In Denmark, in the North Jutland region, near the city of Aalborg, there are two old villages named Blenstrup. Their name is very similar to the surname of Blinstrub family. Both villages are located close to each other – one in Gerlev parish (now part of Randers municipality), and the other in Hellum parish (now part of Rebild municipality). The Blenstrup in Hellum parish is parish center of the same name, while the Blenstrup in Gerlev parish is now a village, but in the Middle Ages it was s manor with a small church (probably chappel).
Gerlev Blenstrup
The Blenstrup in Gerlev parish is mentioned as early as 1448 as Blenstrup, and in 1481 as Blenstrop. A book published in 1890, Kronens Skøder paa afhændet og erhvervet Jordegods i Danmark (Crown Deeds on Alienated and Acquired Landed Property in Denmark), mentions deeds related to the Blenstrup villages from 1545 onwards. A deed dated 24 December 1551 states that Hans Stygge from Holbæk acquired a large amount of land from the king, including Blinstrup Hovedgaard (Blinstrup Manor) with the Hofvitslocke land in Gerlev parish. Most likely there is a spelling error in the name of the manor, as another source – Kancelliets brevbøger vedrørende Danmarks indre forhold i uddrag. Udgivet af Rigsarkivet 1885–2005. 1551–1660 (Chancery Letter Books concerning Denmark’s Internal Affairs) – refers to the same deed as Blenstrup Hovgaard.
A more detailed examination of the sources mentioning the history of Gerlev Blenstrup reveals that from the Middle Ages until the early 1500s there existed a small church and a large manor called Blenstrupgård or Blenstrup Hovedgaard in that location. In 1936, archaeologists from the Danish National Museum carried out excavations and discovered and documented the remains of a Romanesque-style church built of hewn stone. The church measured 9 × 5 metres and is believed to have fallen into disuse after 1536, when the Danish kingdom introduced the Reformation, nationalised former Catholic churches, and created a shortage of priests, as not all Catholic priests agreed to convert. Interestingly, according to the excavation data, the church was built on the site of a former Viking house containing a circular hearth or altar.
Archeological sketch of Blenstrup Church (Chappel). 1936.
The manor itself existed much longer. Several owners of this manor are known. In 1481, Blenstrupgård belonged to the landowner Niels Nielsen, and in 1486 to Jes Mikkelsen. Around 1840 the manor belonged to J. M. Berg (a former resident of Demstrup), who built a new manor house.
Old Gerlev Blenstrup map D814 can be found in Other historical sources section.
Hellum Blenstrup
The Blenstrup in Hellum parish is mentioned in sources from 1348 as Blendstrup, and in 1390 as Blynstorp.
Bidrag Til Hellum Herreds Beskrivelse Og Historie (Contribution to the Deion and History of Hellum Herred) 1875.
The local Danish historian Klaus Gjerding (1851.10.06 – 1880.08.06), during his short life, managed to publish one historical monograph in Danish in 1875 about the parishes of Gjerding, Blenstrup, Skjørping, Fraer, and Brøndum in Hellum herred. It is titled Bidrag Til Hellum Herreds Beskrivelse Og Historie (Contribution to the Description and History of Hellum Herred). Here are a few sentences from the “Blenstrup” section of the book:
“This town was written as Blynstorp in 1390. Later the name of the town was also publicly written with an ‘i’, meaning Blindstrup or Blingstrup. The origin of the name is unclear. One of the manors belonged in 1348 to a nobleman named Mogens Jonssen, who transferred it to a man called Suend Kou. This is probably the same manor that Henrik Stigsen transferred to the Mariager (Birgittine) monastery in 1451, and which Morten Svan (of Ejstrup) later transferred to the abbot of the monastery in 1465. Henrik Stigsen was the son of Stig Andersen af Thordrup and lived in Kielstrup, Ove parish. The manor belonged to the monastery until the Reformation and then passed into Crown ownership until 1647, when it was exchanged with Mrs Margrete Marsvin from the town. Mr Jens Morch lived in the manor when he was chaplain of Blentrup. The other four manors and one small farm nearby belonged to the Church until the Reformation. Four manors were joined to the town in 1561, and the others in 1572. After the death of Jørgen Seefeldt in 1662, the entire Blenstrup town passed to Dr. Cosmus Borneman, professor of law at the University of Copenhagen.”
Hellum Belnstrup deion in Bidrag Til Hellum Herreds Beskrivelse Og Historie (Contribution to the Deion and History of Hellum Herred). 1875.
From this monograph it is clear that until the 17th century the Blenstrup in Hellum parish was a small church village with several manors nearby. The original name of the settlement was Blynstorp, which later evolved into Blenstrup.
Old Hellum Blenstrup map D815 can be found in Other historical sources section.
The online dictionary of old Danish place names prepared by the University of Copenhagen reveals that both locations begin to appear in sources from the mid-1300s and are referred to in various ways in the records.
The Gerlev parish Blenstrup had the following variations:
Blenstrop
Blendstrup
Blendstrup By
Blenstrop
Blenstrvpp
Blendstropp
Bionstrup
Blenstrup Hovgaard
Blinstrup Hovedgaard
Blendstrop
Blendsstrop, Blendsstrop gaardt
Beenstrup, Blendstrup
Blindstrup
Blenstrup, Glendstrup
Blenstorf
The Hellum parish Blenstrup had the following variations:
Blendstrup
Blindstrup
Bligstorp kircke
Blynstorp
Blingstrup
Blinchstrup, Nesmarch
Blinchstrup, Nes S.
Blenstrup, Blingstrup, Nessogenn
Blenstrup, Glendstrup
Blentstrop
Blenstrop
Blenstrvp
Blenstrum
Belstrup Mark
Blentrup
Blenterup
Blingstorp
In the Kingdom of Denmark, including the territories of present-day southern Sweden, there were also a couple of somewhat similar place names – Blistrup in Holbo herred (now Gribskov municipality), Blidstrup in Morsø Sønder herred (now Morsø municipality), and Blenterup in Torna herred (now Blentarp in the Skåne region of southern Sweden). Despite the similarity to the above-mentioned Blenstrup place names, these did not have – and in their ancient forms never had – the “nstr” consonant cluster dominant in the Blinstrub surname, so there is probably no connection with our family.
The historical spellings of Holbo herred Blistrup are as follows:
Blidestorp 1158; Blistorp 1191–1214; Blystorph 1300; Blisthorp c. 1370; Blystørp 1376; Blystop 1386; Blystorp 1400; Blystrop 1449; Blysthorp 1458; Blistorps sogn 1481; Blistrop 1497; Blystrup 1530; Blistrup 1613; Blidstrup 1660–1661; Blidstrup 1688.
The historical spellings of Morsø Sønder Blidstrup are as follows:
Blixtrupp 1402; Blittrup 1402; Blixtorp 1410; Bliestrup Gaardtt, Bliestrwpgaardt, Bliistrwp Kyrcke 1451–1513; Blixstrupp 1457; Bliestrwp gaardtt, Bliiestrup Kyrcke 1491; Blistrop S. 1503; Bliistrup 1593; Blistrup 1547; Blidstrup 1769.
The historical spellings of Torna herred Blenterup are as follows:
Blentæ 1333, 1337; Blenterop 1490, 1491; Blentorp 1522; Blentrup 1548; Blennterup 1552; Blenterup 1569, 1573, 1587, 1590, 1605; Blenndterup 1606; Blentrup 1608, 1645; Blentarp 1675.
After research the origin of the Blinstrub surname both etymologically (read section Origin of the surname) and the Danish place names toponymically, it becomes evident that the maternal origin of Blinstrub family is undoubtedly connected with the ancient, Viking-era Blenstrup villages located in the North Jutland (Nørrejylland) region of Denmark and should be originated from there.