Show ContentsBorrer History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The first bearer of the name Borrer most likely took on this name based on an early member of the family who was a someone who was "as strong as a bear" having derived from Old French nickname berart.

Early Origins of the Borrer family

The surname Borrer was first found in Brittany, where they held a family seat from very ancient times. They held a family seat in that province at Demaine where they were nobility from about the times of the Norman invasion of England in 1066 A.D.

Early History of the Borrer family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Borrer research. Another 65 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1789 and 1828 are included under the topic Early Borrer History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Borrer Spelling Variations

There are many spelling variations of Breton surnames, because the Old and Middle English languages lacked definite spelling rules. The official court languages, which were Latin and French, were also influential on the spelling of a surname. Since the spelling of surnames was rarely consistent in medieval times, and scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded rather than adhering to any specific spelling rules, it was common to find references to one individual with many different spellings of their surname in the ancient chronicles. Moreover, a large number of foreign names were brought into England, which accelerated and accentuated the alterations to the spelling of various surnames. The name has been spelled Berard, Barrard, Berad and others.

Early Notables of the Borrer family

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

Migration of the Borrer family

Records show the name Borrer in some of the earliest immigrant records of North America: Francois Berard, who was settled in Quebec in 1748; and a Berard who sailed to Philadelphia in 1796.


Contemporary Notables of the name Borrer (post 1700) +

  • William Borrer (1781-1862), English botanist, born at Henfield, Sussex, on 13 June 1781, and died there on 10 Jan. 1862

HMS Hood
  • Mr. Harold T Borrer (b. 1922), English Able Seaman serving for the Royal Navy from Croydon, Surrey, England, who sailed into battle and died in the HMS Hood sinking 1


  1. H.M.S. Hood Association-Battle Cruiser Hood: Crew Information - H.M.S. Hood Rolls of Honour, Men Lost in the Sinking of H.M.S. Hood, 24th May 1941. (Retrieved 2016, July 15) . Retrieved from http://www.hmshood.com/crew/memorial/roh_24may41.htm


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