Origin of the surname
The family name Cumberbatch is the most popular variant spelling of a place called Comberbach; which is a village in Cheshire, England. A Co(o)mbe is old English for a valley, so a Comber is a dweller in a valley; bach(e) is Old English for a stream. So Comberbach means dweller in a valley with a stream and this is an accurate description of the place. Comberbach was not mentioned in the Doomsday Book but is mentioned in early Cheshire Charters dating from the late 12th century. See: Cumberbatch family name website
The Cumberbatch surname has an additional point of origin - Barbados. After August 1834 Barbados slaves, previously the property of white Cumberbatch families, were freed and many took the surname. By December 1833 all of the white male Cumberbatchs had either died or relocated back to England. So any black Cumberbatch whether in England, Trinidad, Guyana, US or anywhere have ancestral roots in Barbados. | 