The History of the
Duerden Surname
It is said that
the DUERDEN
surname is a derivative of DEARDEN. - I'm still not convinced
According to my readings, the English surname
DEARDEN is local in origin, being a surname derived from the place where a
man once lived or held land. In this instance, the surname means simply "Of
DEARDEN", being derived from the place DEARDEN, near Edenfield, Bury in Lancashire.
This would indicate
that the original bearer of the surname came from this place in medieval times.
The surname during
the Middle Ages shows the different forms of the surname that developed.
For example, during
the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, the surname often occurred as De
Deredene or De Derene.
It would appear that
the surname remained predominantly in Lancashire during the Middle Ages as
can be seen from early references to the name.
According to House
of Names (a specialist in name origins), The Anglo-Saxon name Duerden was established when the family resided in the village of Dearden in the county of Lancashire.
Spelling variations include: Dearden, Deardens, Durden, Dureden, Deardon and many more. First found in Lancashire where they were seated from very ancient times, some say well before the Norman Conquest and the arrival of Duke William at Hastings in 1066 A.D. Some of the first settlers
in America, of this name or some of its variants were: Richard Dearden who settled in Virginia in 1717; Harrison, John, William Deardon, settled in Philadelphia between 1860 and 1870.
References to the surname
are quite numerous and are substantiated by various medieval sources. Some
of these early instances include Elizabeth DEARDEN of Middleton who was mentioned
in the "Wills at Chester" in 1631.
Also in "Baines History
of Lancashire", Thomas DEARDEN, was rector of Bury in Lancashire in 1599.
The "Manchester Directory"
recorded 10 instances of the surname in 1873.
The 1881 Census
contains 21 different possible spellings. Darden, Dardin, Dearden, Deardin,
Dearding, Deardon, Derden, Deurden, Dewarden, Dewerden, Dierden, Dirden, Duearden,
Duerden,
Duerdeon, Duerdin, Duerdon, Durdan, Durden, Durdon and Dureden.
In 1905, James Edwin
Duerden (1865-1937) was the first Professor of Zoology, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa.
Another genealogy
site, "searchforancestors.com" states that it is a locality, a
corruption of Du-er-den, as still pronounced by the natives of
Lancashire, England, where branches of the family reside, and which
signifies, "A thicket of wood in a valley." "Doir-den."
There are numerous
places around Lancashire and Yorkshire that include Duerden/Dearden or a derivative.
If anyone knows how
these places got their names or know of any history about them, I would
appreciate it if you could contact me.
Examples are:-
|
Duerden Bridge -
Spotland, Manchester |
Dearden Clough -
near Edenfield (Picture below) |
Duerden Brook -
Spotland, Manchester |
Dearden Street -
Hulme, Manchester |
Duerden Row -
Pendleton |
Dearden Street -
Little Lever, Bolton |
Duerden Street -
Burnley |
Dearden Street -
Littleborough, Nr. Rochdale |
Duerden Street -
Leeds |
Dearden Street -
Ossett, Wakefield |
Duerden Street -
Nelson (Picture below) |
Dearden Street -
Sowerby Bridge, Nr. Halifax |
Duerden Street -
Salford |
Dearden Street -
Stalybridge, Tameside |
Duerden Moor |
Deardens Street -
Elton, Bury |
|
Duerdens Yard - in
Colne |
|
I also know of a Duerden Street in Clayton Victoria, Australia.
The so-called crest
of the Duerden Name
| |
 |
|
Duerden |
The Dearden Coat of
Arms as at Holy Trinity, Blackburn. (Quartered with Dearden, Ingham,
Ferand and Royds
 |
|
