The history of the Dunkalf family name begins after the Norman Conquest of 1066. They lived in Yorkshire. One reference suggests that the name could be derived from the localat the dun-croft but this is only speculation.
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Early Origins of the Dunkalf family
The surname Dunkalf was first found in Yorkshire where they held a family seat from very ancient times, where conjecturally this family is descended on the male side from Drogo de Beuvriere, a Norman knight, who held the village of Ottringham from the Archbishop of York. Drogo was originally granted the castle of Skipsey and was said to have married a kinswoman of William the Conqueror who he killed in 1086, either by accident or design. He fled the country leaving only his descendants on estates in Yorkshire.
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Early History of the Dunkalf family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Dunkalf research. Another 57 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Dunkalf History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
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Dunkalf Spelling Variations
Anglo-Norman names are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. When the Normans became the ruling people of England in the 11th century, they introduced a new language into a society where the main languages of Old and later Middle English had no definite spelling rules. These languages were more often spoken than written, so they blended freely with one another. Contributing to this mixing of tongues was the fact that medieval scribes spelled words according to sound, ensuring that a person's name would appear differently in nearly every document in which it was recorded. The name has been spelled Duncalfe, Duncalf and others.
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Early Notables of the Dunkalf family
More information is included under the topic Early Dunkalf Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
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Migration of the Dunkalf family
For many English families, the political and religious disarray that plagued their homeland made the frontiers of the New World an attractive prospect. Thousands migrated, aboard cramped disease-ridden ships. They arrived sick, poor, and hungry, but were welcomed in many cases with far greater opportunity than at home in England. Many of these hardy settlers went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Among early immigrants bearing the name Dunkalf or a variant listed above were: William Duncalfe who settled in Virginia in 1739; John B. Duncalfe arrived in Philadelphia in 1868.
England
