Recent attempts to satisfy my urge to research family
history have led me to continue investigating the family name “Lunsford,” and
its derivatives. So, I settled on re-researching a curious item I had stumbled
upon previously…The 1850 census record shows that Baldwin was illiterate, which
caused me to wonder if he spoke fluent English. Many times, census records are
vague or inaccurate when it comes to listing birthplaces, so I wondered if the
name might be German or French. This led me to look for the existence of a
European town, or other geographic feature that might be named, or provide the
name, for our family.
While
cruising around on Google Earth one day, I tried putting the name Lunsford in
the search bar. The location that came closest to matching was, “Lünsfeld,” (roughly pronounced,
“loonz’-felt.”) When I zoomed in on the location it showed a small farming area
that had mostly been absorbed by the city of, Freren, Germany. Curiosity about the name of the area led me to look
up the definition of the German word, “lüns,”
which was an old/ancient word meaning, “the pointed tip of a tool, or lance.” The
definition of “feld” is simply,
“field.” I looked at the original Lünsfeld
area on the satellite image and saw there is a field there with a triangular
shape, like a lance point. Similarly, the Dutch word, “luns,” and the German word “lünse”
both translate to, “Linchpin,” a wedge-shaped piece of iron often used on
wagons to hold a wheel on an axle.
Searching for the name, “Lünsfeld” also brought up a Dutch genealogy for the name, “Lünsveld,” the word, “veld,” translates to, “field, or land,”
in Dutch. In the same genealogy, the name was also spelled, “Lijnsveld.” “Lijns,” means, “line’” in Dutch. So, its rough meaning could be, “Line
field; maybe property line or border, or strip of land.” Any connection to any
of these names is pure conjecture on my part, but it has always interested me
how similar “Lunsford” is to the
place-name, “Lünsfeld.” Given the
geographic connections to Western-Europe that show up in Lunsford family DNA
results, it seems our name is quite universal, phonetically speaking.
A
cross-search provided the German place name, “Lüneburg,” on Wikipedia, it shows, ‘An older reference to the place
in the Frankish Imperial annals dated 795 states:…ad fluvium Albim pervenit ad
locum, qui dicitur Hliuni... i.e.
…on the river Elbe, at the location, which is called “Hliuni”) and refers to one of the three core settlements of Lüneburg; probably the castle on the
Kalkburg which was the seat of the Billunger nobles from 951. The Elbe-Germanic
name, Hliuni corresponds to the
Lombard word for “refuge site.”’**https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Lüneburg**
Ignoring any rules for proper etymology, and just sticking the words together,
the name given here from the Low German (old Saxony) for a refuge site, “Hliuni” added to the Low German word
for a water crossing, “Ford, or Vörde” would give a very rough version
of the name, “Luneford,” possibly
meaning, “safe or sheltered, water crossing,” or a, “passage by a ford."
More
searching within the area near Freren, we
find the area called, “Lünne.” The
etymology given within the history found on the German Wikipedia page for Lünne, states that “Lunne (Old North
Hlunne=Role) referred to Old Saxon, a place on the river (here over the strong
flowing Aa), at which, by means of underlain timber, loads over the river could
be brought.” [Badly translated to English by the site.] Further in the article,
Lünne is more clearly identified and
in the 13th century, the location was divided between Altenlünne, and Plantlünne. The word “alte”
means old. The word “plant” is not
entirely clear, but could mean new
foundations. An additional link within the article leads to the town
called, “Haselünne.” It states,
“Around 500 AD, a Saxon main courtyard was located in the area of today’s farm.
In the nearby river a ford was built by inserting roundwoods (poles or piles,
maybe?). These round woods were called “lunni” and they gave the place the name
“Lunni,” “Lunne,” and with the river
name, “Hassa” = dark water, later = hare [as in hassenpfeffer], finally the
name Haselünne.” Further searching
brought me to an additional definition of lunne
as a name for passage, or a crossing.
Early versions
of the name can be taken from some 17th century English pedigrees. The
name “de Londresford” had appeared
in earlier research on the family of Sir Thomas as possibly Saxon, in origin.
The name is mentioned within some of the Coppage family information. The
Coppage family claim descent from Sir Thomas Lunsford through, “his son,”
William Lunsford, Esq. William, Esq. appears in the list of 65 passengers
brought to Virginia by Sir Thomas in about 1649-50. There is no confirmation
that this William was Sir Tom’s son, nor whether this William survived after
their arrival. More specifically, the name “de Londresford” appears within the Sussex Archaeological Collections, Vol 24; pp. 18-20. The French word
“Londres” translates to London, and
Londinium, the Roman name given to the city. It was also used by most ancient European
countries with the same meaning.
The early
family was situated at Londresford (later Lunsford) in Etchingham parish,
Sussex before the Norman Conquest in 1066. The place that was called,
“Londresford” is now called, “Lundsford Farm” and is located at Etchingham,
Sussex. By the turn of the 12th century, they were also established
at Whilegh, in East Hoathly, Sussex. Old Wilegh is now a Bed and Breakfast. In
1989, my wife and I visited a place called, “Lunsford Farm,” which is located
near Pett, East Sussex. The house there was said to have been built by the
grandfather of Sir Thomas, Sir John in the 1500’s. This working farm is now
owned by the Dunlop family where they also feature a “glamping” experience on the
property. Lunsford’s Cross is located near Bexhill, it’s almost halfway between
Lunsford Farm and East Hoathly where Whiley is located. It may have been the
site of an early Lunsford manor house. Maybe a stopping point when traveling
between the two estates? The term Cross was often used when a village had
permission by the ruling Lord to open a market.
We know
that the name has evolved quite a bit over the centuries; de Londresford, Lunsford, Luxford, Luncford, Lunceford, etc. And all
these derivations can be traced back to the pages of English history without
question. But, where was the seat of the Old Saxon de Londresford ancestors before they were in Sussex? It’s entirely
possible that the formerly Saxon places called Lünsfeld, or Lünne, might
be trying to remind us of our roots.
Tim Lunceford
Independence, MO
