Cockombe History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The lineage of the name Cockombe begins with the Anglo-Saxon tribes in Britain. It is a result of when they lived in a small valley; the surname Cockombe is often derived from the Old English word cumb, which means valley. In this case, it belongs to the class of topographic surnames, which were given to people who resided near physical features such as hills, streams, churches, or types of trees. Alternately, the surname Cockombe may be derived from residence in one of the many places called Comb, Combe, or Coombe. In this case, it belongs to the large category of Anglo-Saxon habitation names, which are derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads.

Early Origins of the Cockombe family

The surname Cockombe was first found in Devon where Richard de la Coombe held estates in that county in the year 1194. The name also found in the Feet of Fines of Somerset in 1269 where the entry Alan in la Cumbe was found. Robert atte Cumbe was listed in the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex in 1296, and Thomas de Combe was listed in the Assize Rolls of Kent in the year 1317. John atte Combe was also listed in the same source. 1 Today Combs is a small village in Derbyshire and a parish, in the union and hundred of Stow, Suffolk. 2

An early record of the family was found in Somerset: John in le Coumbe, l Edward III (in the first year of King Edward III's reign.) 3 The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 listed: Gilbert ate Cumbe, Oxfordshire; John ate Cumbe, Oxfordshire; Roger de la Cumbe, Oxfordshire; and Henry de la Cumbe, Somerset. 4

Later the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 included: Robertas Combe; and Radulphus de Combe; while in Norfolk, Edmund de la Comb was listed there 16 Edward I. 5

Early History of the Cockombe family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Cockombe research. Another 91 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1460, 1522, 1573, 1586, 1616, 1640, 1651, 1667, 1767, 1786, 1791, 1801, 1810, 1849 and 1850 are included under the topic Early Cockombe History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Cockombe Spelling Variations

Only recently has spelling become standardized in the English language. As the English language evolved in the Middle Ages, the spelling of names changed also. The name Cockombe has undergone many spelling variations, including Coombe, Combs, Coombs, Comes, Combes, Combe, Coombes, Cumbe, Coumbes, Coames, Coambes, Cumbes, Cumes, Cummes, Cume, Coomes, Coames, Cooms, Coumes, Coume, Cooms, Coom, Coomb, Comb and many more.

Early Notables of the Cockombe family

Distinguished members of the family include William Combe (1586-1667), an English High Sheriff of Warwickshire in 1616 and politician who sat in the House of Commons in 1640.William Francis Coombe was the son of a singing-master at Plymouth, was born there in 1786. At fourteen years of...
Another 47 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Cockombe Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Cockombe family

To escape the unstable social climate in England of this time, many families boarded ships for the New World with the hope of finding land, opportunity, and greater religious and political freedom. Although the voyages were expensive, crowded, and difficult, those families that arrived often found greater opportunities and freedoms than they could have experienced at home. Many of those families went on to make significant contributions to the rapidly developing colonies in which they settled. Early North American records indicate many people bearing the name Cockombe were among those contributors: John Coombs of Plymouth, settled in America in 1630; Anthony Coombs settled in 1640; and his parents gave him to the monks to be a priest, but he ran away with an English Bible. He became a blacksmith, and in the town of Wells he defended his farm against the Indians. John Coombs settled in Boston in 1662. Alistair Coombs settled in Maine in 1665.

Citations +

Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Dickinson, F.H., Kirby's Quest for Somerset of 16th of Edward the 3rd London: Harrison and Sons, Printers in Ordinary to Her Majesty, St, Martin's Lane, 1889. Print.
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Rye, Walter, A History of Norfolk. London: Elliot Stock, 62, Paternoster Row, 1885. Print