Christoph History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Norway
Sweden
Ireland

The ancient Anglo-Saxon surname Christoph came from Christopher, an ancient and popular personal name which has been popular for many years as literally, the name means 'Bearer of Christ'.

"I have been told that all who bear the somewhat rare name of Christopherson hail from Furness, in North Lancashire. Anyway it is a native, and owes its origin to the treacherous sands of Morecombe and Duddon. The legend of St. Christopher is that he found an occupation in guiding passengers across a wide stream. One night he bare unawares the child Christ, and was about to sink under an ever-increasing weight, when the Saviour said, 'Thou bearest Him who beareth the sins of the world.' No doubt there would be a shrine to the Saint for belated travellers on Chapel Isle, opposite Conishead Priory. Many a babe would be dedicated to him in gratitude for some hairbreadth escape his father had experienced. " 1

Early Origins of the Christoph family

The surname Christoph was first found in North Lancashire at Furness (now known as Dalton-In-Furness. "The town derived its principal importance from the erection of the magnificent Abbey of Furness, founded in 1127, by Stephen, afterwards king of England, for monks of the Cistercian order, whom he removed from Tulketh, in Amounderness, to this valley, where, obtaining valuable grants, they continued for more than four centuries. " 2

Early History of the Christoph family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Christoph research. Another 69 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1225, 1245, 1295, 1558, 1613 and 1659 are included under the topic Early Christoph History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Christoph Spelling Variations

Sound was what guided spelling in the essentially pre-literate Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Also, before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Therefore, spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Christoph family name include Christopher, Cristopher and others.

Early Notables of the Christoph family

Distinguished members of the family include

John Christopherson (d. 1558), Bishop of Chichester, "a native of Ulverstone in Lancashire, and was educated in the university of Cambridge, first at Pembroke Hall, and then at St. John's College, und...
Michael Christopherson (fl. 1613), was an English Catholic divine who received his education in the English college of Douay. 3

Migration of the Christoph family to Ireland

Some of the Christoph family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 57 words (4 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Christoph migration to the United States +

For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, the Canadas, the America colonies, and many of smaller tropical colonies in the hope of finding better lives abroad. Although the passage on the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving, those families that survived the trip often went on to make valuable contributions to those new societies to which they arrived. Early immigrants bearing the Christoph surname or a spelling variation of the name include:

Christoph Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Theophil Crentz Christoph, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1738 4

Christoph Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

John Christoph, who landed in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1852 4

Contemporary Notables of the name Christoph (post 1700) +

J. B. Christoph, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Wisconsin, 1924 5
George W. Christoph (b. 1864), American Republican politician, Member of Connecticut State House of Representatives from East Windsor, 1919-20 5
Georg Christoph Biller (1955-2022), German choral conductor of the Thomanerchor from Nebra, Bezirk Halle, Germany (1992-2015), the 16th Thomaskantor since Johann Sebastian Bach
Friedrich Christoph Dahlmann (1785-1860), German historian and politician
Johann Christoph Glaubitz (1700-1767), German architect, generally considered to be the most prominent Baroque architect of the former Grand Duchy of Lithuania
Johann Christoph Wendland (1755-1828), German botanist and gardener
Philipp Christoph Zeller (1808-1883), German entomologist
Gottlieb Christoph Harless (1738-1815), German classical scholar and bibliographer
Johann Christoph Fugger (1561-1612), German businessman and the last famous survivor of the Fugger vom Reh branch of the Fugger family
Georg Christoph Lichtenberg (1742-1799), German 18th-century scientist, satirist and Anglophile, eponym of the Lichtenberg lunar crater

Citations +

Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
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)
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, January 25) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html