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| Origins Available: |
| | England |
The name Blessed is derived from the Middle English word "iblescede", which roughly means "to make sacred," in the sense "happy, fortunate." From 1300 onwards the word occurs as blisced, blissed, a form surviving, no doubt in Blissett, which may also derive from a woman’s name: Blissot atte Pole which appears in the Subsidy Rolls of Somerset in 1327. 1
The surname Blessed was first found in Oxfordshire where the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 list Hugh de Blesset as hold lands there at that time. The same source lists the forename Bissot. 2
Later in Cornwall, we found Alicia Iblessed in 1297 and in Staffordshire, we found John de Blessed in the Subsidy Rolls for 1327. 1
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Blessed research. Another 53 words (4 lines of text) covering the year 1752 is included under the topic Early Blessed History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Until quite recently, the English language has lacked a definite system of spelling rules. Consequently, Anglo-Saxon surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. Changes in Anglo-Saxon names were influenced by the evolution of the English language, as it incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other languages. Although Medieval scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded, so it is common to find one person referred to by several different spellings of his surname, even the most literate people varied the spelling of their own names. Variations of the name Blessed include Blessed, Blisset, Blissit, Blizard, Blizzard, Blissett and many more.
More information is included under the topic Early Blessed Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Searching for a better life, many English families migrated to British colonies. Unfortunately, the majority of them traveled under extremely harsh conditions: overcrowding on the ships caused the majority of the immigrants to arrive diseased, famished, and destitute from the long journey across the ocean. For those families that arrived safely, modest prosperity was attainable, and many went on to make invaluable contributions to the development of the cultures of the new colonies. Research into the origins of individual families in North America revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Blessed or a variant listed above: