What is the origin of the surname "barefoot". it's on my grandmoth

Question:Not to shake the tree, but if you're talking about the western region of NC, it may be a very good possibility the surname is a derivation of "Bear Foot" since you're talking about Cherokee country.

I'm just sayin' ... think with all the windows open.

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: Not to shake the tree, but if you're talking about the western region of NC, it may be a very good possibility the surname is a derivation of "Bear Foot" since you're talking about Cherokee country.

I'm just sayin' ... think with all the windows open.

This is an English name from the Olde English pre 7th century "baer", bare or naked, and "fot", foot and was used as a nickname for someone who habitually lived and worked without shoes on.
It was used specifically of friars and pilgrims and those who went barefoot as a religious penance. There were similar examples in Medieval England for example "Barleg" and "Bareshanke".
The friar in Shakespears "Romeo and Juliet" is described as "a barefoote brother". William King and Elizabeth Barfot were married in St. George's Chapel, Mayfair, 1748.
The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Reginald Berfot. which was dated 1203, in the Pipe Rolls of Cumbria. during the reign of King John, known as "Lackland" 1199 - 1216.
Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.

There was a federal judge in Texas named Barefoot Sanders. He stated Barefoot was an old Anglo Saxon name.