What Is The Origin Of The Name Strangward?

The name Strangward is a very unusual one but as it is part of my own family tree, I have made a long study of it. There are two families with the name in the 1600s and onwards – one in the villages around Huntingdon and one in the villages around Hereford.

The Herefordshire branch of Strangwards seems to pre-date the Huntingdon branch and so far I have not identified a definite link between the two, although I think there must be one. The name is very common around Bromyard, Aymestry and other villages around Hereford, and in places just over the Welsh border.

The Domesday survey does report a small hamlet called Strangford in that area, and it may be that the name comes from that place. However, there is no evidence to back this up and records of the time are so sparse, it may well prove impossible ever to track down the true origin of the name.