Show ContentsFossen History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

  • Origins Available:
  • England
Fossen Family Crest Download (JPG) Heritage Series - 600 DPI

Family Crest Download (JPG) Heritage Series - 600 DPI

Etymology of Fossen

What does the name Fossen mean?

The Anglo-Saxon name Fossen comes from when the family resided in Doultin and Shepton Mallet on either side of Fosse Way. The surname Fossen is a topographic surname which literally means "ditch of a fortified place" 1 2 but two sources claim the name to mean "waterfall." 3 4

Anciently, the name could have been Norman as the Magni Rotuli Scaccarii Normanniae shows Geoffry, Hubert, Ralph, Richard, Stephen de Fossa, or De la Fosse of Normandy in 1198. 5

Early Origins of the Fossen family

The surname Fossen was first found in Sussex where John del Fosse was recorded in 1199. Later the Hundredorum Rolls of 1272 listed Roger de Fossa and Richard de la Fosse of England, but no counties were listed. 5

The Curia Regis Rolls include an entry for Richard atte Fosse, 1 Edward II (during the first year of the reign of King Edward II.) Later the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 listed Johannes Fosse and Willelmus de Fosse. 3

Over in Somerset, records there show: Richard de Fosse; Margery atte Fosse; and Robert atte Fosse. All were recorded 1 Edward III. 6

"In Somerset the surname is recorded from Doulting and Shepton Mallet, on each side of the Fosse Way, along which lie three farms named Fosse in Wiltshire, four in Warwickshire and two in Nottinghamshire." 7

Early History of the Fossen family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Fossen research. Another 112 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1284, 1327, 1379, 1787, 1804, 1811, 1814, 1822, 1830, 1837, 1839, 1840, 1844, 1850, 1853, 1865 and 1870 are included under the topic Early Fossen History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Fossen Spelling Variations

The English language only became standardized in the last few centuries; therefore,spelling variations are common among early Anglo-Saxon names. As the form of the English language changed, even the spelling of literate people's names evolved. Fossen has been recorded under many different variations, including Foss, Fosse, Fos, Voss, Foose, Foos and others.

Early Notables of the Fossen family

Edward Foss (1787-1870), English biographer, eldest son of Edward Smith Foss, solicitor, of 36 Essex Street, Strand, London, by Anne, his wife, daughter of Dr. William Rose of Chiswick, born in Gough Square, Fleet Street, 16 Oct. 1787. He was educated under Dr. Charles Burney, his mother's brother-in-law, at Greenwich, and remained there until he was articled in 1804 to his father, whose partner he became in 1811. In 1822 he became a member of the Inner Temple, but never proceeded further towards a call to the bar. Upon his father's death, in 1830, he removed to Essex Street, and carried...
Another 141 words (10 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Fossen Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Fossen migration to Canada +

For many English families, the political and religious disarray that shrouded England made the far away New World an attractive prospect. On cramped disease-ridden ships, thousands migrated to those British colonies that would eventually become Canada and the United States. Those hardy settlers that survived the journey often went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Analysis of immigration records indicates that some of the first North American immigrants bore the name Fossen or a variant listed above:

Fossen Settlers in Canada in the 20th Century
  • Miss Elna S. Fossen, Norwegian settler who sailed aboard the ship "Stavangerfjord" arriving in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada in 1951

Contemporary Notables of the name Fossen (post 1700) +

  • John B. Van Fossen, American Republican politician, Mayor of Ypsilanti, Michigan, 1906-08; Defeated, 1900 8
  • John Van Fossen, American politician, Presidential Elector for Michigan, 1840 9
  • John Van Fossen, American politician, Member of New York State Assembly from Ontario County, 1817-18, 1819-20 9
  1. Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
  2. Arthur, William , An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names. London: 1857. Print
  3. Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
  4. Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
  5. The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
  6. 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.
  7. Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
  8. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 8) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html

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