Bassom History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Scotland

The name Bassom was most likely taken on by someone who was a person of small stature having derived from the Old English word bas, meaning short. Alternatively, the name could have been derived from the French word bas which has the same meaning. 1

Early Origins of the Bassom family

The surname Bassom was first found in Leicestershire where "Bass is a Leicestershire name. Basse occurred in Cambridgeshire and Oxfordshire in the 13th century. Edward Bashe held the manor of Botelers in Prittlewell parish, Essex, in the reign of Elizabeth." 2

Further north in Scotland, ancient records there found the name in Aberbuthenoth where "Andrew de Bas who was one of the jurors in a dispute regarding the Kirketun of Aberbuthenoth" in 1206. Apparently, he derived his name from Bass in Aberdeenshire. 3 Bass Isle is found in the parish of North Berwick, county of Haddington. 4

Early History of the Bassom family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Bassom research. Another 37 words (3 lines of text) covering the years 1583, 1653, 1698, 1699 and 1725 are included under the topic Early Bassom History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Bassom Spelling Variations

Huguenot surnames were only slightly Anglicized, and they remain to this day a distinct group of surnames in England. Nevertheless, Huguenot surnames have been subject to numerous spelling alterations since the names emerged in France. French surnames have a variety of spelling variations because the French language has changed drastically over the centuries. French was developed from the vernacular Latin of the Roman Empire. It is divided into three historic and linguistic periods: Old French, which developed before the 14th century; Middle French, which was used between the 14th and 16th centuries; and Modern French, which was used after the 16th century and continues to be in use today. In all of these periods, the French language was heavily influenced by other languages. For example, Old French was infused with Germanic words and sounds when the barbarian tribes invaded and settled in France after the fall of the Roman Empire. Middle French also borrowed heaviliy from the Italian language during the Renaissance. Huguenot names have numerous variations. The name may be spelled Bass, Bassin, Bassen and others.

Early Notables of the Bassom family

Another 46 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Bassom Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Bassom migration to the United States +

Early records show that people bearing the name Bassom arrived in North America quite early:

Bassom Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

William Bassom, who landed in Massachusetts in 1636 5
Thomas Bassom, who arrived in Connecticut in 1642 5

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
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)
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of Scotland. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
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)