Bebbington - Name

This interesting surname is of medieval English origin and is a variant of the locational name Bebington from a place so called in Cheshire, first recorded as "Bebinton" circa 1100 in the "Chartulary of the Abbey of St. Werburgh, Chester", and in its present day form "Bebington", in the "County Court, City Court and Eyre Rolls of Chester" in 1288. The derivation is from the Old English pre 7th Century personal name Bebbe, given to both sexes, with "tun", meaning enclosure. During the Middle Ages, as it became more usual for people to leave their place of birth, often to seek work, the custom evolved, of using the village name as a means of identification, thus resulting in a wide dispersal of the name. Among the early recordings in Cheshire are the marriages of Ales Bebington and Richard Alcock on January 10th 1573 at Frodsham, and of Ellen Bebbinton and Poyinges Hatton on July 29th 1610 at Frodsham. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Richar Bebingtonne (witness), which was dated January 8th 1542, Nantwich, Cheshire, during the reign of King Henry V111, "Good King Hal", 1509 - 1547. 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.