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FACT: "knape" was probably derived from the word "knapp" and was used to indicate the area the family came from.
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Knape History
The ancestors of the name Knape date back to the days of the Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. The name is derived from
their residence one of several places named Knapp in England. The word knapp comes from the Old English "cnoepp"
meaning a hilltop or summit.
Knape has been spelled many different ways. Before English spelling became standardized over the last few hundred
years, spelling variations in names were a common occurrence. As the English language changed in the Middle Ages,
absorbing pieces of Latin and French, as well as other languages, the spelling of people's names also changed
considerably, even over a single lifetime. Many variations of the name Knape have been found, including Knapp,
Knappe, Knap, Knapper, Knapp, Knapman, Knappen, Kneppe, Knape, Knappen, Cnape, Cnappe and many more.
The surname Knape was first found in Cambridgeshire where the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 list John Cnape as holding
estates there at that time. The same rolls also list John Knapp, Buckinghamshire. Kirby's Quest lists Margaret
atte Cnappe in Somerset. The Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 include: Johannes Knape and Johannes Knaype.
Another source notes: "Knapp is an old south of England name. In the 14th century an influential family of Bristol
citizens bore this name. Knapp was the name of an ancient gentle family of Berkshire, a branch of which two
centuries ago came into the possession of the manor of Little Linford, Buckinghamshire."
By way of confirmation of the aforementioned: "About 1658, [Little Linford] was purchased by Messrs. Kilpin and others,
by whom it was sold to an ancestor of the Knapp family." The family held the parish since this early entry as in the
late 1800's the source notes "The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £66; patron and impropriator, Matthew Knapp,
Esq., lord of the manor."
The medieval Knepp Castle is found west of the village of West Grinstead in West Sussex. Built on a mound or "cnoepp,"
the castle was originally a motte and bailey fortress, built in the 12th century by William de Braose. In 1214, he
had it rebuilt as a stone castle with a two-storey keep. Later Royal visitors included kings Henry III in 1218, Edward II
in 1324 and Richard II in 1384.
Farther to the south in the parish of St. Winnow, Cornwall, the family of Knapman once held Trevegoe, which later became
a farm house. But, the heiress of the family married into the Hawkey family and subsequently passed the manor to them.
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