Show ContentsBynon History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Bynon is a name whose history is connected to the ancient Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. The name is derived from when the Bynon family once lived in Norfolk.

However, one source notes the name was originally Welsh "derived from the name of an ancestor. —Ab-Eignon' (Welsh), i.e. 'the son of Eignon' or 'Ennion.' Robert ap Eignon had for his son Robert Baynham, of Chorewall, in the forest of Dean. Henceforward the family were so known. The name looks wonderfully English and local, but, as shown, is not so." [1]

Early Origins of the Bynon family

The surname Bynon was first found in the county of Norfolk. Baynham Hall is a 17th century manor house located in Michaelchurch-On-Arrow, Gladestry, Powys, Wales. We do know that Hugh Lloyd purchased Baynham Hall in about 1830, but as far as who originally had the manor house built remains a mystery.

John Bankyn or Banekyne (fl. 1382), was an "Augustinian friar and opponent of Wycliffe, born in London and educated in the Augustinian monastery of that city and afterwards at Oxford, where he attained the degree of doctor of divinity. " [2]

Hugh Benham or Hugo Benhyem (d. 1282), was Bishop of Aberdeen and succeeded Richard Pottock in the see in 1272. [2]

Cadugan ap Eynon was listed in Cheshire in 1285 and later Iorworth ap Egnon was listed in the Assize Rolls for 1287. [3]

Early History of the Bynon family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Bynon research. Another 212 words (15 lines of text) covering the years 1458, 1476, 1497, 1500, 1501, 1514, 1516, 1532, 1536, 1543, 1546, 1557, 1565, 1582, 1593, 1602, 1606, 1611, 1628, 1629, 1664, 1681, 1738 and 1760 are included under the topic Early Bynon History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Bynon 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 Bynon family name include Baynham, Bayneham, Bainham, Banham, Banam and others.

Early Notables of the Bynon family

Notables of the family at this time include Thomas Baynham (d. 1500), Constable of St Briavel's Castle. His descendant, Sir Christopher Baynham (d.1557) was the first of the family to hold Clearwell, a village and former ancient manor in the Forest of Dean, West Gloucestershire.James Bainham (d. 1532), was an English martyr, who according to Foxe, was a son of Sir Alexander Bainham, who was Sheriff of Gloucestershire in 1497, 1501, and 1516, though his name does not occur in any of the pedigrees of the family. James was sentenced as a relapsed heretic and burned in Smithfield on 30 April...
Another 106 words (8 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Bynon Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ireland Migration of the Bynon family to Ireland

Some of the Bynon family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. More information about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


United States Bynon migration to the United States +

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 Bynon surname or a spelling variation of the name include:

Bynon Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Eliza Bynon, who landed in Virginia in 1719 [4]
Bynon Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • David Bynon, who landed in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1849 [4]
  • William Bynon, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1860 [4]

Contemporary Notables of the name Bynon (post 1700) +

  • James Francis Gordon Bynon (1925-2017), (also Baynham), a British linguist and Lecturer in Arabic and Berber at SOAS, London, husband of Theodora Bynon
  • Theodora Bynon (b. 1936), British linguist and Emeritus Professor of Historical Linguistics at SOAS University of London
  • Richard Glenmor Bynon, stage name of Richard Glenmor Beynon, a British-Canadian music producer and DJ
  • Arlene Bynon, Canadian television and radio broadcaster, formerly an afternoon talk radio host on AM 640 in Toronto, Ontario


  1. Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
  2. Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
  3. Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
  4. 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)


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