Duncombe

Recorded in several forms including Duncomb, Duncombe, and Duncumbe, this is apparently an English surname. There are two places so named in the British Isles, the first near the town of Helmsley in North Yorkshire, and now called Duncombe Park, the seat of Lord Feversham, the second called Duncomb is in Scotland near the town of Dunbarton. However there is no evidence that the Scottish place has been the originator of any surnames. The surname in its various spellings is quite well recorded in Yorkshire where is is often confused with the surnames Duncan and Duncom, which may be of separate origins, but clearly overlap. Locational surnames are usually "from" names, and this is certainly the case here. It is known that in the 17th century the village was cleared to allow for the building of the stately home, and it would seem that at this time most if not all nameholders took or were given their surname when they moved to new homes. Examples of the recordings include Radulphus Dunkon, at Kirk Ella near Leeds, on July 6th 1559, Henry Duncombe at the village of Crayke, between Helmsley and York, on March 1st 1632, and Sarah Duncombe, who married Gilbert Caldecote at Copgrove, near Knaresborogh., on November 7th 1718.