Oxburgh History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Early Origins of the Oxburgh family

The surname Oxburgh was first found in Norfolk where the surname is descended from the tenant of the lands of Oxborough, held by Ralph de Limsey, a Norman noble who was recorded in the Domesday Book census of 1086. Listed as Oxborrow at that time, the lands contained 2 Mills, a fishery, and 180 sheep. 1

Literally the place name means "fortification where oxen are kept," from the Old English words "oxa" + "burh." 2

Today, Oxburgh is a parish, in the union of Swaffham, hundred of South Greenhoe, 3 Oxborough Hall was erected during the reign of Edward IV. This moated country house has been held by the Bedingfeld family by marriage before 1446 and is now owned by the National Trust.

The first record of the family was found in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 as William de Oxeburgh in Norfolk. 4 A few years later, the Writs of Parliament of 1316 listed Nicholas de Oxeburgh, also in Norfolk. 5

Early History of the Oxburgh family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Oxburgh research. Another 131 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1273, 1300, 1316, 1450, 1586, 1597, 1611, 1614, 1623, 1659, 1678 and 1988 are included under the topic Early Oxburgh History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Oxburgh Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Oxborough, Oxenborough, OxenBerry, Oxborrow, Oxenbury, Oxbury, Ocksenbury, Oxbrow, Oxbury, Oxbry, Oxberry, Oxburgh, Oxburg, Oxenbrig, Oxenbridge, Oxbrigg and many more.

Early Notables of the Oxburgh family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was

Laurence Oxburgh (1611-1678), an English landowner and politician who sat in the House of Commons in 1659...

Migration of the Oxburgh family

Some of the first settlers of this family name or some of its variants were: Jno Oxbrow, who was on record in Virginia in 1672; Elizabeth Oxborough, a bonded passenger, who came to Barbados or Jamaica in 1716; Alexander Oxbury, who came to New York, NY in 1762.

Contemporary Notables of the name Oxburgh (post 1700) +

Ernest Ronald Oxburgh (b. 1934), English geologist, a past Rector of Imperial College, non-executive chairman of Royal Dutch Shell PLC from 2004-5, made Baron Oxburgh of Liverpool, County Merseyside in 1999

Citations +

Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)