Furbyshire History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Early Origins of the Furbyshire family

The surname Furbyshire was first found in Shropshire where the "surname is derived from an occupation. 'the furber' or 'furbisher.' A furbisher or scourer of armour and metals generally, found also as' furbearer.' Frobisher is the most prominent modern form of the surname." 1

"French fourhisseur, an artizan who polishes and mounts swords; a sword cutler." 2

The first record of the family was found in Leicestershire where Geoffrey le Furbisur held estates c. 1260. A few years later, Henry le Fourbissor was listed in Shropshire in 1306 and later, Richard Forbour, Forbysschour was listed in Colchester, Essex 1359-60. 3

The famed navigator Sir Martin Frobisher (1535?-1594), belonged to a family of Welsh origin, which moved from Chirk in Denbighshire. 4

Early History of the Furbyshire family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Furbyshire research. Another 101 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1379, 1535, 1576, 1577, 1578, 1588, 1594, 1674 and 1756 are included under the topic Early Furbyshire History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Furbyshire 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 Furbyshire family name include Furbisher, Frobisher, Frobishar, Frobyfar, Furbusher, Frobysher, Frobishire, Furbishire, Furbyshire, Furbisher, Furbishaw, Furber, Frobishaw, Ferbishaw, Forber and many more.

Early Notables of the Furbyshire family

Distinguished members of the family include Sir Martin Frobisher (c. 1535-1594), English seaman and privateer who made three voyages to the Canadian Arctic (1576, 1577, and 1578) in search of the Northwest Passage. All landed in northeastern Canada, around today's Resolution Island and Frobisher Bay...
Another 44 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Furbyshire Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Furbyshire family

For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, Canada, 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 Furbyshire surname or a spelling variation of the name include: settlers, who arrived along the eastern seaboard, from Newfoundland, to Maine, to Virginia, the Carolinas, and to the islands.

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)
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print