BROOMHEAD
Broomhead is an English locational surname originating in the British Isles. The name denotes a family who dwelt near a place where broom shrubs, known in Old English as *brom*, grew in abundance.
In Old English, *heafod* means “head” or “land head.” Consequently, Broomhead is interpreted as “broom-covered headland.” The surname is first recorded in the late 13th century when Henry de Bromeheude appears in a catalogue of Sheffield manorial records dated 1290, during the reign of King Edward I.
The name was associated with an estate south of Penistone in the West Riding of Yorkshire. Local records indicate that at the time the surname was used to identify landowners and the lord of the manor, providing a means of distinction for those who travelled from their birthplace.
Early references include John Bromehed in the 1440 Sheffield manorial records, and in the mid‑16th century several baptisms and a marriage document: John, son of Thomas Bromehed, was christened at Bradfield on 18 April 1559; Nicolaus Broomhead was a witness at a Bradfield christening on 18 April 1567; and Anna Bromehead married Henry Sympson at Leeds on 23 July 1588.
Over time the spelling of the name diversified. Variants that appear in church registers and other documents include Broomhead, Bromehead, Bromhead, Bromet, Brumhead, Brummitt, and Brommet. Some copies of the name, such as Bromet and Brommet, may have French Huguenot origins, as illustrated by the 1692 christening of Anne, daughter of Pierre Bromet, at the Glasshouse Street and Leicester Fields French Huguenot Church in London.
Today, the surname remains recognised in Yorkshire, and its historical records provide insight into medieval landholding, migration, and the evolution of English surnames.
Typical given names associated with the Broomhead surname
Male
- Andrew
- Christopher
- David
- James
- John
- Mark
- Michael
- Paul
- Peter
- Richard
Female
- Audrey
- Claire
- Dorothy
- Elizabeth
- Helen
- Jean
- Kelly
- Margaret
- Mary
- Nicola
- Pauline
- Sarah
- Susan
- Tracey
- Tracy
Similar and related surnames
Related and similar names are generated algorithmically based on the spelling, and may not necessarily share an etymology.
How to communicate the surname Broomhead in...
Braille
⠃⠗⠕⠕⠍⠓⠑⠁⠙
Morse
-....-.--------......--..
Semaphore
There are approximately 1,927 people named Broomhead in the UK. That makes it roughly the 4,347th most common surname in Britain. Around 30 in a million people in Britain are named Broomhead.
Surname type: Location or geographical feature
Origin: English
Region of origin: British Isles
Country of origin: England
Religion of origin: Christian
Language of origin: English
Famous people named Broomhead
- David Broomhead - Mathematician (1950 to 2014)
Names and descriptions courtesy of Wikipedia, and may contain errors. This is not intended to be an exhaustive list of every famous person with this name.