Bridges Surname Meaning & Origin
What the Bridges last name means, where the surname began and how it spread.
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Meaning and origin of the Bridges last name
Meaning of the Bridges last name: of the bridge. The Bridges surname belonged to someone who lived by a bridge or kept it, the -s meaning "of the bridge". Some families may instead take the last name from Bruges in Flanders, the great cloth town with close trade links to England. It is most common in Kent, Sussex and Somerset. A curious detail: English settlers took it to Virginia and the Carolinas, and it is now widespread in the American South.
Arms associated with the Bridges name
In England younger sons added small heraldic marks to their father's coat of arms, so relatives named Bridges could each carry a slightly different shield.
Get your full Bridges family history
This is only a glimpse of the Bridges story. The full Bridges history report goes much deeper into where the name began, who carried it and how the family spread, and it comes with a museum-style painted Bridges coat of arms. Get the full Bridges report.
Bridges name FAQ
What does the Bridges name mean?
Of the bridge. Common variants include Brydges, Bridge, Brigges.
Where does the Bridges surname come from?
It originates in England, and is also found in the United States, Australia and Canada.
Is there a Bridges coat of arms?
Arms were granted to individuals rather than to everyone with a surname. Herald Lab paints a personalized Bridges coat of arms in museum style, based on historic heraldry.
Sources: Reaney & Wilson, Dictionary of English Surnames; Dictionary of American Family Names (Oxford).