The Burtons in English History

One of the most interesting aspects of genealogy for me is knowing the history of the various family names. Here's a little history of the Burton family name I found on the web:

"The surname Burton is a habitational name from a place name that is very common in central and northern England. The derivation in most cases is from Old English burh ‘fort’ (see Burke) + tun ‘enclosure’, ‘settlement’. There are at least twenty-nine parishes in England so called. Local surnames, by far the largest group, derived from a place name where the man held land or from the place from which he had come, or where he actually lived. These local surnames were originally preceded by a preposition such as "de", "atte", "by" or "in". The names may derive from a manor held, from working in a religious dwelling or from literally living by a wood or marsh or by a stream. Following the Crusades in Europe a need was felt for a family name. This was recognized by those of noble blood, who realized the prestige and practical advantage it would add to their status. Early records of the name mention Richard de Burton, 1273 Yorkshire and John de Burtone appears County Somerset, during the reign of Edward III (1327-1377). Willelmus de Burton of Yorkshire was listed in the Yorkshire Poll Tax of 1379. Giles Burton married Hannah Abberley, St. George's Chapel, Mayfair in 1754. A Shropshire family of this name came originally from Burton, near Much Wenlock. They have held lands near Shrewsbury since the time of Edward IV. Richard Burton (1821-90) the explorer and orientalist, was a member of a cadet branch. The bulk of European surnames in countries such as England and France were formed in the 13th and 14th centuries. The process started earlier and continued in some places into the 19th century, but the norm is that in the 11th century people did not have surnames, whereas by the 15th century they did. The associated arms are recorded in Sir Bernard Burkes General Armory. Ulster King of Arms in 1884."

And from another source:
"The name Burton is said to have been derived from the residents of its first bearers in places of that name in England. [Burke's Encyclopedia of Heraldry and General Armory of England, Scotland and Ireland, a copy of which is in the State Historical Library University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, states that the Burtons of Falde Hall, county Stafford; Lindley and Bedwood county Leicester: and Dronfield, county Derby, all in England, descended from Ingenulfe de Burton, who came to England with the Conqueror.

William the Conqueror, or William of Normandy, formerly Duke of Normandy, came from Normandy, France, to England in 1066. Normandy is a duchy or state of northern France. Between 850 and 900 A.D. much of northern France was over-run, conquered and settled by Northmen, Norsemen from Scandinavia and Denmark; they were Teutonic people. In 911 King Charles the Simple, King of western France, ceded to Rolf, or Rollo, the Northman the duchy of Normandy, the people of which, then, would be a mixture of French and Teutons, or Norman French, and called Normans. Fifth in descent from Rolf, the Northman, was William, Duke of Normandy, or William of Normandy; subsequently William, the Conqueror, in Oct. 1066; and William I, King of England, crowned in Dec 1066. Ingenulfe de Burton came to England with the Conqueror, then, in 1066. Inge (Ing-gen) in the given name Ingenulfe, is still found in the Danish surname, Ingemann, and in the pleasing Norwegian given, or Christian name, Ingebor or Ingobar. Hence the given name Ingenulfe indicates that he was of Teutonic descent, either Danish or Scandinavian. The de in de Burton is French, meaning of or from. thus the surname is at least part French. The combination of the two, Teutonic and French, would make the name Norman French.

From the name and because he came with the Conqueror, who was Norman French and came from Normandy, it seems one can conclude with safety that Ingenulfe de Burton was Norman French and came from Normandy. Burton is probably a Normandy district, or township, or village, in which he or his ancestors, or both, had lived.

All of the Burtons in England, and there are many of them, are very probably descendants of Ingenulfe de Burton, even if the colony to which they belong is a sub-colony of the first Burton colony or colonies in England."

As you can see from the chart below, even in 1841 there were a lot of Burtons living in Britain. I found this chart on the "your-family-history.com" website that shows the frequency of the name "Burton" in the British census records. Left-click on it to make it larger. Use your browser's back-button to return to the blog:

Oddly enough, my Burton ancestors lived in Wiltshire county in the little village of Tisbury, not mentioned in the above accounts of pirmary Burton settlement areas. Not sure why this is at present, but it should be fun to research.