Colbrand

Male
DWP
4 of 5

Discussion of the name

Colbrand is the anglicized form of the Old Norse masculine name Kolbrandr, comprising the elements kol ‘coal, dark’ and brandr ‘sword’; all insular forms show representation of ‘k’ by ‘c’, which is why Colbrand is preferred as the head-form here (von Feilitzen 1937: 306; Fellows Jensen 1968: xcv, 177-8; Insley 2003: 389-90).

There are three relevant entries in the PASE corpus, under three different head-forms: Colbrand 1, a moneyer active at the Chester mint 1046-59; Colebrand 1, a priest in Worcester c.1062x1095; and Kolbrand 1, a catch-all for occurrences in DB.  It is proposed that these be unified under the head-form Colbrand, with Colebrand 1 and Kolbrand 1 becoming Colbrand 2-3 respectively and the following profiles therefore commencing with Colbrand 4.  In addition, a Colbrand occurs among a list of Yorkshire festermen of c.1050 (Stevenson 1912: 12-13; see also discussion under Colbrand 4).

Bibliography

Fellows Jensen 1968: Gillian Fellows Jensen, Scandinavian Personal Names in Lincolnshire and Yorkshire (Copenhagen: I Kommission hos Akademisk Forlag, 1968)

Insley 2003: J. Insley, ‘Pre-Conquest personal names’, Reallexikon der Germanischen Altertumskunde 23 (Berlin and New York, 2003), 367-96

Stevenson 1912: W. H. Stevenson, ‘Yorkshire surveys and other eleventh-century documents in the York Gospels’, English Historical Review 27 (1912), 1-25

von Feilitzen 1937: Olof von Feilitzen, The Pre-Conquest Personal Names of Domesday Book, Nomina Germanica 3 (Uppsala: Almqvist and Wiksells, 1937)

Forms of the name

Spellings in Domesday Book: Colbrand, Colebran(d)

Spellings in Exon: Colbrandus, Colebranus

Forms in modern scholarship:

  von Feilitzen head forms: Kolbrandr

  Phillimore edition: Colbran, Kolbrandr

  Alecto edition: Kolbrand

Distribution map of property and lordships associated with this name in DB

List of property and lordships associated with this name in DB

Holder 1066

Shire Phil. ref. Vill DB Spelling Holder 1066 Lord 1066 Tenant-in-Chief 1086 1086 Subtenant Fiscal Value 1066 Value 1086 Value Conf. Show on Map
Devon 16,77 Hockworthy Colbrand Colbrand 'of Cumbe' - Baldwin the sheriff Rogo 0.66 1.00 0.63 C Map
Devon 36,18 Culm Davy Colbrand Colbrand 'of Cumbe' - Theobald fitzBerner Oliver 'of Culm Davy' 1.00 3.50 2.50 B Map
Devon 36,18 Gorwell Colbrand Colbrand 'of Cumbe' - Theobald fitzBerner Oliver 'of Culm Davy' 0.13 0.50 0.50 B Map
Dorset 28,3 Creech Colebrand Colbrand 'of Creech' - Roger de Beaumont - 2.00 2.00 2.00 C Map
Warwickshire 44,7 Walsgrave Colebran Colbrand 'of Sowe' - Richard the forester - 1.00 1.00 3.00 C Map
Yorkshire 1N66 Malton Colebrand Colbrand 'of Malton' - William, king - 3.00 0.50 0.25 C Map
Yorkshire 29E30 Leavening Colbrand Colbrand 'of Malton' - 2 king's thegns - 1.25 0.50 0.38 C Map
Totals