BURRAGE
The surname Burrage is an English family name that can be distinctly traced back to the British Isles. It bears the linguistic and cultural imprint of the early English language and is recorded in numerous historic documents, pointing to its long-standing presence in the English populace.
According to linguistic scholarship, Burrage is derived from the Old English word burh-ric, which means fortress or stronghold. The surname is a locational name, traditionally assigned to a person who resided at or near a fortified place of defence. It thus conveys a clear association with a place of protection and implies that the original bearers may have been responsible for guarding or maintaining such a stronghold.
There are two distinct historical pathways for the name. First, the English name can arise from Devonshire, where three villages called Burridge exist. The place-name itself derives from the pre‑7th‑century Old English words burh (fort) and hrycg (ridge), indicating a fort on a ridge. The surname, therefore, may denote the inhabitants of any of these fortified hilltop settlements.
Second, the name may be a patronymic evolution of the Middle English given name Burrich, itself a variation of the Old English Burgric. That term combines the elements burh (fortress) and ric (power) in a personal name that is recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Burcheric, Burchricus, Burricus, or Buric. The accounts of William Burrich (1327, Suffolk) and Henry Borrich (1327, Somerset) appear in the Subsidy Rolls, confirming the usage of the surname in the early fourteenth century.
In the parish registers of London, the name continues to appear. Phillis, a daughter of Thomas Burrage, was christened on the 29th of June 1582 at St. Botolph without Aldgate. Moreover, the marriage of Thomas Burridge to Margaret Shelstone took place on the 28th of August 1645 at St. Dunstan's, Stepney, also within London.
The Burrage family possesses a heraldic shield described as a gold field with a red chevron placed between three black lions rampant. This coat of arms has been formally granted and remains an emblem of the family's historic identity.
In summary, the earliest known spelling of the family name is attributed to Henry Borrich, dated 1327 in the “Lay Subsidy Rolls of Somerset.” This early record situates the name within the reign of King Edward 111, also referred to as “The Father of the Navy,” spanning the years 1327 to 1377.
Typical given names associated with the Burrage surname
Male
- Christopher
- David
- Ian
- John
- Mark
- Michael
- Paul
- Peter
- Richard
- Robert
Female
- Deborah
- Emma
- Fiona
- Jean
- Jennifer
- Jessica
- Julie
- Karen
- Kathleen
- Linda
- Louise
- Margaret
- Nicola
- Susan
Similar and related surnames
- Barrage
- Barage
- Barrags
- Barrago
- Bareja
- Barge
- Baridge
- Barridge
- Bayridge
- Beeraje
- Beregi
- Berge
- Beridge
- Berjaoui
- Berrage
- Berriage
- Berridge
- Berrige
- Birago
- Birdge
- Birge
- Birgi
- Birridge
- Borge
- Borgi
- Borgia
- Borja
- Borji
- Borrage
- Borrajo
- Borridge
- Borrige
- Bourge
- Bourgi
- Bowrage
- Bowridge
- Brage
- Bredge
- Brege
- Brej
- Bridge
- Brige
- Brij
- Brija
- Broege
- Broge
- Brogi
- Brogie
- Brudge
- Bruge
- Brydge
- Bryja
- Buraga
- Buragas
- Burage
- Buras
- Burdge
- Burga
- Burge
- Burgee
- Burgi
- Burgio
- Buridge
- Burja
- Burra
- Burrace
- Burrack
- Burrages
- Burrale
- Burras
- Burrass
- Burray
- Burredge
- Burree
- Burress
- Burriage
- Burridge
- Burrige
Related and similar names are generated algorithmically based on the spelling, and may not necessarily share an etymology.
How to communicate the surname Burrage in...
Braille
⠃⠥⠗⠗⠁⠛⠑
Morse
-.....-.-..-..---..
Semaphore
There are approximately 1,135 people named Burrage in the UK. That makes it roughly the 6,690th most common surname in Britain. Around 17 in a million people in Britain are named Burrage.
Origin: English
Region of origin: British Isles
Country of origin: England
Religion of origin: Christian
Language of origin: English
