Caffyn History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Caffyn is a name of Anglo-Saxon origin. It was a name given to a bald man. The surname Caffyn is a diminutive derived from the Old French words chauf and cauf, which both mean bald. This is ultimately derived from the Latin word calvus, which has the same meaning. The words chauf and cauf are supplemented by the suffixes in or on, which have several variations and are two of the most common diminutive suffixes.

Early Origins of the Caffyn family

The surname Caffyn was first found in Dorset where branches of the family were found in Chettle and Folke. Chettle dates back to at least the Domesday Book where it was listed as Ceotel and probably was derived from the Old English word ceotel, meaning "deep valley." Folke dates back to 1244 where it was derived from the Old English word folc, which meant people, as in "land held by the people." 1

Early History of the Caffyn family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Caffyn research. Another 56 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1600, 1602, 1627, 1628, 1641, 1666, 1668, 1688 and 1714 are included under the topic Early Caffyn History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Caffyn Spelling Variations

Before the last few hundred years, the English language had no fast system of spelling rules. For that reason, spelling variations are commonly found in early Anglo-Saxon surnames. Over the years, many variations of the name Caffyn were recorded, including Chaffin, Chaffinch, Caffin and others.

Early Notables of the Caffyn family

Distinguished members of the family include

Thomas Chaffin, High Sheriff of Dorset in 1627; and Matthew Caffyn (1628-1714), an English General Baptist preacher and writer from Horsham, Sussex. "He was the seventh son of Thomas Caffin, by Elizab...

Caffyn migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Caffyn Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. William Caffyn, (b. 1828), aged 20, English labourer who was convicted in Clerkenwell, London, England for 7 years for stealing, transported aboard the "Eden" on 30th September 1848, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Island), he died in 1883 2

Caffyn 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:

Caffyn Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

W. Caffyn, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Sydenham" in 1870

Citations +

Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 15th November 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/eden