Carbury History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Scotland
Ireland

It was in the Scottish/English Borderlands that the Strathclyde-Briton people first used the ancient name Carbury. It was a name for someone who lived in the parish of Inveresk, Lothian, which was first recorded in the form Crebarrin, from the words Gaelic craobhm meaning "tree," and barran, meaning "hedge."

Early Origins of the Carbury family

The surname Carbury was first found in Midlothian, from the lands of CarBerry in the parish of Inveresk. "Johannes de Crebarrin filius Gilleberti de Crebarrin made two grants of lands from his territory of Crebarrin, c. 1230, and about the same period Adam filius Patricii de Crebarrin gifted four bovates of his land of Crebarrin to the Abbey of Dunfermelin. Alexander Crabarri, juror on forfeited estates in Lothian, 1312. William Carbery, M.A., petitioned for a canonry of Aberdeen, 1406." 1

Carberry Tower is a historic house in East Lothian, Scotland. King David I of Scotland granted "Caerbairin" (Carberry) to the monks of Dunfermline Abbey. The first landowner or lessee was John de Crebarrie. Carberry Hill, part of the Carberry Estate was the site where Mary, Queen of Scots facing an army assembled by a confederation of her lords, surrendered.

While most of the family hails from Scotland, there is another possible origin; that of Ireland. There the name "is derived from a geographical locality, 'of Carberry,' a parish in County Kildare, Ireland. As this surname looks very English, I insert it to prevent any misapprehension." 2

"The Carbury or Carbery baronies in Longford and Sligo were so called from Cairbre, one of the sons of Niall of the Nine Hostages, King of Ireland from A.D. 379 to 405." 3 4

Early History of the Carbury family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Carbury research. Another 131 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1230, 1743, 1792, 1806 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Carbury History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Carbury Spelling Variations

Surnames that evolved in Scotland in the Middle Ages often appear under many spelling variations. These are due to the practice of spelling according to sound in the era before dictionaries had standardized the English language. Carbury has appeared as Carberry, Carbarry, Carbery, Carbray, Carbury, Carbrey, Carbry, Carby, Crebarin and many more.

Early Notables of the Carbury family

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

Migration of the Carbury family to Ireland

Some of the Carbury family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 57 words (4 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Carbury migration to Australia +

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

Carbury Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. John Carbury, English convict who was convicted in Plymouth, Devon, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Elizabeth" in May 1816, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 5
Mr. Thomas Carbury, British Convict who was convicted in Clerkenwell, London, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Corona" on 13th October 1866, arriving in Western Australia, Australia 6

Carbury 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:

Carbury Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mrs. Carbury, British settler travelling from Gravesend aboard the ship "John Wickliffe" arriving in Port Chalmers, Otago, New Zealand on 23rd March 1848 7

Contemporary Notables of the name Carbury (post 1700) +

Flight Lieutenant Brian John George Carbury DFC & Bar (1918-1962), New Zealand fighter ace of the Royal Air Force during the Second World War
Brian Carbury, New Zealander fighter pilot and flying ace in the Royal Air Force, during World War II, credited with 15½ aerial victories

Citations +

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)
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Harrison, Henry, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary Baltimore: Geneological Publishing Company, 2013. Print
MacLysaght, Edward, More Irish Families. Dublin: Irish Academic Press, 1982. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-0126-0)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 1st March 2022). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/elizabeth
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 24th March 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/corona
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html