Beranger History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
France

Etymology of Beranger

What does the name Beranger mean?

The ancient Anglo-Saxon surname Beranger came from the German name Beringar which meant "bear-spear." The name was "one of the paladins in the Charlemagne romances and fairly common in England in the 12th and 13th centuries." 1

Early Origins of the Beranger family

The surname Beranger was first found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where the Latin form Berengerus was recorded in Norfolk. 2 Later in Lincolnshire, Robertus filius Berengarii was listed c. 1150 and in Bedfordshire, the singular name Bengerus was found in the Curia Regis Rolls of 1203. The first record in Dorset was that of Belinar in 1207. Early Yorkshire records show Berenger faber in the Assize Rolls for 1219. Walter Beneger was found in Gloucestershire in 1208 and Reginald Beringer was listed at Lewes, Cambridgeshire c. 1260. John Belinger was listed in the Subsidy Rolls for Worcestershire in 1275. 1

Early History of the Beranger family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Beranger research. Another 257 words (18 lines of text) covering the years 1086, 1150, 1271, 1273, 1275, 1500, 1694, 1780 and 1831 are included under the topic Early Beranger History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Beranger Spelling Variations

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 Beranger include Berringer, Berenger, Baringer, Beringar, Berengerus, Berengarus, Berengarii, Beringer, Belinger, Bellinger, Bellenger, Beranger and many more.

Early Notables of the Beranger family

More information is included under the topic Early Beranger Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Beranger Ranking

France, the name Beranger is the 1,998^th most popular surname with an estimated 3,122 people with that name. 3

Beranger 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. 4

Beranger Settlers in West Indies in the 18th Century

Jaques Beranger, who landed in Jamaica in 1750 5

Contemporary Notables of the name Beranger (post 1700) +

Clara Beranger (1886-1956), born Clara Strouse, an American screenwriter of the silent film era who used the pseudonym of Charles S. Beranger
Pierre-Jean de Béranger (1780-1857), French poet and songwriter
François Béranger (1937-2003), French singer
George Augustus Beranger (1893-1973), Australian actor and film director, active 1913 to 1950

Sources +

Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/nom/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
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)