Blakelock History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Scotland

The saga of the name Blakelock begins with a Strathclyde-Briton family in the ancient Scottish/English Borderlands. It is a name for a person with dark hair. As such, the Blakelock surname most likely evolved from a nickname from the Middle English "blakelok," in turn from the Old English blec, meaning "black," or "dark," and locc, meaning a "lock of hair." 1

Alternatively, the name could have been derived from Black Loch, location names in Lanark, Renfrew and Stirling. 2

Early Origins of the Blakelock family

The surname Blakelock was first found in Wiltshire where Peter Blacloke was listed in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273. 3

Dusting off more old references, we found Adam Blakelok in the Subsidy Rolls for Cumberland in 1332 and Robert Blaykelok in Yorkshire in 1431. 4

About fifty years later in Scotland, "William Blakloche, chaplain in the monastery of Dunfermlyne, appears as charter witness in 1483. " 5 The same source notes two of the same name but with very different stories: "Adam Blaiklok of the West Port of Edinburgh was hanged for perjury in 1615, and another Adam Blaiklok was constable of the parish of Kirkpatrick-Tuxta, 1617." 5

Early History of the Blakelock family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Blakelock research. Another 176 words (13 lines of text) covering the years 1275, 1332, 1400, 1597, 1598, 1637, 1638, 1684, 1721, 1791 and 1801 are included under the topic Early Blakelock History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Blakelock Spelling Variations

The many spelling variations in Medieval Scottish names result from the fact that scribes in that era spelled words according to sound. Translation too, was an undeveloped science, and many names were altered into complete obscurity. Over the years Blakelock has been spelled Blacklock, Blakelock, Blacklocke, Blakelocke, Blaikelock, Blaiklock and many more.

Early Notables of the Blakelock family

Another 27 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Blakelock Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Blakelock 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:

Blakelock Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mrs. Elizabeth Blakelock, (b. 1834), aged 24, British settler travelling from Gravesend aboard the ship "Mystery" arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 29th March 1859 6
Mr. Thomas Thursfield Blakelock, (b. 1834), aged 24, British shipwright travelling from Gravesend aboard the ship "Mystery" arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 29th March 1859 6
Mr. Robert T. Blakelock, (b. 1857), aged 1, British settler travelling from Gravesend aboard the ship "Mystery" arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 29th March 1859 6

Contemporary Notables of the name Blakelock (post 1700) +

Brigadier-General David Hazen Blakelock (1895-1975), American Commanding Officer, Services of Supply, Force 51 (1942-1943) 7

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Barber, Henry, British Family Names London: Elliot Stock, 62 Paternoster Row, 1894. Print.
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
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)
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
Generals of World War II. (Retrieved 2011, October 6) David Blakelock. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/Blakelock/David_Hazen/USA.html