Surname Toynbee - Meaning and Origin

Toynbee: What does the surname Toynbee mean?

The last name Toynbee is of English origin and is a locational name derived from the town of Tunbridge in Kent. The name refers to one who was from Tunbridge, or a person who lived in the vicinity and moved elsewhere. Originally recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Teninge, Tunbridge derives from the Old English words ‘tun’ meaning ‘dwelling’ and ‘brycg’ meaning ‘bridge’, and would have been the location of a bridge which crossed the Medway river. In the 18th century, the British historian Arnold J. Toynbee, known for his six-volume "A Study of History", popularized the surname Toynbee, which is often used as a synonym for an “idealistic historian”. Today, the last name is still found in Britain, and in some parts of the United States.

Toynbee: Where does the name Toynbee come from?

The surname Toynbee is most commonly found in England, particularly in the Midlands region. While historically the name appears further afield in countries like the USA and Australia, its current distribution is largely limited to Britain. Variations of the Toynbee surname are also found in Scotland (Taweney), Wales (Toynton), and Ireland (Tawney).

Toynbee is a toponymic surname, deriving its origin from a place name in the Midlands. It likely derives from a combination of two words – Old English ‘teoh’ meaning ‘swine’ and ‘beorg’ meaning hill, and so is likely derived from the Middle English ‘tunebeorg’ or ‘Tuohbeorghe’. The first recorded Toynbee bearer in England was a certain Thomas de Toweney in 1221, located in Staffordshire.

The majority of Toynbee households are found today in the West Midlands (including Shropshire and Herefordshire), Warwickshire, Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire, and Leicestershire, clustered around the ancient market towns of the region. Other concentrations of the Toynbee name have been found in Surrey, Hampshire, and Wiltshire, and increasingly in the larger towns and cities throughout the country.

Despite the scattering of the Toynbee name across the nation, the greatest concentration is still strongly represented in its original Midlands home. With pockets of the surname located in the cities and small villages of the region, the Toynbee surname is likely to remain a well-known feature of the English landscape for many years to come.

Variations of the surname Toynbee

The surname Toynbee is of Anglo-Saxon origin and its variants include Tijnbee, Tijnbie, Toinbee, Toinbie, Toybin, Toynebee and Toynebie.

The root of the name is a place name derived from the Old English elements 'tun' which means an enclosure, farm, or settlement and 'beorg' which means hill or barrow. Therefore the name can be interpreted as "at the farm by the hill".

Toynbee is a fairly common last name in English-speaking countries such as the United Kingdom, the United States and Australia. The United States Census Bureau's 1990 census documented nearly 22,000 Toynbees in the country, spread largely throughout the East Coast and Midwest.

Variations of this surname have been documented in records as early as 1273. Examples include Yecelin, son of Tynebii who was documented in the Assize Court Rolls of Lancashire, England in that year, and Matilda Toynbie, who was recorded in the Assize Court Rolls of Warwickshire in 1290.

Variations of Toynbee still used today outside of the United States include Tijnbee, Toybin, and Toynebee. Tijnbee and Toybin are particularly popular in the Netherlands and certain Nordic countries such as Denmark, while Toynebee is used in Scotland.

Throughout the centuries, the Toynbee surname has also been used to form several patronymic surnames, such as Toynbeed, Toynbey, Toynvee, and Toynbi.

Famous people with the name Toynbee

• Arnold J Toynbee: Social reformer, historian, and author
• Nobel Toynbee: British lawyer and Liberal novelist
• Luke Toynbee: British author and freelance journalist
• Peter Toynbee: English writer, critic and broadcaster
• Philip Toynbee: British author, journalist and human rights campaigner
• Anthony Toynbee: British historian and author
• Reginald Toynbee: British artist and illustrator
• Edward Toynbee: British classicist, historian and author
• Arthur Toynbee: British classical scholar and author
• Braden Toynbee: American musician, songwriter, and producer

Other surnames

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