The surname Leaford was first found in Leicestershire where they held a family seat as Lords of the Manor. The Saxon influence of English history diminished after the Battle of Hastings in 1066. The language of the courts was French for the next three centuries and the Norman ambience prevailed. But Saxon surnames survived and the family name was first referenced in the 13th century when they held lands.
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Early History of the Leaford family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Leaford research. Another 70 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1455 and 1487 are included under the topic Early Leaford History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
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Leaford 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 Leaford family name include Layford, Leaford, Layforth and others.
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Early Notables of the Leaford family
More information is included under the topic Early Leaford Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
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Migration of the Leaford family
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 Leaford surname or a spelling variation of the name include: the name represented in many forms and recorded from the mid 17th century in the great migration from Europe. Migrants settled in the eastern seaboard from Newfoundland, to Maine, to Virginia, the Carolinas, and to the islands..
England
