* Kemp English: occupational name for a champion at jousting or wrestling, Middle English kempe [a weakened sense of Old English cempa warrior, champion, from camp battle, Latin campus plain, field (of battle);cf. Campion] -.A Dictionary of Surnames by Patrick Hanks and Flavia Hodges (Oxford University Press 1988) p 292:

* In Old English, the term "Kemp" designated a soldier engaged in single combat. The name Kemp is derived from the Saxon word "To Kemp" or combat, which in Norfolk [County, England] is retained to this day; a foot-ball match being called a camping or kemping; and thus in saxon a Kamper signifies a combatant, a champion, a man-at-arms. In some parts of Scotland, the striving of reapers in the harvest-fields is still called Kemping."-An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names, by William Arthur.

* First found in Kent 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.- House Of Names.com

* Meaning 'the kemp', an occupational name. Variants Kemp, Kempe, Kempson. From someone who was a great Knight, soldier or champion. 'Then is the time for mee to speake, Of Kern Knightes and Kempes greate'. (Guy and Colbrand). This name is of Anglo-Saxon descent spreading to the Celtic countries of Ireland, Scotland and Wales in early times and is found in many mediaeval manuscripts throughout the above islands. Examples of such are a Alan Kempe, County Suffolk, and a William Kemp, County Oxfordshire, who were recorded in the 'Hundred Rolls', England, in the year 1273 and a Ricardus Kempe, and Johannes Kempe, were recorded in the 'Poll Tax', of the West Riding of Yorkshire, in the year 1379. In Scotland William Kemp, was Burgess of Edinburgh, in the year 1423, and a Donald Kemp was Burgess of Dingwall, in the year 1563. In Ireland the name is found in small numbers in Ulster, being introduced there from England centuries ago.

* Robert Champernon b.1050,Clyst, Devonshire, England. The Champernons became De Champernons, who in 1208 became De Campo Champernons,who in 1260 became Campo Kempe, who in 1295 became Kempe, who in 1507 became Kempe Camp. Searching for Champernowne is harder. Reaney and Wilson, 3rd ed. (also an excellent reputation), list it only as a header name. The only citations they give are for de Campo Arnulfi (Ernulfi) (1172), de Cambernof (1189-99), and de Chaumbernum (1230), deriving it from Cambernon (undated) in La Manche.

* de Campo Ernulfi found around 1096 owning various lands in England in Umberleigh, High Bickington, Devonshire, Oxford, Northamptonshire & Somerset. Traced back to Cambernon & Maisoncelles in Normandy, France.

Old Frisian (kempa) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search

Old Frisian was the West Germanic language spoken between the 8th and 16th centuries by the people who had settled in the area between the Rhine and Elbe on the European North Sea coast in the 4th and 5th centuries. Their ancient homes were originally North Germany and Denmark. The language of the earlier inhabitants of the region (the Frisians famously mentioned by Tacitus) is not attested. Old Frisian evolved into Middle Frisian spoken from the 16th to the 19th century.

During the whole of the Middle Ages, Fryslan stretched from the area around Bruges, in what is now Belgium, to the river Weser, in northern Germany. At that time, the Frisian language was spoken along the entire southern North Sea coast. Today this region is sometimes referred to as Great Frisia or Frisia Magna, and many of the areas within it still treasure their Frisian heritage, even though in most places the Frisian languages have been lost.

The people from North Germany and Denmark who settled in England from the 4th century onward, came from the same region and spoke the same language as the people who had settled in Fryslan. Therefore a close resemblance exists between Old Frisian and Old English. This similarity was reinforced in the late Middle Ages by the Ingaevonic sound shift (Anglo-Frisian nasal spirant law), which affected Frisian and English, but affected Old Saxon only slightly, and not at all any of the other West Germanic varieties.

Phonology and grammar

Also, when followed by some vowels, the Germanic /k/ softened to a /tʃ/ sound; for example, the Frisian for cheese and church is tsiis and tsjerke, whereas in Dutch it is kaas and kerk. One rhyme traditional to both England and Friesland demonstrates the palpable similarity between Frisian and English: "Bread, butter, and green cheese is good English and good Fries," which is pronounced more or less the same in both languages (Frisian: "Brea, bžter, en griene tsiis is goed Ingelsk en goed Frysk.")

Old Frisian (c.1150-c.1550) retained grammatical cases. Some of the texts that are preserved from this period are from the twelfth or thirteenth, but most are from the 14th and 15th centuries. Generally, all these texts are restricted to legalistic writings. Although the earliest definite written examples of Frisian are from approximately the 9th century, there are a few examples of runic inscriptions from the region which are probably older and possibly in the Frisian language. These runic writings however usually do not amount to more than single- or few-word inscriptions.

Corpus

There are some early Frisian names preserved in Latin texts, and some runic (Futhorc) inscriptions, but the oldest surviving texts in Old Frisian date from the 13th century, in particular official and legal documents. They show a considerable degree of linguistic uniformity.

cempa

. This region was ruled by Austria from roughly 1795-1918, along with the western half of Ukraine, and was called Galicia. cempa [] m (-n/-n) warrior, soldier, champion [camp]; ~ena ieldest a chief of soldier, a commander; fif hund ~ena ealdor a commander of five hundred soldiers;

cempestre [] f (-an/-an) female soldier, female warrior

kemp kempe

Recorded in several spellings including Cemp, Kemp, Kempe, Kemppe, Kempt, the patronymic Kempson, and possibly others, this interesting surname is English. It originates from the pre 7th century word 'cempa' meaning a champion, a title bestowed upon a champion of jousting or wrestling. The name is derived from the Roman word "campus", meaning a battlefield. The name development since the First Millenium includes the following recordings: Edmund Kempe of the county of Norfolk in 1099, Alan Kempe in the Hundred Rolls of Suffolk in 1273, Ralph le Kemp of Sussex in 1296 and Ricardus Kempe of Yorkshire in the Poll Tax rolls of 1379. Early examples of recordings taken from the surviving church registers of Greater London include the christening of Abiell Kemp on December 14th 1590, at St. Margaret's Westminster; the christening of Mary Kempt, the daughter of Joseph Kempt at St Giles Cripplegate, on May 21st 1667, and the marriage of Mary Cempe, to James Asskins as spelt, at St James Clerkenwell on June 20th 1667. A coat of arms granted to the nameholders has the blazon of a red shield, charged with three gold garbs and a gold border engrailed. The motto "Lucem spero", translates as "I hope for light". The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Eadulf Cempa,. This was dated 902 a.d, in the list of Old English Bynames for the county of Wiltshire", during the reign of King Edward the Elder, of England, 899 - 924. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.

902 Eadulf Cempa Wiltshire, ENG 1066 Alricus Campe (cemp) Cambridge ENG 1100 Edmund Kempe Norfolk ENG 1195 Robert Campe Wa ENG 1200 Tomas le Campe Ha ENG (Thomas the Warrier) 1205 John Campe (Kempe) Dorset EN 1296 Ralph le Kemp, Ssx ENG (Ralph the Warrier)

"Historians do not agree on the origin of the name of this rather large family, however, they do not have too great a difference of opinion. They all seem to agree that these families are one and the same in ancient times and they changed the spelling of the name a number of times after about 1000 A.D. We can find no evidence that a particular `tribe' maintained one spelling of the name from the beginning. Those who immigrated to America from England have chenged from Camp to Kemp and vice versa from time to time. A brief summary of the comments of a few historians and genealogists are given below.

"A Dictionary of the Family Names of the United Kingdom by Mark Anthony Lower, 1860, says Aluric Camp or Campa was a champion at the time of Edward the Confessor. He says the name is doubtless connected with Kemp, and further that in Selkirkshire, Camp still means birsk, active, spirited. Under Kemp - Kempe he gives Jamieson's definition as: 1. A champion. 2. The idea of strength and uncommon size. 3. The champion of a party in controversy. In Scotland the verb to `kemp' means to strive in whatever way, especially in the harvest. Further in the Anglo-Saxon translation of the Gospels made about 1000 A.D., the word which in the Vulgate is `miles,' and in our version is `soldier,' is rendered `cempa.' Hence it appears that Kemp and Champion are closely allied if not identical.

"M. A. Lower in an early edition entitled An Essay on Family Nomenclature, 1849, vol. I, says Camp is simply an earthwork and that Kempe is a soldier, especially one who engaged in single combat. In this sense it is used in the works of Sir Walter Scott. A `kemper' is still used in Norfolk in the sense of a stout, hearty, old man - a veteran. And he again points out tha the Anglo-Saxon Cempa has supplied the surnames Camp, Champ, and Camper. Campion and Champion have come to us through the French, from the same root.

"A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames by Charles W. Bardsley, M.S., 1901, says Camp means: 1. Local, 'at the camp,' i.e., field. 2. Official, a 'soldier,' a form of Kemp. He says there was a Felicia in Camp in County Cambridge 1273, a William de Campo in County Oxford 1273, and Johannes de Kempe was mentioned by P.T. Hodeshire in 1379. William Campe and Mary Farmer married in London in 1584 and that Thomas Nash and Anne Camp married at St. Dionis Backchurch in 1699.

"Fred H. Kemp in A General History of the Kemp and Kempe Families of Great Britain and Her Colonies, published in London in 1902, states that the name Kemp is widely distributed in the British Isles, chiefly in the Eastern and Southern counties of England, notably Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Kent, Middlesex, Sussex, Surrey, and Hampshire. Further the popular etymology of Kemp is as the Anglo-Saxon word `Campa' - a champion in modern spelling. He lists the following spellings of the name: Kemp, Kempe, Kempt, Came and Campe.

"Mr. Kemp goes on to cite a number of early Kemp's as follows: John Kempe was Cardinal, Archbishop of Canterbury and Lord Chancellor of England. HIs nephew, Thomas Kempe, was Bishop of London in 1449.

"[Note: In County of Suffolk by W. A. Copinger, LL.D., F.S.A., F.R.S.A., pub. London by Henry Sotheran, 1904, Vol. III, p.385: KEMP al KEMPE family of Cavendish from Finching-field. Pedigree. ADD 19138 (additional papers at the British Museum, London, Eng.); with arms. Harl(eian) 155, 1103, 1154, 1177, 1449, 1484, 1560, 1820; Tanner cclvii. 207; Rawl. B. 76, 393, 422, 429; Arms and quarterings. Tanner cclvii. 174. Genealogical notes. Rawl.B. 129, 319. Gipps's account of. S.I. viii. 176.- (The Publications of the Suffolk Institute), Inquis. p.m. of Robert Kempe. 18-19 Hen. VIII. D.K.R. 10 (Deputy Keeper's Annual Reports, 1840-1902), App. ii. p. 124 (Appendix) -Grant of land in Suffolk to Bartholomew Kempe and Edward Wiseman, 5 Eliz. 4 Pars O. Rot. 29. No Camp listed in surnames. B. Petty]

"William Kempe was Shakespeare's comedian, the celebrated dancer who danced from London to Norwich in nine days.

"John Kemp, weaver, settled at Carlisle about 1335. In this connection the author states that Kemp is an old spelling of comb and also is a techincal term used in connection with weaving denoting a bristly hair often found among wool.

"Stephen Kemp was fined for leaving the King's Court in 1127.

"Elizabeth, the daughter of Rovert Kemp, was Lady of the Bedchamber to Elizabeth of York, the consort of Henry VII.

"Sir James Kempe, G.C.B. was Governor General of Canada from 1828-1830. He served under the Duke of Wellington in the war with Napoleon and was at the Battle of Waterloo.

"Another historian states that Kemp signifies a fighting man or champion and the name is derived from the Anglo-Saxon word Cempa - a soldier.

"The nearest approach to Camp or Kemp in Domesday Book, which William the Conqueror had prepared in 1086 after the Norman Conquest of England, is de Campo. In Domesday and other ancient records prior to the period when surnames had come into general use, we find various descriptive terms relating to the place of abode or occupation. Instances are de Campo, de Campis, de Combes, or Combes and Campio, - in the sixteenth century these became the regular surname Camp, Kemp, etc.

"According to the Roll of the Battle Abbey, Radulphus de Campis held land at Wye from the Abbey.

"The family of John Kemp, the Cardinal Archbishop are known to have changed the spelling of their name from de Campis.

"Among County Essex, England wills is one dated 1539 of Henry Camp al Kamp of Nasing and another dated 1551 of John Camp al Kempe of the same place.

"In the Canterbury Probate Registers 1396-1496 the closest spelling is Combe.

"In County Norfolk, England Campe or de Campo is said to have given place to Kemp about 1270.

"As late as 1624 the auther of a will signed his name Thomas Campe, while his son witnessing the same document wrote Thomas Kempe.

"Many Kemps and Kempes in various parts of England claim descent from the Earls of Warwick who had the title of de Bello Campo (see also in County Suffolk by Copinger).

"Arnaldus de Campis was master of the Nights Hospitallers in 1160.(The Knights Hospitaller (also known as the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of St. John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta, Order of St. John, Sovereign Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta, Knights of Malta, Knights of Rhodes, and Chevaliers of Malta; French: Ordre des Hospitaliers) is a Christian organization that began as an Amalfitan hospital founded in Jerusalem in 1080 to provide care for poor and sick pilgrims to the Holy Land. After the Christian conquest of Jerusalem in 1099 during the First Crusade it became a religious/military order under its own charter, and was charged with the care and defense of the Holy Land. Following the loss of the Holy Land by Christian forces, the Order operated from Rhodes, over which it was sovereign, and later from Malta where it administered a vassal state under the Spanish viceroy of Sicily. )

"The Media Research Bureau, Washington, D.C., gives the following on the subject: The name of Camp or Campe was derived in most cases from the location of its first bearer 'at camp or field,' but some historians assert that it was in some cases a variant of Kemp or Kempe, which means 'Warrior, Champion' and was derived from the occupation of its first bearers as soldiers. In ancient English and early American records the name appears in the various spellings of Campo, Campa, Kampe, Kamp, Kemp, Kempe, Campe, and Camp. Of these, the last-mentioned form is that most often found in America today, while that immeiately preceding it is also frequently in evidence.

"Families bearing this name were resident at early dates in the English Counties of Cambridge, Lancaster, Suffolk, York, Oxford, Essex, Howden, and London. They were, for the most part of the merchant and yeoman classes of great Britain.

"Among the earliest records of the name in England are those of Norman de Campo, who was living about the end of the twelfth century and who had a son named Roger; Felicia in Campo, of Cambridgeshhire, in the year 1273; Alan Kempe, whose name appears in the Hundred Rolls of the County of Suffolk in the year 1274; William de Campo, of Oxfordshire, about the same date; John Kempe, of Lancashire, in 1314; Johannes or John de Kempe or de Campe, of Howdenshire, in 1379; and Ricardus or Richard Kempe, of Yorkshire, about the same date.

"Of the family of the name early established in London, William Campe, of St. Dunstan-in-the West, was married at St. Peter Westcheap, in 1584, to Mary, daughter of Richard Farner, of the City of London; Thomas Campe, a native of Nasing, County Essex, yeoman, married Joane, daughter of Richard Hawkenett, of London, a weaver, in the year 1605; Thomas Campe, merchant taylor, of St. Thomas Apostle, London, was married at St. James Chapel-in-the Wall, near Cripplegate in the year 1611 to Elizabeth, Widow of Thomas Woodburne, of London, Haberdasher; Anne Camp was married in 1699 to Thomas Nash at St. Dionis, Backchurch; and in the early part of the following century Mary, daughter of John and Elizabeth Camp, was baptized at St. James, Clerkenwell, London.

"The first of the name in America, according to some historians, was one Thomas Campe, a native of Nasing or Nazing, County, Essex, England. He is said to have come to America in 1635 and to have settled in Gloucester County Virginia. The records of his immediate family or descendants, if any, are not available, but he is believed to have been closely related, probably a brother, to Nicholas Campe, the father of the first immigrant of the family to New England.

"Several coats of arms are described as having been granted to individuals of the name of Camp in County. Essex, England.