Surnames - SoG

8/10/2019 Surnames - SoG

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THE SOCIETY OF GENEALOGISTS

OP LONDON

P a p e r r e a d at the

Q U A R T E R L Y ]VC E B T I N Q

10th March,

1917

BY

W.

P.

HASKETT-SMITH,

M.A.

Barrister-at-Law,

u

S U R N A M E S .

The Socitty s Room s:

5

BLOOMSBUEY SQUARE, LONDON, W .C.I

P R I C E S I X P E N C E .

GENEALOGICAL PARTMEH1

CHURCH

Oh

j c ^ U S C H R Iol


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P R I N T E D B Y

T H E E A ST E RN P R E S S L I M I T E D

LONDON AND READING


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n a m eonitand onA n s t e y E e i g n e y , w h i c h are nom o r e n a m e d f ro m

d i t c h e s t h a n C a m i l l a L a c y f r o m l a c e .

A le s s g la r ing andqu i t e v en ia l e r ro r oc cur s in thes a m e b o o k

w h e r e E G E R T O N in K e n t is s t a t e d to be E d g a r ' s t o w n . U n f o r

t u n a t e l y

the

ea r ly fo rm s shew

it to be for

E d g a r d i n g d e n

or

E c h a r d i n g d e n and, p o s s i b l y , e v e n E d e l e c h a r d i n g d e n , w h i c h ,

t h o u g h

not

p r o v e d

to

b e l o n g h e r e ,

was

c e r t ai n l y s o m e w h e r e

in the

i m m e d i a t e n e i g h b o u r h o o d .

F L I M W E L L

onthe S u s s e x b o r d e risa n o t h e r c a s e . J o h n s t o n s a y s

i t maym e a n an o u t l a w , but thee a r ly f o r m s s h e w t h a t it is

m e r e l y a c o n t r a c t i o n ofF l e m in g w e l l , and it isk n o w n t h a t m a n y

F l e m i n g s hads e t t l e d int h a t n e i g h b o u r h o o d .

B u t wem u s t nota ll ow p l a c e n a m e s to l u r e usa w a y f ro mour

s u b j e c t , t h o u g h

it is

s e l d o m p o s s i b l e

to

d e a l w i t h

one for

long

w i t h o u t theo t h e r , and on thew h o l e the p e rs o n a l e l e m e n t inp l a c e -

n a m e s and the l o c al e l e m e n t in s u r n a m e s h a v e b e e n g r e a t l y

u n d e r e s t i m a t e d . The t r u e f u n c t i o n form o s t of us ofc o u r s e is to

c o l l e c t w i t h p a t i e n t t o i l a c t u a l , r e c o r d e d f o r m s top r o v i d e a basis.

o n w h i c h them a s t e r ofp h o n e t i c s may safe ly w ork .

T h e m o s t c o m i c a l m i s t a k e s , h o w e v e r , arem a d e n e i t h e r by the

p e d a n tnor by thed u n c e , but by t h o s ewhoh a v e b e e n a p t l y t e r m e d

t h e m o r e c u l t i v a t e d p o r t io n of the i g n o r a n t . T h e se

half-

l e a r n e d e n t h u s i a s t s g e n e r a l l y f a l l e a s y v i c t i m s

to the

p l a u s i b l e .

T h e i r b l u n d e r s may p e r h a p s s e rv e tob r i n g h o m e to usoneof the

f i r s t lessons tha t

the

p h i l o l o g i s t

has

tol e a r n (al e s s o n by the

way

a g a i n s t w h i c h the p o e t L o n g f e l l o w f o o li sh l y p r o t e s t e d ) , for t h e y

T e l l

us all in

m o u r n f u l n u m b e r s .

C e r t a i n t y ' s ane m p t y d r e a m .

O ft

the

c o c k s u r e p u n d i t s l u m b e r s ,

O f t t h i n g sare not w h a t t h e y s e e m .

E v e r y o n e k n o w s t h a t n e a r l y

all

s u r n a m e s e m b o d y e i t h e r

the

p e r s o n a l n a m e , the d e s c r i p t i o n , orthea d d r e s sof ana n c e s t o r ,but

w h a t l o o k s l i k eanu n q u e s t i o n a b l e e x a m p l e ofonec l a s s may rea l ly

be long to one of theo t h e r s .

D E N N I S , D I C K S O N , H E W I T T , L U C A S , S A N D E R S are not always of

b a p t i s m a l o r i g i n .

P L U M B E R , B U T C H E R , S M I T H , C H E ES EM A N are frequently not due

to the w e l l - k n o w n t r a d e s .

CO R N F O O T , G U M B O I L, M A T T E R F A CE are no tpersonal descriptions.

B E E T L E ,

B U G ,

L O C U S T

are no t

b a s e d

on

r e s e m b l a n c e

to

t h o s e

i n s e c t s .

F o r e x a m p l e , D I C K S O N is s o m e t i m e s forD i c k l e s t o n , LUCASfor

L u c k h u r s t , SA N D ERS for S a n d h u r s t , PLUM B ER for P l u m b e r g h ,

B U T C H E R for

Bourchier,

S M I T H for

Smeeth,

L O C U S T for

Lockhurst.

T h e r e is nog r e a t e r m i s t a k e t h a n t h a t of us in g terms em plo ye d

in

one

p a r t of

the

c o u n t r y toe x p l a i n n a m e s o r i g i n a t in g in a n o t h e r .


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I n C u m b e r l a n d a m o u n t a i n p a s t u r e u s e d by a p a r t i c u l a r flock i s

s o m e t i m e s c a l l e d a ' ' heaf. I n H e r e f o r d s h i r e t h e r e is a p l a c e

n o w c a ll e d B r o m s A s h a n d f o r m e r l y B r o m s E s s e , o r H e s s e , w h i c h

i n M S S . o f t e n l o o k s l ik e H e f f e . M r . J o h n s t o n d o e s n o t h e s i t a t e

t o e x p l a i n t h e l a t t e r b y i m p o r t i n g t h e f o r m e r .

T e n t e r d e n i n K e n t h e e x p l a i n s b y ' ' T e n t e r s ' ' u s e d i n t h e

c l o t h t r a d e , f o r g e t t i n g t h a t t h e n a m e m u s t h a v e b e e n g i v e n a g e s

b e f o r e t h e r e w a s a n y c l o t h - m a k i n g t h e r e , a n d i n s p i t e o f h i s o w n

b e li ef t h a t t h e e a r l i e r f o r m of t h e n a m e w a s T i n t e n t o n e . I n t h i s

l a t t e r p o i n t , h o w e v e r , h e is e n t i r e l y m i s t a k e n , a s t h e T i n t e n t o n e of

" D o m e s d a y " w a s n o t h e r e a t a l l , b u t m i l e s a w a y a t W a r e h o m e .

M o r e o v e r w e h a v e t o a c c o u n t f o r t h e o l d f o r m s , T e n t w a r d e n a n d

T h e i n w a r d e n , w h i c h g u i d e u s r e a d i l y t o t h e r e a l o r i g i n a l , T h e n k -

w a r d e n o r , m o r e l i k e l y , T h e n k w a r d i n g d e n , " d e n e o f t h e f a m i l y o f

T h e n k w a r d . " T h i s w a s a c o m m o n S a x o n n a m e , m o r e f a m i l ia r t o

u s a s T a n c r e d , a n d a p p e a r s a g a i n in t h e m a n o r of T a n c r e t o n i n

t h e s a m e c o u n t y . M a n y c o u n t r y p l a c e s h a v e w h a t m a y b e c a l le d

a de r i s iv e fo rm use d by sp i t e fu l ne ig hb ou rs . In th i s cas e i t i s

T e n k e r d e n ( '' t e n k e r ' ' b e i n g t h e l o c a l p r o n u n c i a t i o n of ' ' t i n k e r ,

w h o s e t r a d e is n o w h e r e h e l d in m u c h e s t e e m ) , a n d c u r i o u s l y p r e

s e r v e s a l e s s c o r r u p t f o rm t h a n t h a t n o w c u r r e n t . T h e s u c c e s s fu l

e t y m o l o g i s t m u s t t h e r e f o r e k e e p h i s t o r y , g e o g r a p h y , a n d l a n g u a g e

s t e a d i l y i n v i e w .

T o t a k e a n o t h e r e x a m p l e fr om p l a c e n a m e s , w e a l l k n o w

LAMBETH,

w h e r e t h e p a l a c e of t h e A r c h b i s h o p h a s s o l o n g s t o o d .

H o w b e a ut if u ll y s i m p l e i t i s t o s a y : " L a m a , " a h i g h p r i e s t ,

" b e t h , " a d w e l l i n g, " t h e d w e l li n g of t h e h i gh p r i e s t . " T h e

t ri f ling f ac t th a t one w ord co m es f rom T ibe t an d th e o t he r f rom

P a l e s t i n e w o u l d n o t f o r o n e m o m e n t d i s t u r b t h e j o y o u s i n v e n t o r

o f t h i s c h a r m i n g d e r i v a t i o n .

T h e m e n t i o n of a r c h b i s h o p s m a y s e r v e t o r e m i n d u s t h a t

B o n i f a c e , t h e l a s t o f t h e m w h o h a d n o s u r n a m e , w a s a b o u t 1 2 0 0 ,

a n d , r o u g h l y , t h a t m a r k s t h e t i m e w h e n t h e c r e a t i o n o f s u r n a m e s

b e g a n t o g o a h e a d . N a m e s w h i c h o c c u r b e fo r e t h a t d a t e a r e m o r e

p e r s o n a l . A s a g e n e r a l r u l e t h e S a x o n s n a m e d a m a n f ro m h i s

t r a d e o r d w e l l i n g , w h i l e t h e e a r l y N o r m a n s l o v e d t o c o n d e n s e i n t o

t w o o r t h r e e s y l l a b l e s a m a n ' s p r i n c i p a l d e f o r m i t y o r t h e m o s t

d i s c r e d i t a b l e i n c i d e n t i n h i s c h e q u e r e d c a r e e r .

If t h e y u s e d a p l a c e n a m e a t a ll i t w a s u s u a l l y n o t t h e m a n ' s

r e s i d e n c e , b u t h i s b i r t h p l a c e .

W h a t a t first s i g h t s e e m s a c o m p l i m e n t a r y n i c k n a m e w a s b o r n e

b y o n e of t h e D e T o n b r i d g e s E i c h a r d d e B i e n f a i t a n d I o n c e

h e a r d a w o r t h y m a n h o l d i n g fo r t h u p o n i t a s " a n o b l e r t i t l e t h a n

a n y m o n a r c h e v e r b e s t o w e d , ' H e of t h e g oo d d e e d ' " ; b u t a l a s

E i c h a r d d i d n o t w i n i t b y h i s n o b l e c o n d u c t , b u t b y t h e a c c i d e n t

of h a v i n g b e e n b o r n i n t h e N o r m a n c a s t l e of B e n e f a c t a n a m e l y ,

" T h e w e l l - b u i l t . " I t s h o u l d a lw a y s b e b o r n e i n m i n d t h a t t h e

g r e a t b u l k of t h e s u r n a m e s t h a t w e u s e t o - d a y c a m e in t o b e i n g


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between 1200 and 1400; and when we consider the vicissitudes

through which they and their successive bearers have passed, we

cannot wonder if their forms have undergone some strange modi

fications. W e seldom know the full histo ry of a wo rd, and w ith ou t

it we m ay go wofully as tray althou gh equipp ed w ith th e very

best phonetic rules.

Imagine, for instance, Macaulay's New Zealander, professor,

let us suppose, of etymology in the University of Otago, visiting

th is country in 2500. H e journ eys by aeroplane to visit the ru ins

of Manchester, and a few miles south of them notices several

arch es of a lofty aq ue du ct crossing th e river M ersey. A pe as an t

tells him that there is a tradition that it carried a canal called

" T h e B r i d g w a t e r . "

" A h , y es, of cou rse, th e canal would be so called from th is

aqueduct, which is a ' bridge for water, ' doubtless a rare feat for

the engineers of th at d a y ." Lu ckily, however, the Brisbane pro

fessor of history is one of the party, and is able to tell him that

the canal was not named after the bridge, but the bridge after the

canal; the canal after a duke who made it ; the duke after a town

in Somerset where there was an important bridge over the river

Parret .

" Now, th a t ' s very inte res t in g," says th e Otago m an , " bu t

after all it only p u ts it a stage or tw o furthe r back. Th e nam e

does come from a bridge, but it was an earlier one than I

su p p o se d . "

Yet even th at is not tru e, for Brid gew ater had been Br ug ew ater,

and before that Burgh-Walter, called after i ts founder, Walter of

D oua i. I t h as therefore little to do with " bridge " and noth ing

at all with ' ' water.

As a more modern instance, you wouldn't think that there could

be a simpler name than P E T E R S . B u t early in the cen tury before

last there was one of that name in Kent whose father was really

a Frenchman, and to please English ears had t ransla ted his name

into their language, or rather tried to do so, for, as his proper name

was not Pierre, but De la Pierre, he ought really to have called

himself Mr. Stone.

The fact is that we very seldom know how many stages a name

may not have gone through before reaching us.

r M any yea rs ago I w as talking to an ancie nt rusti c, when a m an

passed by whom I knew to be one of a certain fam ily. I asked

which one he w as. My com panion chu ck led :

" W hoy Da t be P i ke y . "

" Why do you cal l him Pikey?"

" Well, ye see, sir , some on us does and some on us don't ."

" Never m ind those who d on 't . Tell m e why anyone calls

h im so . "

" Ah . B u t, Lo r' bless yer, he baint Pikey , only in a m an ne r

of sp eak in' . I t be ee 's cousin w ha t be de real Pi k e y ."


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' ' And how did he come to get the name ? ' '

" Dey do say dat at one time 'e wur turble fond of havin' dees-

ere furriners fur his 'op pickin ' ."

' ' Well , what of that Many growers get foreigners in to pick. ' '

"' Surealie dey do, bu t yer see dat m a n 's un cle, wh at 'ad de

farm afore ' im, 'e wouldn't have no furriners, an' went an' got

in a lot of deeseere old-fashioned ' pike ys '; you know de so rt I

mean.

" O h G i ps ie s."

" A y d a t ' s wh a t d ey c all ' e m . "

So we had at last come to the beginning of the story, and now

just observe the development of meanings.

A pike is a sort of protection to a gate.

Next i t is applied to the gate

itself

Such gates being often put up with the object of levying tolls,

the word next means a tollgate, even though devoid of such pikes.

Then a road on which such gates are erected.

Then a high road, even though without any such gates.

Hence a " pikey " is a person who passes much of his life on

the roads as gipsies do.

Later i t includes all habitual vagrants.

Then an employer of such vagrants.

Lastly, the relations of such an employer.

To an enquirer a few hundred years later, what a terrible tangle

these changes would present, especially as several links of the

above chain of evidence would by that time certainly be missing.

So it is difficult to at ta in c erta inty w ith any s ur na m e, especially

as many names have more than one origin; and, moreover, just

as we find one river cutting off and capturing the water-supply of

others, so a well-established name will often absorb another which

is of less familiar form. Fo r ins tan ce , in Virginia the baron ial

name of P E C H E is represe nted by a well-known family, b u t t he

same name is also borne by the descendants of a more or less

worthy German who found that as

B I T S C H E

he met with a less

eager welcome.

The shift ing character of English surnames is partly due to the

law, which has always treated them as l i t t le better than nick

names, convenient for identification, but not forming an essential,

pa r t of a m an 's nam e. Th at is why a w om an 's surn am e is t ran

sitory and a pe er 's al together in abeya nce. N ow adays we are ap t

to consider that a Mr. Hampden is called John to dist inguish him

from the other H am p d en s; but formerly he w as only called

H am pd en to distinguish him from the other Jo hn s. One l i tt le-

noticed proof of this is that in early days you could not speak of

" J o h n H a m p d e n ' s c o o k " ; yo u h ad t o say " J o h n ' s cook

H a m p d e n ," and in legal doc um ents , instead of " the aforesaid

H am pd en , " they then pu t " the a fo re sa id J o h n . "

Our object to-day is not so much to put forward novel explana-


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t ions as to point out tha t even the soundest authori t ies must not

be blindly followed, and that they cannot always stand the test

of evidence. Th e mo st helpful books on th is subject are by

Ba rdsley, Week ley, and H arrison . N o one ha s done m ore useful

work tha n Ba rdsle y. I t is ra th er th e fashion now to slight his

efforts . H e certainly m ade m any mista kes and in some respects

lacked the necessary training for his task; but he broke a huge-

amount of new ground, and was the first to grasp the necessity of

working on historical and geographical evidence. M any of our

best workers received their first impetus from his books.

A capital work on surnames recently appeared from the pen of

Professor Weekley. I t is attractively written and in m an y w ays

quite a scholarly production, giving evidence of great industry,

keen intelligence, and wide know ledge. H e clears away a good

many errors which have long held the field, but not all of his own

shots succeed in hitt ing the m ark. H e is som ewh at over-anxious

to find French explanations, and often misses words rather

obviously marking trades or places.

Mr. Harrison, on the other hand, is very strong on the Anglo-

Saxon side, and his great work, now nearing completion, will be

a fine stand by for future stu de nt s. Ac curacy and ster n concise

ness are h is watchw ords . B u t even H om er sometimes nods .

Let us now run through a few names which have been misunder

stood or still cry out for investigation.

Weekley derives

B A T H O S from Bathurs t , evidently unaware that the la t ter unt i l

quite lately was always pronounced B att -u rs t , and therefore

frequently takes the form of

B A T T E R S ,

which Weekley would ascribe to a personal name,

Beaduric .

-BERRY.

Several na m es w ith thi s term ination are take n by

W eek ley to be from fru its. Th ey are far m ore often from

-bury, and Mul- is much more likely to stand for Malbury

(Malborough), just as Albery and even Elderberry stand for

Aldb ury. An am using case of histo ry repea ting itself is seen in

ADSBERRY, of which name in 1679 was a gentleman who, having

to sign a legal document, suddenly lifted the veil and disclosed

himself as Cosmann

ERTZBERGER.

BIDDLE,

expla ined by Harrison as b e a d le and by W eekley

as Ap I th e l , is in m ost cases nothing more tha n Biddulp h.

On the other hand

B I F F I N

really does come from Ap Ithel.

W eekley says th a t the G erman nam e

BIRKEN-RUT is B ir ch -r od , bu t of course it is Birk-roy d or

birch c learing.

B E N J A F I E L D , Weekley calls insoluble, but it may be only a form

of Bende-ville, or it may contain the Wilts surname seen in

Sutton Benger.


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B L A C K M A N .

W e e k l e y c a l l s t h i s " a p u r e n i c k n a m e of m e d i a ev a l

o r i g i n " ; b u t i t s e e m s t o h a v e b e e n a p e r s o n a l n a m e e v e n i n

S a x o n t i m e s , a s it f o rm s p a r t of a K e n t p a r i s h B l a c k m a n s t o n e

a n d a s l a t e a s 1 27 9 w e f ind B l a k e m a n B r i d a n d J o h n F i t z b l a k e m a n .

P o s s i b l y i t r e p r e s e n t s

P L E G M U N D .

B O U N G E L S H E R T E

s o u n d s l i k e t h e d e s c r i p t i o n o f a m a n w h o w a s

a p t t o p a y s c a n t a t t e n t i o n t o th o s e l i tt l e d e t a i l s of t h e t o i l e t w h i c h

ad d so m u c h to t h e g e n e r a l e ff ec t.

B O R R O W H A R D

l o o k s o b v i o u s . P h . d e B o r r o w h a r d l iv e d in

c o u n t y C o rk t e m p . H e n r y I I I . , a n d s in c e h i s t i m e m a n y a

' ' f o in e o ld O i r is h g in t l e m an ' ' h a s t h o r o u g h ly l i v ed u p t o t h e

n a m e ; b u t in 1 30 4 S o l o m o n d e B o r r o w h a r d w a s a t h r i v i n g c i ti z e n

o f L o n d o n , a n d i n r e a l i t y b o r e a fine o ld N o r m a n n a m e ,

D e B o i s - E o h a r d or D e B o s c o - R o h a r d i , w h i c h , i n t h e W e s t of

E n g l a n d , b e c a m e

B O R A R D ,

a n d is s c a r c e l y r e c o g n i s e d in t h e D e v o n

par i sh o f

B R O A D

H c m p s t o n , w h i c h i n t h e H u n d r e d E o l l s is c a ll ed

H e m p s t o n B o r a r d , a n d h a d p a s s e d f ro m t h e B o r a r d fa m i ly t o t h a t

of C a n t i l o u p e .

B O W S E R , W e e k l e y s a y s , i s B e l - s i r e ; b u t I find J n . B o w s e r , a l io s

B O U R C H I E R , C . 1 4 7 5 .

C O R B R A N D

l o o k s v e r y s im p l e , b r an d b e in g s o co m m o n in S ax o n

n a m e s ; b u t a l a s fo r d o g m a t i s m , w e find o n e i n H e n r y I I I . ' s d a y

" a l i as

C U R T - B R A V I N T , "

SO t h a t h e w a s r e a l l y a s h o r t m a n f ro m

B r a b a n t .

S H O O L B R E D .

H a r r i s o n s a y s t h i s i s " s c h o o l - b r e d , " w h i c h i s n ot-

v e r y c o n v i n c i n g . I t m a y w e l l b e " s h o v e l - b e a r d , " a s " s p a d e -

b e a r d " w a s a c o m m o n p h r a s e , a n d i n m a n y d i a l e c t s " s h o v e l " i s

p r o n o u n c e d " s h o o l , " b u t c o m e s m o r e p r o b a b l y fr o m a p l a c e i n

S u s s e x c a l le d S h u l b r e d e , t h e t e r m i n a t i o n m a r k i n g p e r h a p s p l a c e s

w h e r e b i t s o f o p e n c o m m o n l a n d i n c r e a s e t h e b r e a d t h o f t h e r o a d

w a y , j u s t a s t h e e x p a n s i o n of t h e N o r fo l k r i v e r s a r e c a l l e d B r o a d s .

B R E N G E S T ,

W e e k l e y r e g a r d s a s t h e n i c k n a m e o f a m a n w h o s e

a m i a b l e h a b i t i t w a s t o " b u m g u e s t s . " B u t i t is f ar m o r e li k el y

t o b e f ro m t h e p l a c e c a ll e d B r i n g h u r s t o r f ro m B r o n g e s t i n W a l e s .

- B R O O K , 1 59 2 ( A n n

W H Y S S E - ) .

T h i s h a s n o t h i n g t o d o w i t h t h e

" b a b b l i n g b r o o k , " b e i n g o n e o f t h e m a n y c o r r u p t f o r m s o f a s u r

n a m e t a k e n f ro m t h e m a n o r of W h i t s p e r h a w k .

C A T C H F R E N S H . W e e k l e y e v i d e n t l y t a k e s t h i s l i t e r a l l y ; b u t , a s

i t i s a p l a ce i n C o r n w a l l , w e n e ed s ay n o m o r e .

C A P R O N .

W e e k l e y s a y s a F r e n c h f o rm of " H o o d " ; b u t i t i s a

N o r t h of E n g l a n d l o c al n a m e , a n d , a s K i d b u r n ( K i d b o r ra n ) is

p r o n o u n c e d K i p p r a n , t h i s m i g h t e a si ly b e " C a t - b o r r a n . "

C H I L D R E N .

H a r r i s o n t h i n k s t h i s m a y b e fo r C e o l -r e d , a n a m e

w h i c h A d m i r a l T i r p i t z m i g h t w e l l b e a r , a s i t i s s a i d t o m e a n

" K e e l - c o u n s e l . " W e e k l e y s a y s i t m e a n s " w i t h m a n y c h i ld r e n " ;

b u t a s a l l t h e e a r l y e x a m p l e s h a v e " A t t e " p r e f ix e d , w e m a y b e

s u r e it i s l o ca l , an d I h av e s h ew n e l s e w h e r e t h a t it m e a n s " a t t h e

s p r i n g s , " b e in g m e r e l y t h e S o u t h e r n f o rm of t h e N o r t h e r n " k e l d . "


10/14

C L A R A B U T T wi l l su gg es t to som e a pow er fu l l ady s ing e r r a t h e r

t h a n a m e r e K e n t i s h m a l e . I t i s i n f a c t t h e a n c i e n t C l a r e m b a l d ,

a n d h a s f ol lo w e d m u c h t h e s a m e c o u r s e a s A r c h e m b a l d , n o w o f t e n

s e e n a s A r c h b u t t .

C L U T T E R B U C K .

T h i s v e ry D u t c h - s o u n d i n g n a m e m a k e s f air

s e n s e i n t h a t l a n g u a g e , a s C l o e t - te r - b o g t w o u l d m e a n " p u n t p o l e

a t t h e b e n d " ; b u t t h e r e i s a t p r e s e n t n o e v i d e n c e t o s u p p o r t a

D u t c h o r i g in , a n d i t i s s a id t h a t C o w b a c h in W o r c e s t e r s h i r e w a s

o n c e c a l le d C l a t t e r b a c h , w h i c h is n e a r e n o u g h .

C O L E P E P E R . O f t h i s g r e a t K e n t n a m e W e e k l e y s a y s t h a t w e

m a y c o m p a r e P l u c k r o s e a n d C u l b e n e , o r t h a t i t m i g h t m e a n

" b l ac k p e p p e r . " I t w a s c e r ta i n l y a t h i r t e e n t h - c e n t u r y n i c k n a m e ,

a n d i t i s a c u r i o u s f a c t t h a t m a n y o f t h e i r r e n t s w e r e p a y a b l e i n

p e p p e r . I t i s p o s s i b l e t h a t t h e r e w a s a s t o r y a g a i n s t o n e of t h e m

t h a t h e a t t e m p t e d t o s u b s t i t u t e p o w d e r e d c h a r c o a l a s r e n t d u r i n g

a d e a r t h o f t h e p u n g e n t s p i c e .

C O R N E D E B O E U P ( t e m p . H e n r y I I I . ) h a s a v e r y c u l i n a r y s o u n d ;

b u t t h e o w n e r of t h e n a m e m a y h a v e e a r n e d i t l e s s b y m e a t t h a n

b y d r i n k . H e p o s s e s s e d p e r h a p s s o m e m i g h t y a l e h o m ( c o m e d e

bosuf ) and d ra ined i t w i th an ea se which ea rned the admi ra t ion o f

h i s c o n t e m p o r a r i e s .

C U T W E S Y L L p u z z l e s W e e k l e y , b u t a s t h e r e i s a C a t s w e a s e l i n

K e n t w e m a y w e l l r e g a r d t h e n a m e a s m e r e l y l o c a l .

C U X O N , H a r r i s o n s a y s , m u s t b e " C o o k ' s s o n " ; b u t t h i s i s t h e

e x a c t p r o n u n c i a t i o n of C u c l e s t o n o n t h e M e d w a y .

D A N D E L I O N , t r e a t e d b y W e e k l e y a s t h e w e e d , i s t h e n a m e of a

f a r m i n T h a n e t , p o s s i b ly o n c e h e l d b y a " l i o n - t o o t h e d " N o r m a n .

D O U B L E DA Y . H a r r is o n s a y s " b o m a t m i d n i g h t " ; b u t s u ch a

f a c t w o u l d s o o n b e f o r g o t t e n . W e e k l e y s u g g e s t s " d o i n g a d o u b l e

d a y ' s w o r k " ; b u t i t s u r e l y re f e r s t o a m a n of n o c t u r n a l a c t i v i t i e s ,

l ik e a m a n I w e l l r e m e m b e r i n m y c h i ld h o o d w h o w a s k n o w n to

al l as "

N O E E S T . "

H e w a s a n o t o r i o u s p o a c h e r .

E N T I C K N A P .

W e e k l e y g i v e s t h i s u p a s h o p e l e s s ; b u t a s " a n t i c "

in our rus t i c speech means bo th a buf foon and a gob l in , i t may

s i m p l y d e s c r i b e a " f a ir y - k n o ll " o r P o o k ' s H i l l . I t i s s o m e t i m e *

s p e ll e d E n t i n k n a p , a n d t h e r e w a s a f a m i ly c a ll e d E n t i n g a n d

A n t i n g .

- F I T T . T h i s t e r m i n a t i o n h a s b e a t e n a l l t h e p u n d i t s . W e e k l e y

sa y s i t is for - f ie ld, - foot , or - ford, an d q u o te s

Bref-

B r u m - , M u r - ,

R u m - , W e i -. H a r r i s o n t h i n k s S m u r - m a y b e " s m a l l f e e t , " a n d

de l ibe ra te ly r e j ec t s fo r i t t h e t r u e ex p l an a t i on , w hich i s th a t , i n al l

the se ca ses , the o r ig ina l fo rm i s

" - T H W A I T E

" B r a i - , B r u n - ,

M o o r- , E o w n - , S m u r - , W a l l - , L i n - . T h i s c h a n g e t a k e s p l a c e

a l m o s t i n v a r i a b l y w h e n e v e r t h e p r e v i o u s s y l l a b l e e n d s i n a l i q u i d

le t te r , though we of ten f ind - fa t or

- F O O T ,

a s i n B u r - , C r o w - , G r a y - , K i r -, L i n - , L o n g - , C o r n -.

F o r w a n t of k n o w i n g t h i s , W e e k l e y i s d r i v e n t o t h e w il d g u e s s t h a t

B r a n f o o t w a s a m a n w h o s e o c c u p a t i o n w a s t o " b r a n d f e e t "

10


11/14

T h e f o l l o w i n g l i s t p l a c e s b e y o n d d o u b t thec o n n e c t i o n b e t w e e n

t h e s e t h r e e t e r m i n a t i o n s

mein - T H W A I T E

B U R -

G A R -

G R A Y -

K I R -

L D J -

MOOR-

S M U R -

B R A I -

B R U N D -

E O W N -

W A L L -

CO R N -

C R O W -

L O N G -

Surname in - P I T T

B U R -

G A H -

G R A F F -

K E R -

L I N -

M U R -

S M U R -

B R E F F -

BETTM-

E U M -

W B L -

Surnamein-FOOT

BUR-

G A R -

G R A Y -

K L R -

L I N -

M O O R -

S M U R -

C O R N -

C R O W -

L O N G -

The terminations -FOWL, -COCK, -WEATHER are somewhat

p u z z l i n g , but

may

s o m e t i m e s r e p r e s e n t a mediaeva l fo rm of the

c u r i o u s t r i c k wes t i l l ha veofa d d r e s s i n g ourm o s t i n t i m a t e f r ie n d s

a s

old

b i rd or

old

c o c k , " w h i le A m e r i c a n s c h e e rf u ll y a c c o s t

a t o t a l s t r a n g e r as old h o r s e . " It is s a id t h a t M a c r e a d ythe

a c t o r , w h i l e t o u r i n g in theS t a t e s ,

was

a n n o y e d to f i nd tha tthe

Y a n k e e s

did not

g i ve

him

t h e i r u n d i v i d e d a t t e n t i o n , b e c a u s e

a

mere f iddle rthe ce lebra ted

Ole

B u l lofN o r w a y w a s t ou r in g

the

s a m e p a r tof thec o u n t r y . T h i s l e dto anu n f o r t u n a t e m i s t a k e , A

b u r ly W e s t e r n e r ,

who

hadh e a r d of on l y the N o r s e m a n ' s v i si t,

e s p i e d the E n g l i s h m a n s e a te d onthe d e c k of a s t e a m e r w r a p p e d

in

his

t r a g e d i a n ' s c lo a k

and his own

g r e a t t h o u g h t s . Hes w o o p e d

u p o n him,c a u g h t hima t r e m e n d o u s s la p b e t w e e n the s h o u l d e r -

b l a d e s ,

and

s h o u t e d g e n i a l l y , H e l l o ,

ole

h o s s H e l l o ,

ole

B u l l

W h a r ' s

yer

fiddle?"

The

g r e a t t r a g e d i a n r o s e

and,

in

his

m o s t

a w e - i n s p i r i n g t o n e s s a i d :

Sir You are

t r i p l y d e c e i v e d . I

beg

t o a p p r i s e

you

t h a t

I amnota

h o r s e . N e i t h e r

amI a

b u l l .

Nor

h a v e I e v e r p o s s e s s e d a fiddle."

G R A I N .

H a r r i s o n t h i n k s t h i s

is the

s e e d ; W e e k l e y s a y sit m e a n s

" m o r o s e ; n e i t h e r g r a s p s t h a t t h i sis thec o m m o n N o r t h e r n t e r m

for

the

fork of a s t r e a m .

H A L F N I G H T .

W e e k l e y r e g a r d s t h i s as a m o i e t y ofthe w a r r i o r

k n i g h t ; r e a l l y , l i k e

D O U B L E D A Y ,it

r e f e r s

tothe

n o c t u r n a l h a b i t s

of

i t s o w n e r .

W A L K L A T E

h o w e v e r isp r o ba b l y d i f f e re n t .

HAYCOMPLAINT. Our

m e d i c a l m e m b e r s

may

p e r h a p s w e l c o m e

i n t h i sane a r l y c a s eofc o n g e n i t a l h a y f e v e r . Ito c c u r sat A s h f o r d ,

1642 .

H E W I T T .

D o u b t l e s s o fte n d e r iv e d fr om H u g h ; but the a u t h o r i

t i e s

areall

u n a w a r e t h a t

in

K e n t e a r ly f o r m s

are

a t t e

H.andde

la H . , sot h a tit isc l ea r ly l oca landpos s i b l y on l ya S o u t h e r n f or m

of

t h w a i t e , "

h e w i n g - p l a c e

;

pos s i b l y

q u a r r y . "

11


12/14

H O A T H . W e e k l e y s a y s a r c h a i c fo r H e a t h , b u t o n l y o n H a l l i -

w e l l ' s a u t h o r i t y . H a l l i w e l l is q u i t e r i g h t , fo r a s a K e n t i c i s m t h e

wo rd ex i s t s to th i s da y . I l i ve in s igh t of L ew is H e a th , a l so ca l led

L e w i s H o a t h , a n d a l l o v e r K e n t t h e o ld e r p e o p l e g e n e r a l l y c a ll a

p i e c e of w a s t e a h o a d .

H O U L D

T H E N E S T (1632) . A good ex am pl e of th e w ay in w hic h

p a r i s h c l e r k s m a d e t h e b e s t s e n s e t h e y c o u l d o u t of u n f a m i l i a r

n a m e s . T h e r e a l n a m e , of c o u r s e , m u s t h a v e b e e n H O L D E R N E S S .

H O L N E S S .

W e e k l e y s a y s t h i s i s u n d o u b t e d l y fo r h o l i n e s s .

I f s o , i t m u s t b e t h a t k i n d o f h o l i n e s s w h i c h e x h i b i t s m u c h f a i t h

and a sks fo r no

proof

By the l e s s insp i r ed me thod o f t r ac ing i t

b a c k w a r d s w e g e t t h e p r o s a i c r e s u l t o f H O N E S S , H O L N E S S ,

H O L N E R S , H O L I N H U R S T .

H O W G E G O a n d H O W S E G O . A n e m i n e n t l i t e r a ry m a n c o n fi d ed

to me h is se r ious be l ie f tha t these a r i se f rom the e f for ts of fore ign

s a i l o r s t o e n q u i r e a f t e r t h e h e a l t h o f t h e i r B r i t i s h c o m r a d e s ; b u t

bo th n a m e s go back to o f a r fo r th i s .

- H U R S T

t a k e s m a n y fo r m s w h i ch H a r r i s o n a n d W e e k l e y d o n o t

su sp ec t . I t is o f t en wh i t t l ed do w n to - e r s , - e s t , -e r , - us , - a s ;

B a t t e r s , B r e n g e s t , H o l n e s s , L u c a s a r e in s t a n c e s .

I D D O L S . W e e k l e y ca l ls t h i s a W i l t s f o r m of W e l s h I t h e l l ; b u t

is i t n o t s i m p l y E d o l p h ?

L I M P B N N Y . W e e k l e y d e r i v e s i t c o n f id e n t ly f ro m L y m p n e ; b u t

t h e p t h e r e i s w h o l l y m o d e r n a n d is n e v e r p r o n o u n c e d , s o t h a t

the whole word i s sounded L I M , a n d W e e k l e y i s j u s t a p e n n y w r o n g

i n h i s a c c o u n t . L i m p e n h o e , in N o rf o lk , is a m u c h m o r e p r o b a b l e

or ig in .

L I M M A G E . W e e k l e y ' s F r e n c h p r e d i l e c t i o n s i n d u c e h i m t o t r e a t

t h i s a s L ' I m a g e ; b u t L i m m a g e is t h e u s u a l s o u n d of t h e K e n t

v i l l a g e o f L i m i n g e .

M A N K T E L O W .

W e e k l e y , e v e r F r e n c h , r e a d s t h i s a s m a n q u e

d e 1 'eau ; b u t sco res of M A N E K E S c a m e t o C a n t e r b u r y f r o m t h e

L o w C o u n t r i e s , a n d t h e r e s t m a y b e ' ' t e r L o o , ' ' m a k i n g u p ' ' l i t t l e

fe llo w a t t h e m e a d o w .

M A T T E R F A C E m i g h t a p p e a r t o b e a p e r s o n a l d e s c r i p t i o n o f t h e

m o s t u n c o m p l i m e n t a r y k i n d ; b u t , l i k e t h e u n p l e a s i n g

G U M B O I L ,

sa id to s t an d for G U N D O B A L D , i t i s n o t so bad as i t loo ks . I h a v e

e s t a b l i s h e d i t s i d e n t i t y w i t h M a l t r a v e r s .

M I D D L E M I S T . I t i s a s s u m e d by H a r r i s o n a n d W e e k l e y t h a t

M i d d l e m a s s w a s a f o rm of M i c h a e l m a s . T h e y o ffer n o e v id e n c e

o f t h i s , a n d , h a v i n g f o u n d c a s e s w h e r e t h r e e b r o t h e r s o f t h e s a m e

b a p t i s m a l n a m e w e r e d i s t in g u i s h e d a s E l d e s t , M i d d l e m o s t , a n d

Y o u n g e s t , I f ee l l i t t l e d o u b t t h a t in t h i s c a s e w e m a y s a fe l y l e a v e

M i c h a e l m a s t o t h e b i rd s m o s t i n t e r e s t e d in t h a t s e a s o n .

M O W C O M B E R

: poss ib ly a fo rm of M o n te G om er i i , t h e f i rs t

sy l l ab le hav ing behaved l ike tha t o f M O W B R A Y .

N O B R I G H T .

W e m i g h t h e s i t a t e w h e t h e r t h i s s h o u l d b e d i v i d e d

s o a s t o offer a c o m p l i m e n t o r a s n e e r W a s t h e b e a r e r N o - b r i g h t ?

12


13/14

o r w a s h i s N o b - r i g h t ? b u t a s ' ' a t t e ' ' i s p r e f ixed i t m u s t be l oca l ,

a n d , b e i n g f o u nd n e a r t h e g r e a t p a r k of N o r t h F r i t h , s o m e t i m e s

p r o n o u n c e d

N O R V R I G H T ,

i t m ay a r i s e f rom t h a t .

P A I N E

(of course for

P A G A N U S )

b e c a m e a s u r n a m e e a r l y , a n d t o

s o m e e x t e n t w e a r e a b l e t o p u t a d a t e t o i t s a d o p t i o n . T h e f a m o u s

l e t t e r t o t h e P o p e i n 1301 w as s i gned by E o b . F i t z p a i ne a s filius

P a g a n i , a n d , a s h i s f a t h e r w a s a l s o E o b e r t , i t i s c l ea r t h a t

F i t z P a y n e w a s a t r u e f am i ly n a m e a n d n o t m e r e l y p e r s o n a l . O f

h u m b l e r r a n k a b o u t h a lf a c e n t u r y l a t e r w a s a p l a i n P a g a n u s , b u t

h i s d e s c e n d a n t e a r l y i n t h e n e x t c e n t u r y w a s J o h n

P A I N E .

P A N K H U R S T .

S o m e y e a r s a g o t h i s n a m e w a s d i s c u s s e d i n t h e

P r e s s ,

an d i t w a s sug ges t ed t h a t i n som e ca s e s a t l e a s t i t s t ood fo r

P e n t e c o s t , b u t n o e v i d e n c e w a s g i v e n . I n h i s e a r l ie r b o o k W e e k -

l ey r e p e a t e d t h i s . H a r r i s o n , r e v ie w i n g h i m , d e n o u n c e d t h e id e a

a s d i s p o s e d of a n d f a r - f e t c h e d . I t w i l l p e r h a p s b e s u ff ic ie n t

a n s w e r t o t h i s c r it ic i s m to s a y t h a t i n E o m n e y M a r s h

P E NT E C O S T

i s a v e r y c o m m o n n a m e o n p a p e r ; b u t in t h e m o u t h s of m e n a l m o s t

u n k n o w n , b e i ng a l w a y s p r o n o u n c e d P a n k h u r s t . I c a n a ls o p o i n t

t o a r e co r d m o r e t h a n 3 0 0 y e a r s o ld w h e r e J o h n P a n k h u r s t of

S uss ex i s c a l l ed a l ia s

P E N T E C O S T .

P E C H E m i g h t m e a n fished u p , b u t d o e s n ' t , s o c a n n o t b e u s e d

a s t h e fo u n d a t i o n of a c l a i m t o a d e s c e n t f r o m J o n a h o r M o s e s i n

t h e b u l r u s h e s . I t s e a r l ie s t f or m is P e c c a t u m , t h e s in a

r a r e c a s e of a n a m e a r i s in g f ro m a n a b s t r a c t n o u n .

P I L B E A M .

W e e k l e y t a k e s t h i s t o b e b a r k e r of t r e e s . I t is

n o t a t r a d e n a m e a t a ll , b u t p u r e l y lo c a l , d e r i v e d f ro m t h e K e n t

m a n o r o f P E L T E B E ME . P o s s i b l y t h e p e e l i n g of t r e e s m a y c o m e

i n t o i t , fo r t h e m a n o r i a l l a n d m a r k m a y h a v e b e e n s o m e p e e l e d

t r e e .

Q U A T E R B U C H E S . W e e k l e y s a y s a n i c k n a m e , e v i d e n tl y t a k i n g

i t t o m e a n f o u r m o u t h s , w h i c h i s p o o r s e n s e u n l e s s i t r e fe r s

to a w ou nd seve r i ng bo t h t h e up p e r an d t h e l owe r l i p . I t m a y ,

h o w e v e r , p o s si bl y m e a n s k e w - m o u t h e d , fo r w e h a v e a w o r d

in d ai ly u s e in K e n t , c a t e r , w h i ch m e a n s d i a g o n a l . T h i s

wo u l d a l so g i ve a m or e sa t i s f ac t o r y sen se t o

Q U A T E E M A I N S .

S N O O K .

W e e k l e y s a y s f ro m S e v e n o a k s , t h e c l a s si c a l

e x a m p l e ; b u t t h e r e a r e d if fic u lti es . I t i s a m p l y p r o v e d t h a t

o n e S n o o k w a s c o n n e c t e d w i t h S e v e n o a k s 5 0 0 y e a r s a g o . B u t t h e

p lace i s ca l l ed

S E N N O C K

wi th a s t ro ng ac ce n t on th e first sy l l a b le ,

and t he r e f o r e wou l d no t ea s i l y f o r m

S N O C K .

I f i t d id w e sho u ld

e x p e c t t o find c a s e s of D e S n o o k ; b u t w e d o n ' t . O n t h e o t h e r

h a n d , we do find t he na m e of L e

S NO K E ,

an d on t h e wh o l e t h e

popu l a r de r i va t i on i s ha r d t o swa l l ow .

S T E E L .

A c o p i o u s s o u r c e of t h i s i n t h e N o r t h of E n g l a n d h a s

b e e n m i s s e d b y H a r r i s o n a n d t h e o t h e r s . I t m e a n s a s l op i n g

bu t t r e s s t o a h i l l .

S T U T F I E L D .

H a r r i s o n s e e m s t o t h i n k t h a t

S T O V E L

i s t h e t r u e

r e p r e s e n t a t i v e of E s t o u t e v i l l e , w h i c h h e s a y s m e a n s f a r m of

13


14/14

S t o u t . H e qu otes de Stotevile in 1260 and de Stovile in 1274.

But to me the early appearance of the second name lessens the

likelihood of its being a corruption of the first, which we know to

have gone on un altere d for cen turies after th a t. Th e chang e of

-ville to -field is of course very general.

V I V E R S . W eekley say s th is is from a gen eral te rm for food

and drink ' ' ; but does it not stand for the familiar De Vivariis, ' ' of

th e fishponds ?

In conclusion let me add to a paper already unduly long one

word to explain why I said th a t in working out th is subjec t even

the hum bles t can h e lp . They can help mainly in three ways

By noting (1) when and how in any pedigree with which they

are familiar the surname has been modifiede.g. Ellerington-

Elr ing tonBldr ing tonElder ton .

(2) How and when title-deeds or parish registers prove the

replacement of one form by another.

(3) The invaluable al ia s , such as Plu m be r als Plu m -

be rro w , Cateline als C ate lo yn e. B y intell igent use of these

three sources we shall escape from irresponsible guesswork and

ultim ately arrive at a really com prehen sive Prov ed and D ated

His tory of Surnames .

Surnames - SoG

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