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Dobyns is one of the many new names that came to England following the Norman Conquest of 1066. The Dobyns family lived in Staffordshire. This family was originally from St. Aubin, Normandy, and it is from the local form of this place-name, D'Aubin, which literally translates as from Aubin, that their surname derives. 1
Some sources notes note that the name is a diminutive of Dobb, which itself is a pet diminutive of Robert. 2 3
The surname Dobyns was first found in Staffordshire as a forename, Dobin de Hatton who was listed in the Assize Rolls of 1203. A few years later, Dobin Cusin was listed in the Curia Regis Rolls for Devon in 1221. The first record of the name as a surname was Hugo and Robert Dobin who were listed in the Curia Regis Rolls for Herefordshire in 1207 and later in the Assize Rolls for Berkshire in 1227. 4
Hugo Dobin was recorded in the Rotuli de Oblatis et Finibus, King John. 5
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Dobyns research. Another 92 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1539, 1641, 1674 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Dobyns History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Anglo-Norman names tend to be marked by an enormous number of spelling variations. This is largely due to the fact that Old and Middle English lacked any spelling rules when Norman French was introduced in the 11th century. The languages of the English courts at that time were French and Latin. These various languages mixed quite freely in the evolving social milieu. The final element of this mix is that medieval scribes spelled words according to their sounds rather than any definite rules, so a name was often spelled in as many different ways as the number of documents it appeared in. The name was spelled Dobyns, Dobbins, Dobbings, Dobyn, Dobbin, Dobbyn and many more.
Another 33 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Dobyns Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Another 123 words (9 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Because of the political and religious discontent in England, families began to migrate abroad in enormous numbers. Faced with persecution and starvation at home, the open frontiers and generally less oppressive social environment of the New World seemed tantalizing indeed to many English people. The trip was difficult, and not all made it unscathed, but many of those who did get to Canada and the United States made important contributions to the young nations in which they settled. Some of the first North American settlers with Dobyns name or one of its variants: George Dobbins who settled in Nevis in 1663; Richard Dobbins settled in Virginia in 1651; Robert Dobbin settled in Charles Town [Charleston], South Carolina in 1821.