The
Anglo-Saxon name Benthomb comes from the family having resided in the West Riding of the county of
Yorkshire, where the Benthomb family settled near the village of Bentham, from which they took their name. The name is composed of the Old English words
beonet, meaning
bent grass, and
ham, meaning
settlement. [1]CITATION[CLOSE]
Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)Early Origins of the Benthomb family
The surname Benthomb was first found in
Yorkshire, where "there is not much reason to doubt that this name is derived from the parish of Bentham, in the West Riding of
Yorkshire. "
[2]CITATION[CLOSE]
Lowe, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print. Bentham was listed in the
Domesday Book of 1086 as Benetain.
[3]CITATION[CLOSE]
Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8) Today, Bentham is a civil parish in the Craven district of North
Yorkshire and comprises Upper Bentham and Lower Bentham.
Early History of the Benthomb family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Benthomb research.
Another 203 words (14 lines of text) covering the years 1379, 1576, 1513, 1578, 1560, 1579, 1681, 1733 and 1700 are included under the topic Early Benthomb History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Benthomb Spelling Variations
Benthomb has been spelled many different ways. Before English spelling became standardized over the last few
hundred years,
spelling variations in names were a common occurrence. As the English language changed in the Middle Ages, absorbing pieces of Latin and French, as well as other languages, the spelling of people's names also changed considerably, even over a single lifetime. Spelling variants included: Bentham, Bentheim, Benthiem and others.
Early Notables of the Benthomb family (pre 1700)
Notables of this surname at this time include: Thomas Bentham (1513-1578), English Protestant minister, one of the Marian exiles, who continued secretly ministering to an underground congregation in London...
Another 28 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Benthomb Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Migration of the Benthomb family to the New World and Oceana
In an attempt to escape the chaos experienced in
England, many English families boarded overcrowded and diseased ships sailing for the shores of North America and other British colonies. Those families hardy enough, and lucky enough, to make the passage intact were rewarded with land and a social environment less prone to religious and political persecution. Many of these families became important contributors to the young colonies in which they settled. Early immigration and passenger lists have documented some of the first Benthombs to arrive on North American shores: Matthew Bentham who settled in Barbados in 1679; James Bentham and family settled in South Carolina in 1820; Mary Bentheim settled in Edenton in North Carolina in 1820..