EnglandThe name Balders is part of the ancient legacy of the Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. Balders was a name used for a person who was bald deriving its origin from the Old English word Bealla, which meant bald. The surname may also refer to someone who had a rotund or stocky stature. [1]
While many researchers share this same "nickname" origin of the name, Henry Brougham Guppy in 1890, wrote "The idea that these names originated from bald - headed ancestors is, I think, absurd. Camden, in his remarks on surnames, written some 300 years ago, informs us that Baul and Bald were then nicknames or nursenames for Baldwin, and it was evidently from this source that Mr. Lower borrowed the suggestion that Ball was a nickname of Baldwin." [2]
The surname Balders was first found in the "west side of England, being at present most numerous in Lancashire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire, and Gloucestershire. This surname must be distinguished in its distribution from Balls, which is restricted to the opposite or east side of England, in the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk, and Essex. It is remarkable that after the lapse of six centuries Balls remains doggedly in the same part of England, whilst Ball and Baldwin seem to have extended their areas westward. In Norfolk three centuries ago Balls was sometimes spelt Balles or Ballis. " [2]
The earliest record of the family was found in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 which reflected the scattered occurrences of the family and early spellings recorded: Custance Balde, Cambridgeshire; Richard Bald, Oxfordshire; John Balle, Norfolk; and Albred Balle, Huntingdonshire. [1]
Kirby's Quest had several entries: John Balde, Somerset, 1 Edward III (recorded during the first year's reign of Edward III.) John atte Balle, Somerset, 1 Edward III; and Henry atte Balle, Somerset, 1 Edward III. [3]
John Ball (d. 1381), was an early English priest, who provoked the insurrection of Wat Tyler. As a result of his actions, he was "brought before the king at St. Albans, where he was sentenced to be hanged, drawn, and quartered as a traitor. The sentence seems to have been promptly carried out, and the king himself witnessed its execution at St. Albans on 15 July. " [4]
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Balders research. Another 161 words (12 lines of text) covering the years 1381, 1887, 1585, 1640, 1585, 1590, 1659, 1631, 1690, 1623, 1681, 1665, 1745, 1680, 1626, 1640, 1675, 1664, 1637, 1530, 1553, 1992 and are included under the topic Early Balders History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Until the dictionary, an invention of only the last few hundred years, the English language lacked any comprehensive system of spelling rules. Consequently, spelling variations in names are frequently found in early Anglo-Saxon and later Anglo-Norman documents. One person's name was often spelled several different ways over a lifetime. The recorded variations of Balders include Ball, Balle, Balls, Balders and others.
Notables of the family at this time include John Ball (1585-1640), English Puritan divine, born at Cassington, Oxfordshire, in October 1585.
Thomas Ball (1590-1659), was an English divine, born at Aberbury in Shropshire. "His parents were of 'good and honest repute,' having neither 'superfluity nor want.' " [4]
William Ball or Balle (c. 1631-1690), was an early an English astronomer, one of the founding Fellows of the Royal Society. He was the eldest of seventeen children born to Sir Peter Ball, knight, recorder of Exeter and attorney-general to the queen in the reigns of Charles...
Another 93 words (7 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Balders Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Some of the Balders family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 181 words (13 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Thousands of English families boarded ships sailing to the New World in the hope of escaping the unrest found in England at this time. Although the search for opportunity and freedom from persecution abroad took the lives of many because of the cramped conditions and unsanitary nature of the vessels, the opportunity perceived in the growing colonies of North America beckoned. Many of the settlers who survived the journey went on to make important contributions to the transplanted cultures of their adopted countries. The Balders were among these contributors, for they have been located in early North American records: George Ball who settled in St. Christopher in 1635; Goodwife Ball settled in Virginia in 1623; Allen Ball settled in New Haven Conn. in 1630; Eliza Ball settled in Virginia in 1651.
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