Show ContentsBabbington History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The illustrious surname Babbington is classified as a habitation surname, which was originally derived from a place-name, and is one form of surname belonging to a broader group called hereditary surnames. Habitation names were derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads. Topographic names, form the other broad category of surnames that was given to a person who resided near a physical feature such as a hill, stream, church, or type of tree.

Other local names are derived from the names of houses, manors, estates, regions, and entire counties. As a general rule, the greater the distance between an individual and their homeland, the larger the territory they were named after. For example, a person who only moved to another parish would be known by the name of their original village, while people who migrated to a different country were often known by the name of a region or country from which they came. Babbington is a place-name from in Northumberland. There is a Babbington in Nottinghamshire as well. The place-name is derived from the Old English personal name Babba, with the addition of the suffix tun, and Old English word that means farm or enclosure. Later, tun came to mean village, fortress, and then town. The literal translation of the place-name is "farm that belongs to Babba." 1

Early Origins of the Babbington family

The surname Babbington was first found in Northumberland at Babington where they held estates in the reign of King John. 2

From this line, they moved into Nottinghamshire and later to Somerset where we find today the parish in the union of Frome, hundred of Kilmersdon. In 1233, the area was known as Babington Parish. According to one source, "there are reasons for believing that they resided there from the period of the Conquest or before it." 3

One branch of the family was first found at Little Bavington in Northumberland. "Bavington Hall, the residence of the present representative of that family, is a handsome mansion surrounded with fine plantations." 4

Early History of the Babbington family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Babbington research. Another 138 words (10 lines of text) covering the years 1370, 1400, 1455, 1538, 1550, 1561, 1569, 1571, 1572, 1575, 1576, 1578, 1586, 1592, 1603, 1610, 1611, 1612, 1615, 1660, 1669, 1689 and 1691 are included under the topic Early Babbington History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Babbington Spelling Variations

Since the Old and Middle English languages lacked definite spelling rules, Breton surnames have many spelling variations. Latin and French, which were the official court languages, were also influential on the spelling of surnames. 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. Therefore, 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 after the Norman Conquest, which accelerated and accentuated the alterations to the spelling of various surnames. The name has been spelled Babbington, Babington, Babinton, Babbingtone, Bappington, Bapinton, Bappintone and many more.

Early Notables of the Babbington family

Notable of this family during the Middle Ages was

  • Sir William Babington (d. 1455), English judge, of an ancient Northumbrian family, was the second son of Sir John Babington, Knt., of East Brigford in the county of Nottingham; Gervase Babington (1550...

Ireland Migration of the Babbington family to Ireland

Some of the Babbington family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 202 words (14 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


United States Babbington migration to the United States +

Some of the first immigrants to cross the Atlantic and come to North America carried the name Babbington, or a variant listed above:

Babbington Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • Michael Babbington, who arrived in Virginia in 1635 5
  • Michael] Babbington, who landed in Virginia in 1635 5
  • John Babbington, who landed in Virginia in 1639 5
Babbington Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Samuel Babbington, who arrived in Albany, NY in 1715 5

Australia Babbington migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Babbington Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
  • James Babbington, who arrived in South Australia in 1855 aboard the ship "Europa" 6

West Indies Babbington migration to West Indies +

The British first settled the British West Indies around 1604. They made many attempts but failed in some to establish settlements on the Islands including Saint Lucia and Grenada. By 1627 they had managed to establish settlements on St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Barbados, but by 1641 the Spanish had moved in and destroyed some of these including those at Providence Island. The British continued to expand the settlements including setting the First Federation in the British West Indies by 1674; some of the islands include Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Island, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica and Belize then known as British Honduras. By the 1960's many of the islands became independent after the West Indies Federation which existed from 1958 to 1962 failed due to internal political conflicts. After this a number of Eastern Caribbean islands formed a free association. 7
Babbington Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century
  • Thomas Babbington who arrived in Jamaica in 1679

Contemporary Notables of the name Babbington (post 1700) +

  • Roy Babbington (b. 1940), English rock and jazz bassist from Kempston, Bedfordshire
  • Kylie Jane Babbington (b. 1987), British actress, best known for her role as Jodie Gold in the BBC soap opera EastEnders


The Babbington Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Foy est tout
Motto Translation: Faith is everything.


  1. Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
  2. Shirley, Evelyn Philip, The Noble and Gentle Men of England; The Arms and Descents. Westminster: John Bower Nichols and Sons, 1866, Print.
  3. Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
  4. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
  5. Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
  6. South Australian Register Monday 14th May 1855. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) Europa 1855. Retrieved http://www.theshipslist.com/ships/australia/europa1855.shtml
  7. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies


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