognized sources. Before an artist or craftsman can render a family crest, it must exist. In other words the crest must have been designed and recorded by the heralds from time immemorial.

Heraldic designs matriculated by the lay-artist in many cases becomes uninspired, meretricious and even ugly...

More

Family Crests: Timeline

Many of the symbols adopted into armory have been used since the time of the ancient Egyptians, but heraldry itself did not begin until the 11th century. In continental Europe, the most ancient recorded family crest was discovered upon the monumental effigy of a Count of Wasserburg in the church of St. Emeran, at Ratisobon, Germany...

More

Family Crests: Elements

In the Spafford coat of arms as in all coat of arms the crest is only one element of the full armorial achievement. Again the Family Crest is just part of the story of Coats of Arms or Heraldry. Heraldry is defined as the hereditary art or science of blazoning, the description is appropriate technical terms of Coats-of-Arms and other heraldic and armorial insignia, and is of very ancient origin...

More

Family Crests and Genealogy: how they relate

We encourage you to study the Spafford genealogy to find out if you descend from someone who bore a particular family crest. Anyone making a study of heraldry usually becomes interested in Genealogy or seeking legal claim to a particular family crest. No families, not even the royal houses, can make sound claim to the right to bear arms unless a proven connection is established through attested Genealogical records...

More

Spafford Family Crest Products

Anniversary

Anniversary products for the name Spafford.

Apparel

Apparel for the Spafford family crest.

Armorial histories

Armorial histories for the name Spafford.

Ceramics

Ceramics emphasing the Spafford family crest.

Clip art

Clip art of all the most used heraldic pieces.

Coat of Arms

Coat of Arms for the name Spafford.

Downloads

Downloads for the Spafford family crest.

Family Crest

Family Crest for the name Spafford.

Family Tree

Family Tree with a Spafford coat of arms.

Hand Painted Plaques

Hand Painted Plaques for the Spafford family crest.

Keychains

Keychains featuring the Spafford family crest.

Mouse pads

Mouse pads emphasing the family crest for the name Spafford.

Packages

Packages proudly displaying the Spafford family crest.

Plaques and Frames

Plaques and Frames displaying the Spafford family crest.

Surname Histories

Surname Histories for the name Spafford.

Travel Mugs

Travel Mugs with the family crest for the name Spafford.

Popular Products
	Armorial History With Coat of Arms
	Coat of Arms & Surname History Package
	Family Crest Image (jpg) Heritage Series - 300 DPI
	Key-chain
	Coffee Mug
	Armorial History with Frame
	Framed Surname History and Coat of Arms

The Spafford Family Crest was acquired from the Houseofnames.com archives. The Spafford Family Crest was drawn according to heraldic standards based on published blazons. We generally include the oldest published family crest once associated with each surname.