Bragginton

This name, with variant spellings Braggenton, Brackington, Briggington, etc., is of English locational origin from one of the estimated seven to ten thousand villages and hamlets that have now disappeared from the maps in Britain. The primary cause of these "disappearances" was the enforced "clearing" and dispersal of the former inhabitants to make way for sheep pastures at the height of the wool trade in the 14th Century. The Black Death of 1348, also contributed to the phenomenon of the "lost village". The predominance of surname recordings from church registers of South and South West England from the late 16th Century indicate that the original place was situated in this region and the component elements are believed to be The Old English pre 7th Century personal byname "Bragga", from "brag(ge), brisk and lively, plus "ing", "people of" and "tun", a farm or settlement; hence, "the settlement of Bragga's people". On November 3rd 1626, John Braggenton and Parnell Cooke were married in Newport, Hampshire, and in March 1694, Thomas Bragington, an infant, was christened in Pebworth, Gloucestershire. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Jone Bragginton, (christened), which was dated April 26th 1591, St. Mary Whitechapel, Stepney, London, during the reign of Queen Elizabeth 1, "Good Queen Bess", 1558 - 1603. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.