Brafferton

Recorded as Brassington and Braffington, this is a locational surname of pre 7th century Olde English origins. It originates either from Brafferton villages in Durham and North Yorkshire or Brassington in the county of Derbyshire, or possibly from a now lost medieval village, although if so we have no proof. Brafferton means the village by the broad ford, whilst Brassington means the village by the steep path, and is first recorded in the famous Domesday Book of 1086. In about the year 1250 the language was changing from a combination of Olde English, Anglo-Saxon, and Norman French to what is now known as Middle English, as best expressed in the famous works of Geoffrey Chaucer. This was also the time when surnames became in common useage, but spelling and dialect were at their most unlikely. This may well be the case with this surname, added to which was mobility. People were becoming free and they moved around being given the as their surname the name of their original village. The further they moved, the more likely the name was to develop 'sounds like' spellings. In this case early examples of name holders include John Braferton at St Dunstans in the East, Stepney, on February 7th 1624, Ann Brassington, the daughter of Jacobi Brassington, christened at Great Longstone, on October 21st 1637, and George Brassington, whose son, also called George, was christened at Chlemorton, on June 6th 1704.