THE ORIGIN OF NAMES.

Globe, Volume XXIV, Issue 2644, 27 September 1882, Page 4

THE ORIGIN OF NAMES.

V The study rf men’s names is as curious a? It is interesting. Arbitrary as they seem today, they all bad their sources evidently in some fitting fact. Many English surnames express the county, estate, cr residence of their original bearers: as Burgoyne, from Burgundy j Cornel!, or Cornwallis, from Cornwall ; Fleming, from Flanders ; Gaskin and Gascoyne. from Gascony ; Hanway, from Hainault; I'olaok, from Poland; Welsh, Walsh, and Wallis, from Wales; Coombs, Compton, Clayton, Sutton, Preston, Washington, from towns in the county of Sussex, England. Camden, the antiquary, says every village in Normandy has snrnamed some English family. Dale, Forest, Hill, Wood, las the like are derived from the oharaoter or situation of these who first bore the names. The prefix “ atte,” or “at,” softened to “a” or ‘‘an," helped to form a number of names. Thus, ££ a man lived ou a moor, ha would call himself Attemoor or Attmoor; if near a gate, Attegate or Agate. John atte the Oaks was is due time shortened to John Noaks ; Peter at the Seven Oaks into Peter Snooks. By field, Byford, Underhill, and Underwood indicated residences originally, In old English applegarth meant orchard, whence Applegate and Appleton; chase, a forest; dive, a cliff; ©tough, a ravine; oobb, a harbor; whence these names. The root of the übiquitous Smith is the Auglo Saxon smiton, to smite. Zt waa applied primarily to blacksmiths. Wheelwrights, carpenters, masons, and umiters at strikers in general. Baker, Taylor, Butler, Coleman (coalman), Diaper, Oowper (cooper), Cutler, Miller, and the rest, plainly denote eeoapatiocs. Latimer is from latiner, a writer of Latin. Lorltnor is a maker of Spurs and bridal bits ; Arkwright, a maker of ohests ; Lander, contras'ed from lavendier, a Washerwoman; Banister, the keeper of a bath; Kidder, a huckftsr ; Wait, a minstrel; Crocker, a potter. Such names as Baxter 'smd -Bsgster are the feminine of baker; Webster or Webbsr, cf weaver, which shows these trades were first followed by women, surd (hat when men began to take them up they for some time kept the feminine names. Steward, Stewart, or Stuart, Abbot, Knight, liotd, Bishop, Prior, Chamberlain, Falconer, Tieggatt (legate), either signified what the persons so styled were, or were given them in or derision, like the names King, Prince, and Pope. The termination “ward" indisates a keeper, aj Dor word, door-keeper; Hayward, keeper of the town cattle ; Woodward, forest-keeper. Many Welsh names, naturalised in England are from personal traits, as Mote, great; Duff, black ; Vaughan little ; Lane, slender ; Mole, bald ; Gough, red. Surnames, now apparently meaningless, had meaning in old English and provincial dialects. Brook, for instance, signifies badger; Talbot, mastiff ; Todd, fox ; Culver, pigeon ; Henshaw, young heron ; Coke, cook.