Corbett (surname)

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Corbett is an English-language surname.

It can be derived from the Anglo-Norman French, Middle English, and Old French corbet, which is a diminutive of corb, meaning "raven". The surname probably originated from a nickname referring to someone with dark hair or a dark complexion like a raven's. [1] [2] The surname was brought to England from Normandy, [2] and spread to Scotland in the 12th century, [2] [3] and into northern Ireland in the 17th century. [2] Early instances of the name are Corbet in Shropshire, recorded in Domesday Book in 1086; Corbet in Shropshire, recorded in the Assize Rolls of Worcestershire in 1158; and le Corbet in Oxfordshire, recorded in the Eynsham Cartulary in 1323. Variations of the surname include: Corbet , and Corbitt . [1]

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Corbett can also be an Anglicised form of the Irish surnames Ó Corbáin and Ó Coirbín, which mean "descendant of Corbán" and "descendant of Coirbín", respectively. [4]

Names borne by several Corbetts

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References

  1. 1 2 Reaney, Percy Hilde (1995), Wilson, Richard Middlewood (ed.), A dictionary of English surnames (3rd ed.), Oxford University Press, p. 109, ISBN   0-19-863146-4 .
  2. 1 2 3 4 Corbett Family History, Ancestry.com , retrieved 19 August 2012. This webpage cites Dictionary of American Family Names, Oxford University Press, 8 May 2003, ISBN   0-19-508137-4 .
  3. Black, George Fraser (1946), The surnames of Scotland: their origin, meaning, and history, New York Public Library, p. 170.
  4. Corban Family History, Ancestry.com , retrieved 19 August 2012. This webpage cites Dictionary of American Family Names, Oxford University Press, 8 May 2003, ISBN   0-19-508137-4 .