Asford History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The illustrious surname Asford finds its origin in the rocky, sea swept coastal area of southwestern England known as Cornwall. Although surnames were fairly widespread in medieval England, people were originally known only by a single name. The process by which hereditary surnames were adopted is extremely interesting. As populations grew, people began to assume an extra name to avoid confusion and to further identify themselves. Under the Feudal System of government, surnames evolved and they often reflected life on the manor and in the field. Lords and their tenants often became known by the name of the feudal territory they owned or lived on. Unlike most Celtic peoples, who favored patronymic names, the Cornish predominantly used local surnames. This was due to the heavy political and cultural influence of the English upon the Cornish People at the time that surnames first came into use. Local surnames were derived from where a person lived, held land, or was born. While many Cornish surnames of this sort appear to be topographic surnames, which were given to people who resided near physical features such as hills, streams, churches, or types of trees, many are actually habitation surnames derived from lost or unrecorded place names. The name Asford is a local type of surname and the Asford family lived at Ayshford, in Cornwall. The Asford surname was also derived from the Old English words aesc and ford which meant a ford where ash trees grew. 1

Early Origins of the Asford family

The surname Asford was first found in Ayshford, in the county of Cornwall, and in the County of Devon, from earliest times, and in later years a branch of the family migrated eastward to Kent. There are at least two references to the name in the Domesday Book: Aisseford and Aiseforda. Both were listed in Devon.

However we must look to Oxfordshire for the first listing of the family with a very old spelling. The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273, list John de Esseford, Oxfordshire as holding lands there at that time. 2

Early History of the Asford family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Asford research. Another 63 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1594, 1626 and 1698 are included under the topic Early Asford History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Asford Spelling Variations

Cornish surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. The frequent changes in surnames are due to the fact that the Old and Middle English languages lacked definite spelling rules. The official court languages, which were Latin and French, were also influential on the spelling of a surname. Since the spelling of surnames was rarely consistent in medieval times, and scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded rather than adhering to any specific spelling rules, it was common to find the same individual referred to with different spellings of their surname in the ancient chronicles. Moreover, a large number of foreign names were brought into England, which accelerated and accentuated the alterations to the spelling of various surnames. Lastly, spelling variations often resulted from the linguistic differences between the people of Cornwall and the rest of England. The Cornish spoke a unique Brythonic Celtic language which was first recorded in written documents during the 10th century. However, they became increasingly Anglicized, and Cornish became extinct as a spoken language in 1777, although it has been revived by Cornish patriots in the modern era. The name has been spelled Aishford, Ashford, Ayshford, Aysford, Asford, Asseford and many more.

Early Notables of the Asford family

Another 34 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Asford Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Asford family

An examination into the immigration and passenger lists has discovered a number of people bearing the name Asford: Ambrose Ashford landed in Barbados in 1685; followed by his brother John a year later, they both transshipped to Virginia. Elizabeth landed in Annapolis, Maryland in 1726.

Citations +

Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)