Ackfarte is a name of ancient Norman origin. It arrived in England with the Norman Conquest of 1066. The Ackfarte family lived at Axford, in the county of Wiltshire. Checking further we found the name was derived from the Old English words aesc and ford, meaning ash tree and ford.

Ackfarte Early Origins

The surname Ackfarte was first found in Wiltshire at Axford, a hamlet in the Kennet Valley which dates back to 1184 when it was listed as Axeford. The place name literally means "ford by the ash-trees," having derived from the Old English words "aesc" + "ford." [1]CITATION[CLOSE]Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4) The family held a family seat at Ramsbury from ancient times. Today, Ramsbury is a village and civil parish that includes the hamlet Axford. It was originally spelt Ramesberrie. Ramsbury at the time of the Domesday Book was one of the larger holdings in the county of Wiltshire and consisted of 10 Mills. It was held by the Bishop of Salisbury. It also included Axford's Farm, from which the Axford family name is conjecturally descended. Axford's Farm is noted for its water mill. Axford is also a village in Hampshire, part of the civil parish of Nutley.

Ackfarte Spelling Variations

Ackfarte Spelling Variations

It is only in the last few hundred years that the English language has been standardized. For that reason, Anglo-Norman surnames like Ackfarte are characterized by many spelling variations. Scribes and monks in the Middle Ages spelled names they sounded, so it is common to find several variations that refer to a single person. As the English language changed and incorporated elements of other European languages such as Norman French and Latin, even literate people regularly changed the spelling of their names. The variations of the name Ackfarte include Axford, Acksford, Ackford, Hackford, Hacksford, Hawksford, Hawkford, Hawkesford and many more.

Ackfarte Early History

Ackfarte Early History

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Ackfarte research. Another 83 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 121 and 1216 are included under the topic Early Ackfarte History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ackfarte Early Notables (pre 1700)

Ackfarte Early Notables (pre 1700)

More information is included under the topic Early Ackfarte Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

The Great Migration

The Great Migration

Faced with the chaos present in England at that time, many English families looked towards the open frontiers of the New World with its opportunities to escape oppression and starvation. People migrated to North America, as well as Australia and Ireland in droves, paying exorbitant rates for passages in cramped, unsafe ships. Many of the settlers did not make the long passage alive, but those who did see the shores of North America were welcomed with great opportunity. Many of the families that came from England went on to make essential contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. Some of the first immigrants to cross the Atlantic and come to North America carried the name Ackfarte, or a variant listed above: Ephraim Axford who settled in Virginia in 1670; Richard Axford who landed in Maryland in 1660; William Hawksford settled in Maryland in 1775.

Other References

Bede, The Venerable. Historia Ecclesiatica Gentis Anglorum (The Ecclesiastical History Of the English People). Available through Internet Medieval Sourcebook the Fordham University Centre for Medieval Studies. Print.

Thirsk, Joan. The Agrarian History of England and Wales. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press: 7 Volumes. Print.

MacAulay, Thomas Babington. History of England from the Accession of James the Second 4 volumes. New York: Harper and Brothers, 1879. Print.

Shaw, William A. Knights of England A Complete Record from the Earliest Time to the Present Day of the Knights of all the Orders of Chivalry in England, Scotland, Ireland and Knights Bachelors 2 Volumes. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing. Print. (ISBN 080630443X).

The Ackfarte Family Crest was acquired from the Houseofnames.com archives. The Ackfarte Family Crest was drawn according to heraldic standards based on published blazons. We generally include the oldest published family crest once associated with each surname.