Surname Horridge - Meaning and Origin
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Horridge: What does the surname Horridge mean?
The last name Horridge has its roots in England and is thought to have derived from a word meaning 'badger settlement'. It is believed the Horridge family first established itself in the country during the 12th century, when Norman settlers began to move into the area.
The name is most commonly associated with the counties of Lancashire and Derbyshire in northern England, although there are a few instances of it being found further afield.
The first written record of the name came in 1332, when it appeared in a list of landowners belonging to Wakefield, North Yorkshire. The name is thought to have been derived from either 'hore', an old English term for someone who lived in an enclosed settlement, or 'hora', meaning marshland.
It is likely that the inhabitants of the Horridge family's original settlement were related to badgers, and the intimate association between the animals and the settlers certainly helped bring the name to prominence across the centuries.
The Horridge name has since spread to America and other parts of the world. Its original home in England remains just as strong as ever and there are many descendants to carry on the legacy. Whether these branches of the great family tree realize it or not, the name Horridge still stands for a long-standing relationship with the countryside and the animals it contains.
Order DNA origin analysisHorridge: Where does the name Horridge come from?
The last name Horridge is most common today in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Historically, the Horridge family originated from the village of Horridge in Cheshire, England. The earliest record of the family dates back to 1273. During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Horridge family spread across the British Isles.
Today, the Horridge surname is most commonly found in England and Ireland. The towns with the highest concentrations of Horridges are Manchester and Bristol in England, and Meath in Ireland.
In England, Horridge is the 7th-most-common surname in Manchester, and the 5th most common surname in Bristol. In both cities, over 1% of the population has this surname. In Ireland, Meath is home to the greatest number of Horridges, with over 0.17% of the population carrying this surname. Additionally, the name is also fairly common in other parts of Ireland, such as Cork, Galway, and Dublin.
Horridges can also be found scattered around the United States. This is likely due to the fact that people with the Horridge name immigrated there from the United Kingdom in the years before World War II.
Overall, the Horridge name is most common in the United Kingdom and Ireland, although you can find it in other countries as well.
Variations of the surname Horridge
The surname Horridge is an Anglo-Saxon name that has two possible origins. The first is from the Old English word 'hora', which means a weir or dam used for catching fish, and the second is from the Middle English 'hor', which means dirt or manure. Over time, the spelling of the surname has changed, and there are various spellings and variants of the name, including Horritt, Harrig, Harrige, Harridge, Harridgett. Some variants are only used in certain areas and other spellings are used more widely.
The surname can also be found with different surnames derived from the same origin. These include Harrigal, Horirick, Hurrigal, and Orrigo. Harrigal is a variation of Harrig, and it is commonly found in Scotland. Horirick is the earliest form of the surname, and it can be found in Suffolk, England. Hurrigal is a variant that is commonly found in Scotland, and Orrigo is most commonly found in Italy.
The commonalities in all spellings and variants of Horridge and its derivatives are that the surname originally derived from the Old and Middle English words for weirs and dirt or manure, and has since spread to other countries and cultures throughout the world.
Famous people with the name Horridge
- Jacob Horridge: a British actor best known for his roles in Lewis, Downton Abbey, and The Hollow Crown.
- Robert Horridge: a retired English rugby union player who made 21 appearances for England between 1970 and 1972.
- James Horridge: a former footballer who played for Birmingham City in the English leagues between 1998 and 2003.
- John Horridge: a British sculptor most famous for his landmark Wars of the Roses sculpture in Coventry, England.
- Michael Horridge: a former British sprinter competing mainly in the 100 and 200 metres who competed at the 1964 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo.
- William Horridge: an English-born actor best known for his roles in films such as Davy Crockett: King of the Wild Frontier, Follow the Boys, and The Glass Bottom Boat.
- George Horridge: a 19th-century English architect and civil engineer who worked mainly in the North of England, responsible for buildings such as the Midland Hotel in Morecambe.
- Jared Horridge: a guitarist and member of British symphonic rock band Frost*.
- Ivy Horridge: a British comic artist, influenced by surrealism, best known for her illustrations in the children's publication ‘Doctor Who: The Daily Mirror Magazine’.
- Tom Horridge: a British author who wrote extensively about history, most notably his books ‘The Crusades: A History’ and ‘The Wars of the Roses’.