Blandferd History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Blandferd is a name whose history is connected to the ancient Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. The name is derived from when the Blandferd family once lived in the region of Blandford. Further research revealed that the name is derived from ford where gudgeons abound around the county of Dorset or it may be "taken by post-Conquest scribes to mean 'White Ford,' as evidenced by the Latinization Blancoforda. " 1

Early Origins of the Blandferd family

The surname Blandferd was first found in Dorset at Blandford, a parish, in the union of Blandford, hundred of Coombs-Ditch, Blandford division. Abut three quarters of mile south lies Blandford-Forum. This latter parish "derived its name from its situation near an ancient ford on the river Stour, called by the Romans Trajectus Balaniensis. It was nearly destroyed by an accidental fire in 1579, but was soon afterwards rebuilt. " 2

Henry Blaneforde (fl. 1330), was an ancient English chronicler and monk of St. Albans. "A fragment of his chronicle has been preserved. Beginning with the year 1323 he possibly intended to continue the work of Trokelowe, which ends at 1330. What we have of his chronicle, however, ends in 1324, though it contains a reference to an event of 1326. The only manuscript of Blaneforde now known to exist is in the British Museum. " 3

Early History of the Blandferd family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Blandferd research. Another 58 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1616, 1619, 1635, 1638, 1662, 1665, 1671 and 1675 are included under the topic Early Blandferd History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Blandferd Spelling Variations

Sound was what guided spelling in the essentially pre-literate Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Also, before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Therefore, spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Blandferd family name include Blandford, Blandeford, Blanford and others.

Early Notables of the Blandferd family

Notables of this surname at this time include: Walter Blandford (1616-1675), an English academic and bishop, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford in 1662, Bishop of Oxford in 1665 and Bishop of Worcester in 1671. He...
Another 35 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Blandferd Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Blandferd family

For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, Canada, the America colonies, and many of smaller tropical colonies in the hope of finding better lives abroad. Although the passage on the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving, those families that survived the trip often went on to make valuable contributions to those new societies to which they arrived. Early immigrants bearing the Blandferd surname or a spelling variation of the name include: Alexander Blandford settled in New England in 1699; John Blandford settled in Jamaica in 1684; John Blandford settled in Boston, Massachusetts in 1620..

Citations +

Harrison, Henry, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary Baltimore: Geneological Publishing Company, 2013. Print
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print