| ![Show Contents]() Bavington History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
Etymology of BavingtonWhat does the name Bavington mean? The illustrious surname Bavington is classified as a habitation surname, which was originally derived from a place-name, and is one form of surname belonging to a broader group called hereditary surnames. Habitation names were derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads. Topographic names, form the other broad category of surnames that was given to a person who resided near a physical feature such as a hill, stream, church, or type of tree.
Other local names are derived from the names of houses, manors, estates, regions, and entire counties. As a general rule, the greater the distance between an individual and their homeland, the larger the territory they were named after. For example, a person who only moved to another parish would be known by the name of their original village, while people who migrated to a different country were often known by the name of a region or country from which they came. Bavington is a place-name from in Northumberland. There is a Babbington in Nottinghamshire as well. The place-name is derived from the Old English personal name Babba, with the addition of the suffix tun, and Old English word that means farm or enclosure. Later, tun came to mean village, fortress, and then town. The literal translation of the place-name is "farm that belongs to Babba." 1 Early Origins of the Bavington familyThe surname Bavington was first found in Northumberland at Babington where they held estates in the reign of King John. 2 From this line, they moved into Nottinghamshire and later to Somerset where we find today the parish in the union of Frome, hundred of Kilmersdon. In 1233, the area was known as Babington Parish. According to one source, "there are reasons for believing that they resided there from the period of the Conquest or before it." 3 One branch of the family was first found at Little Bavington in Northumberland. "Bavington Hall, the residence of the present representative of that family, is a handsome mansion surrounded with fine plantations." 4 Early History of the Bavington familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Bavington research. Another 138 words (10 lines of text) covering the years 1370, 1400, 1455, 1538, 1550, 1561, 1569, 1571, 1572, 1575, 1576, 1578, 1586, 1592, 1603, 1610, 1611, 1612, 1615, 1660, 1669, 1689 and 1691 are included under the topic Early Bavington History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Bavington Spelling VariationsSince the Old and Middle English languages lacked definite spelling rules, Breton surnames have many spelling variations. Latin and French, which were the official court languages, were also influential on the spelling of surnames. The spelling of surnames was rarely consistent in medieval times, and scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded rather than adhering to any specific spelling rules. Therefore, it was common to find the same individual referred to with different spellings of their surname in the ancient chronicles. Moreover, a large number of foreign names were brought into England after the Norman Conquest, which accelerated and accentuated the alterations to the spelling of various surnames. The name has been spelled Babbington, Babington, Babinton, Babbingtone, Bappington, Bapinton, Bappintone and many more. Early Notables of the Bavington familyNotable of this family during the Middle Ages was Sir William Babington (d. 1455), English judge, of an ancient Northumbrian family, was the second son of Sir John Babington, Knt., of East Brigford in the county of Nottingham; Gervase Babington (1550-1610), Bishop in succession of Llandaff, Exeter, and Worcester; Francis Babington D.D. (aka Francis Babbington, died 1569), an English divine and an academic administrator at the University of Oxford; Humfrey Babington, D.D. (ca. 1615-1691), an English...
Another 75 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Bavington Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Migration of the Bavington family to IrelandSome of the Bavington family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 202 words (14 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
| Bavington migration to the United States | + |
Some of the first immigrants to cross the Atlantic and come to North America carried the name Bavington, or a variant listed above:
Bavington Settlers in United States in the 17th Century- John Bavington, who landed in Maryland in 1670 5
The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.
Motto: Foy est tout
Motto Translation: Faith is everything.
- Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
- Shirley, Evelyn Philip, The Noble and Gentle Men of England; The Arms and Descents. Westminster: John Bower Nichols and Sons, 1866, Print.
- Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
- Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, 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)
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