Bickford
A locational surname meaning “from Bickford,” a place-name in England.
The #4,590 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 39,952 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Bickford is best understood as a surname taken from a place called Bickford, most notably the village in Gloucestershire. The second element is straightforward: Old English ford, meaning a river crossing. The first element is less certain, but early writers often treated it as part of a local place-name tradition alongside names such as Bickley and Bicknor, with the original meaning probably tied to an older personal name or local feature.
History
Medieval forms such as de Bekeford show that the name was already in use as a locational byname in England. Later surname spellings appear especially in the west and midlands, and the name is still found there historically, including in Staffordshire and Devon records. In the United States it is a relatively uncommon immigrant surname, but it remains established through several family lines.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Bickford is one of several English surnames that point back to a specific village name ending in -ford, the old word for a river crossing.
From the historical record
“London, aa ; Philadelphia, 20. Beckford, Bickford.— Local, *of Beckford/ a parish in co. Gloucester, about six miles from Tewkesbury. (Prior) de Bekeford, co. Glonc., Hen.”
— A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames (alternate scan)