Show ContentsBeache History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The Beache family name dates back to 1066 when the Norman Conquest of England introduced a plethora of new names and words into Britain. It comes from an early member of the family who was a person who lived near a stream, or a person who lived near a prominent beech tree, or area wooded with beech trees. The two different landmarks were referred to by the same Old English root, beche.

Early Origins of the Beache family

The surname Beache was first found in Hertfordshire where Gosfrid le Beche was sometimes known as Geoffrey de Bec, one of the principal holders and tenant-in-chief of land in that shire as recorded by the Domesday Book in the year 1086. He was from Beche in Normandy and accompanied William the Conqueror into England at the Battle of Hastings in 1066. Amongst other villages he also owned Aldenham, Cokenach, Eastwick, Hailey, Lilley, Langley and many others in Hertfordshire.

Robert de Beche, c. 1100, witnessed a charter of William Peveril of Dover and Goisfrid de Bech was a tenant in capite, Hertford, 1086. 1

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 listed Jacob de la Beche, Oxfordshire; Matilda de la Beche, Cambridgeshire; and William de la Beche, Oxfordshire. 2

Early History of the Beache family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Beache research. Another 134 words (10 lines of text) covering the years 1538 and 1539 are included under the topic Early Beache History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Beache Spelling Variations

A multitude of spelling variations characterize Norman surnames. Many variations occurred because Old and Middle English lacked any definite spelling rules. The introduction of Norman French to England also had a pronounced effect, as did the court languages of Latin and French. Therefore, one person was often referred to by several different spellings in a single lifetime. The various spellings include Beach, Beche, Beck, Becke, Beache, Bech, Beech and many more.

Early Notables of the Beache family

Another 46 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Beache Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Beache family

Many English families left England, to avoid the chaos of their homeland and migrated to the many British colonies abroad. Although the conditions on the ships were extremely cramped, and some travelers arrived diseased, starving, and destitute, once in the colonies, many of the families prospered and made valuable contributions to the cultures of what would become the United States and Canada. Research into the origins of individual families in North America has revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Beache or a variant listed above: Henry Beck of St. Lawrence, Newfoundland, who captured a French banker, in 1814; Thomas Beck was residing in St. John's Newfoundland in 1821. There is a Beck Bay in Newfoundland. Early settlers in the United States were: Richard Beach who settled in Boston Massachusetts in 1637.



  1. The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
  2. Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)


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