Bigge History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The ancient Norman culture that was established in England after the Conquest of 1066 produced the name of Bigge. It was given to a large, stout, or strong man. The name is Old Norse in origin, and stems from the Old English root bigge.

Early Origins of the Bigge family

The surname Bigge was first found in Essex, where they had been granted lands by King William after the Norman Conquest in 1066.

Early History of the Bigge family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Bigge research. Another 83 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1600, 1606, 1659 and 1917 are included under the topic Early Bigge History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Bigge Spelling Variations

Multitudes of spelling variations are a hallmark of Anglo Norman names. Most of these names evolved in the 11th and 12th century, in the time after the Normans introduced their own Norman French language into a country where Old and Middle English had no spelling rules and the languages of the court were French and Latin. To make matters worse, medieval scribes spelled words according to sound, so names frequently appeared differently in the various documents in which they were recorded. The name was spelled Biggs, Bigg, Big, Bigge, Byggs, Bygges, Bigges and others.

Early Notables of the Bigge family

Another 31 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Bigge Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Bigge migration to the United States +

Because of this political and religious unrest within English society, many people decided to immigrate to the colonies. Families left for Ireland, North America, and Australia in enormous numbers, traveling at high cost in extremely inhospitable conditions. The New World in particular was a desirable destination, but the long voyage caused many to arrive sick and starving. Those who made it, though, were welcomed by opportunities far greater than they had known at home in England. Many of these families went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. Analysis of immigration records indicates that some of the first North American immigrants bore the name Bigge or a variant listed above:

Bigge Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Henry Bigge, who landed in Virginia in 1635 1

Bigge Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

William Bigge, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1869 1

Bigge 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. 2

Bigge Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

Thomas Bigge, who settled in Barbados in 1681

Contemporary Notables of the name Bigge (post 1700) +

John Bigge (1780-1843), English judge and royal commissioner
Charles William Bigge (1773-1849), English banker
Thomas Charles Bigge (d. 1794), High Sheriff of Northumberland
Arthur Bigge (1849-1931), 1st Baron Stamfordham, British officer and Royal Private Secretary

Citations +

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)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies