View Message

I would guess it's English, as -ford is a very common element in English surnames. Tedford definitely started out as a surname, and later was transferred to first name use, I guess. Now Ted is usually a nickname for Edward (or Edmund, Edgar, Edwin, etc...in the Middle Ages, there were so many people who shared a few basic first names: Robert, James, John, Thomas, that the first letter of the nickname was added or changed. So you could have Edward, Ed, Ted, & Ned. Robert used to have nicknames like Hob & Nob, in addition to Rob & Bob. Sorry, that was a massive tangent, I just think it's interesting!) Anyhow, not sure if your name is derived from Edward or what, just wanted to throw that out there. If it were, it might mean Edward's ford (place to cross a river). Good luck finding a more definitive answer!