The surname of BERKELEY was a locational name 'of Berkeley' a parish and market town in County Gloucestershire. Local surnames, by far the largest group, derived from a place name where the man held land or from the place from which he had come, or where he actually lived. These local surnames were originally preceded by a preposition such as "de", "atte", "by" or "in". The names may derive from a manor held, from working in a religious dwelling or from literally living by a wood or marsh or by a stream. Following the Crusades in Europe a need was felt for a family name. This was recognized by those of noble blood, who realised the prestige and practical advantage it would add to their status. Early records of the name mention Roger de Berchelia who was listed as a tenant in the Domesday Book of 1086. Egidius de Berkekeye, 1273 County Oxford. Gyles de Berclay was documented in County Derby, during the reign of Edward III (1327-1377). Henry Barclay and Thomaszine Bloome were married at St. Peter. Cornhill, London in the year 1704. Most of the European surnames were formed in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. The process had started somewhat earlier and had continued in some places into the 19th century, but the norm is that in the tenth and eleventh centuries people did not have surnames, whereas by the fifteenth century most of the population had acquired a second name. Barclays Bank was founded by John Barclay (1728-87) of Cambridge Heath in London. He was a grandson of Robert Barclay of Urie in Kincardine (b.1648) and ultimately a descendant of the Norman Walter de Berkeley of Gartley, who, according to family tradition, was the son of a certain Roger de Berkeley, mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 as the holder of Berkeley Castle in Gloucestershire. The associated arms are recorded in Sir Bernard Burkes General Armory. Ulster King of Arms in 1884. |
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