DAVENPORT
Davenport is a surname of English origin, first recognised within the British Isles and specifically in England. Its bearers traditionally spoke contemporary English and followed Christian religious practice.
The name is characteristically locational or geographical in nature. It is a plural form of the village name Davenport, derived from the Old English words dæfen, meaning “servant”, and port, meaning “gate” or “door”. Accordingly, the surname could originally describe a man who worked as a gatekeeper or doorkeeper. An alternate, yet compatible derivation recognises the place itself: the addition of tun (meaning “settlement” or “enclosure”) would have yielded a designation for a person living near a settlement with a gate.
Documentary evidence for the surname stretches back to the earliest post‑Norman period. In the Domesday Book of 1086 the place was recorded as Deneport, and in 1130 Durham charters it appears as Devennport. The river upon which the settlement stands, the Dane, receives its name from an ancient British word, Dauen or Daan, related to Middle Welsh dafn, meaning “a trickling stream”. The term port originates in Old English, pre‑7th‑century, indicating a harbour or wharf, and ultimately derives from Latin portus.
Locational surnames of this era were normally given to the lord of a manor or to individuals who moved from their native place. The earliest surviving references to the surname in the English rolls include Ormus de Davenport in the Cheshire rolls of 1166 and Richard de Daveneport in the Staffordshire charters of 1203. In 1555 a John Davenport of Henbury was mentioned in the will records at Cheshire. A later family, still seated at Capesthorne Hall near Macclesfield, asserts descent from Vivian de Davenport, who died around 1257. The arms granted to the Davenport family of Davenport, descending from Ormus de Davenport, consist of a silver shield with a chevron between three black crosses crosslet fitchee; the crest features a man’s head, cut at the shoulders and side, with a golden rope around the neck. The first recorded spelling of the family name appears as Richard de Deveneport in the Pipe Rolls of Cheshire, dated 1162, during the reign of King Henry II, known as “The Builder of Churches” (1154–1189).
Typical given names associated with the Davenport surname
Male
- David
- James
- John
- Mark
- Matthew
- Michael
- Paul
- Peter
- Robert
- Stephen
Female
- Elizabeth
- Emma
- Helen
- Jane
- Julie
- Karen
- Kathryn
- Margaret
- Mary
- Nicola
- Sarah
- Susan
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 Davenport in...
Braille
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Morse
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Semaphore
Did you know?
According to a survey carried out by Democracy Club, politicians and candidates with the surname Davenport are most likely to say that their favourite biscuit is a Rich Tea.
There are approximately 12,036 people named Davenport in the UK. That makes it the 757th most common surname in Britain. Around 185 in a million people in Britain are named Davenport.
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 Davenport
- Jack Davenport - Actor
- Nigel Davenport - Actor (1928 to 2013)
- Andrew Davenport - Producer, writer and composer
- Edward Davenport - Fraudster
- Peter Davenport - Football player and manager born 1961
- Claire Davenport - Actress (1933 to 2002)
- John Davenport - Priest (1597 to 1670)
- Harold Davenport - Mathematician (1907 to 1969)
- Ian Davenport - Artist
- James H. Davenport - Computer scientist
- Richard Davenport-Hines - Historian and literary biographer
- Calum Davenport - Football player
- John Davenport - Literary critic (1908 to 1966)
- Ross Davenport - Swimmer, Olympic athlete, Commonwealth Games gold medallist
- Richard Davenport -
- George Davenport - Illinois pioneer, landowner and businessman (1783 to 1845)
- Kenny Davenport - Football player (1862 to 1908)
- Carl Davenport - Football player
- Samuel Davenport - Australian politician (1818 to 1906)
- Luke Davenport -
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.