COXON
Coxon is an English surname with a lineage that can be traced back to the medieval period in the British Isles. It originates from the personal name Cock – a diminutive of Cocke – that was employed as a nickname for a young or small individual. The suffix -son indicates lineage, rendering the surname literally as son of Cock, a patronymic construct common in medieval England.
The name appears in a variety of orthographic forms, including Cocks, Cox, Coxe, and the patronymics Cockson, Coxen and Coxon. These variants demonstrate the fluidity of spelling prior to standardisation of English. Modern bearers of the surname can thus encounter a range of spelling traditions inherited from the same patronymic source.
Two principal explanations for the original nickname Cock are documented. The first relates to the Anglo‑Saxon term cocc, meaning a male bird, a cub, or a small rodent; it was applied to youths who exhibited a proud or strutting manner, or who were known for their early rising or spirited disposition. The second possibility is that the name stems from the Old English personal names Cocc or Cocca, which appear in place‑names but have not been preserved independently as a surname.
An alternative hypothesis, though less widely accepted, suggests a topographical origin: the medieval term cocc could refer to a hay‑crop, heap, or small hill. This could indicate a “dweller by the hill”. Another derivation proposes that the name was adopted from a public house, as was common in London, where a house sign named Cox could have given rise to the surname.
Notable early instances include William le Cock in the Staffordshire Forest Pleas of 1271 and Hugh ate Cocke in London’s Subsidy Rolls of 1319. The Hundred Rolls of Oxford record Edward Cockson in 1273, while Thomas Kokson appears in the Poll Tax rolls of York in 1279. A later example is Robert Coxon, who is listed in the Oxford University student register of 1556 when he was conferred a Bachelor of Arts degree.
Evidence for an ancestral form dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086, where a witness named Aluuinus Coc is recorded in Cambridgeshire during the reign of William the First. This early reference confirms the antiquity of the root coc and illustrates the surname’s presence in the earliest surviving English documents.
In sum, the Coxon surname is firmly embedded in the historical and linguistic traditions of England. Its derivation from a medieval nickname, coupled with its patronymic construction, attests to the social and naming practices of the period. The persistence of the name in contemporary records demonstrates the enduring legacy of these early linguistic forms within the British Isles.
Typical given names associated with the Coxon surname
Male
- Andrew
- Christopher
- David
- James
- John
- Mark
- Michael
- Paul
- Robert
- Thomas
Female
- Alison
- Elizabeth
- Emma
- Helen
- Lisa
- Margaret
- Mary
- Nicola
- Pamela
- Sarah
- Susan
- Victoria
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 Coxon in...
Braille
⠉⠕⠭⠕⠝
Morse
-.-.----..-----.
Semaphore
There are approximately 4,784 people named Coxon in the UK. That makes it roughly the 1,969th most common surname in Britain. Around 73 in a million people in Britain are named Coxon.
Surname type: From name of parent
Origin: English
Region of origin: British Isles
Country of origin: England
Religion of origin: Christian
Language of origin: English
Famous people named Coxon
- Graham Coxon - Musician and artist
- Allan Coxon - Classical scholar (1909 to 2001)
- Alec Coxon - Test and County cricketer (1916 to 2006)
- John Coxon - Football player (1922 to 1)
- Raymond Coxon - Artist (1896 to 1997)
- Mark Coxon - Cricketer
- Tom Coxon - Football player (1883 to 1942)
- Alan Coxon - Cricketer (1930 to 2012)
- Ernest Coxon - (1857 to 1924)
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.