Surnames from COUNTIES in the British dominions; as, Kent, Essex, Dorset, &c. From CITIES and TOWNS; as, Winchester, Bedford. Such COMMON NAMES as Hurst Wood and Field, Den and Wick, and Cote, Croft, Worth, Cliff, Hood, Marsh, &c., have furnished surnames, or the terminations of surnames; as, Bathurst, Hartfield, Cowden, Harwood. So Beck, a brook; Bank, Barnes, Barrow, a hilly place; Bent, a rush; Bois, a wood; Bridge Briggs or Bridges; Bush, Bottom low ground; Cump, Cave, Chase = a forest; Cobb a harbour; Fell barren, stony hills; Grave, Greene, Heath, Hill, March a limit or frontier; Mead, and many others, have furnished surnames. In some cases the termination ER or MAN is attached to them; as, Towner, Weller, Pitman, Houseman. SECTION CCCCXXVI.--SURNAMES DERIVED FROM OCCUPATION. The name SMITH is a well-known example belonging to this class. The root of this word is the Saxon smitan, to smite, and was originally applied to artificers in wood as well as to those in metal, as wheelwrights, carpenters, masons, and smiters in general. Hence the frequency of the name is easily accounted for. Besides the Smiths, we have the Masons, the Carpenters, the Bakers, the Butchers, the Goldsmiths, the Thatchers, the Coopers, the Glovers, the Shermans, Shearman, the Jenners Joiners, the Tuckers Fullers, the Barkers Tanners, the Skinners, the Ropers. The termination ER generally denotes some employment, and is equivalent to the word man: Harper is harp-man; Salter is salt-man, and Miller, mill-man. These terminations, er and man, are often used interchangeably; as, Carter and Cart-man. STER is the feminine termination. Tapster is the feminine of Tapper, Brewster of Brewer, Webster of Webber (Weaver), Sangster of Sanger. Many surnames are derived from FIELD SPORTS; as, Hunter, Fisher, Fowler, Falconer; and some were derived from MILITARY PURSUITS; as, Hookman, Billman, Spearman, Bowman. · SECTION CCCCXXVII. SURNAMES DERIVED FROM OFFICE. King, Prince, Duke, Earl, Knight, Squire, Gentleman, Yeoman; Pope, Cardinal, Bishop, Prior, Dean, Parsons, Vicar, Priest, Deacon, Clerk, Chaplain, Friar, Monk, Nun, Proctor, Sexton. Besides these, the following also have lent their designations as the names of families: Steward, Constable, Marshal, Chancellor, Chamberlain, Sheriff, Sergeant, Mayor, Warden, Burgess, Porter, Champion, Beadle, Page, Reeve, Ranger, Bailey, Bailif, Parker, Forester, Foster, a nourisher. SECTION CCCCXXVIII-SURNAMES DERIVED FROM PERSONAL OR MENTAL QUALITIES. From this obvious source were derived such names as Black or Blackman, Brown, White, Rufus, Russell (red), Pink, Redman, Tawny, Whitesides, Houre, Gray, Whitehead, Long, Short, Longfellow, Small, Strong, Swift, Speed, Lightfoot, Heavyside. Some are of Celtic origin; as, Roy (red), Duff, Dove, Grimm (strong), Gough (red). Besides these there are the Hardys, the Cowards, the Marks, the Moodys, the Wilds, the Sobers, the Blythes, the Godmans, the Wisemans, the Thankfuls, the Blunts, the Sweets, the Trueloves, the Doolittles, the Toogoods. SECTION CCCCXXIX.-SURNAMES DERIVED FROM CHRISTIAN NAMES. From ADAM are derived Adams, Adamson, Addison, Addiscot. From ALEXANDER are derived Sanders, Sanderson, Allix, Alley. From DENNIS, Dennison, Jennison. From HENRY, Henrison, Harry, Harris, Harrison, Hal, Halket, Hawes, Halse, Hawkins, Herries. From JOHN, Johns, Jones, Johnson, Jonson, Jennings, Jenks, Jenkins, Jenkinson, Jack, Jackson, Hanson, Jockins. A great number of surnames are, in like manner, derived from Christian names. SECTION COCCXXX.--SURNAMES FROM NATURAL OBJECTS. From HEAVENLY BODIES; as, Sun, Moon, Slar. From QUADRUPEDS; as, Buck, Palfrey, Badger, Kidd, Bull, Colt, Puss, &c. From BIRDS; as, Bird, Bullfinch, Coote, Drake, Daw, Finch, Jay, Parrot, Nightingale. From FISHES; as, Chubb, Dolphin, Herring, Pike, Fisk Fish, Whiting, &c. From VEGETABLES; as Myrtle, Holly, Gage, Rose, Flower, Sage, Pease, Primrose, Plum, Beet. From the MINERAL KINGDOM; as, Clay, Gold, Stone, Jewel, Flint, Diamond. From ARMOUR; as, Shield, Gun, Dart. SECTION CCCCXXXI.—SURNAMES FROM THE SOCIAL RELATIONS, ETC. Of this we have Brothers, Cousins, Husband, Child, Bachelor, Kinsman, Master, Lover, Guest, Prentice. So we have Rich, Poor, Bond, Freeman. SURNAMES FROM DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE BODY; as, Head, Cheek, Beard, Neck, Shanks. From the BODY of ANIMALS; as, Maw, Horn, Wing, Crowfoot. From COINS; as, Penny, Twopenny, Pound. From the WEATHER; as, Frost, Snow, Thunder, Mist, Dew. From SPORTS; as, Bowles, Ball, Dice, Play. From VESSELS; as, Ship, Cutter, Deck, Helm. From PACES; as, Trot, Gallop. From MEASURES; as, Gill, Gallon, Peck. From PREDILECTIONS; as, Loveday, Loveland. From NUMBERS; as, Six, Ten, Forty. From DISEASES; as, Cramp, Akinside, Headache. SECTION CCCOXXXII.-NAMES DERIVED FROM THE VIRTUES, ETC. Peace, Joy, Hope, Love, Patience. Sometimes a whole sentence was adopted as a name; as, Faint-not Hewett, Make-peace Heaton, Kill-sin Pimple, Be-faithful Joiner, Hope-fear Rending, Stand-faston-high Stringer, Fly-debate Roberts, Be-steadfast Ellyard, Be-courteous Cole, The-peace-of-God Knight, Fight-the-good-fight-of-faith White, Sweet Finelove. SECTION CCCCXXXIII. NAMES DERIVED FROM MISCELLANEOUS SOURCES. Surnames originally SOBRIQUETS; as, Steptoe, Golightly, Rushout, Hearsay, Doolittle, Gotobed. From CONTEMPT; as, Leatherhead, Shufflebottom, Crookshanks, Badman, Pudding. Names that have provoked PUNS; as, Silver, Sellsome, Churchyard, Going, Gone, Ketchum, Cheetum, Fell, Cannon, Skin, Bone. Besides these, there are such words as Bucktooth, Cutlove, Popkiss, Bowskill. From the Latin; as, Benedict, blessed. From the Greek; as, Alexander, defending men. From the Hebrew, as David, beloved; Isaac, laughter. SECTION CCCCXXXIV.--VERSATILITY OF PROPER NAMES. By a common usage of nations, proper names are transferred, instead of being translated, from one language into another. In this transfer, however, the name often suffers some violence in order to adapt itself to the organs and taste of a new people, and thus becomes quite changed in its external form. This change or corruption sometimes appears in the accentuation. Of this we have a fine example in the name Napoleon, which has become so celebrated. This name contains four vowels and as many syllables, each of which has the accent in some of the nations which have occasion to use this word. Thus we have in French and Bohemian Nápoleon, with the accent on the first syllable; in German, Dutch, English, Danish, and Swedish, Napóleon, with the accent on the second syllable; in modern Greek, Polish, Russian, and Servian, Napoléon, with the accent on the third syllable; and in Italian, Spanish, and Portuguese, Napoleón, with the accent on the fourth or final syllable. The accentuation in each case indicates the habits and taste of the people. This change sometimes occurs in the pronunciation, while the writing or orthography remains the same. Of this, Cicero, the name of the illustrious Roman orator, is a good example. It is pronounced variously, according to the sound given to c before e and i in the modern languages of Europe. Thus Cicero is pronounced Kikero in ancient Latin and Greek, Tshitshero in Italian, Tsitsero in German, and Sisero in English. This change is sometimes seen both in the orthography and in the pronunciation. This is exemplified in the Hebrew name John, which has descended through the Greek to the modern languages of Europe. This name is written, in Hebrew, Yohannan; in Syriac, Yuhanon; in Nestorian Syriac, Yohanna; in Armenian, Hohannes; in Greek, Joannes; in Latin, Johannes; in Italian, Giovanni; in Spanish, Juan; in French, Jean; in German, Johann; in English, John; in Russian, Ivan; and in Welsh, Evan and Owen. Many of these forms would hardly be recognised except on reflection. SECTION CCCCXXXV.-PREFIXES AND SUFFIXES ΤΟ PROPER NAMES OF AB, at the beginning of the names of places, is frequently derived, by a contraction, from abbot, and denotes that a monastery was once there, or, at least, that the place belonged to some abbey; as, Abington the town belonging to the abbacy; Abingdon Abbey HILL. = Ac, AK, came from the Saxon ac or oak; as, Acton, a town abounding in oaks. ATTLE, ADLE, came from the Saxon ethel, signifying noble; as, ATTLEborough, or Noble Town. BOROUGH, BURGH, BURY, comes from burg, byrig, a town or city; as, PeterBOROUGH, the Town of St. Peter. BOTTOM, a valley or low ground, from the Anglo-Saxon botm. In Sussex, it is said that dale and valley are rarely used; bottom is substituted. Hence the names RamsBOTTOM, LongBOTTOM. BOURNE, BORN, or BURN, implies a stream or rivulet forming a boundary; as TyBURN, HolBURN, SelBOURNE. BRAD, at the beginning of words, signifies broad, from the Saxon brad; as, BRAD ford Broadford. BYE, BY, Danish, town, village, a habitation; as, GrimsBY. CARN or CAIRN, Celtic, a Druidical heap of stones. CASTER, CHESTER, CESTER, from the Latin castra, a camp; as, Casford Town upon the Ford. CHIP or CHEAP, from the Saxon cypan, to buy or sell, indicates a market-town; as, CHIPрenham, or CHEAPside. CLIFT or CLIVE signifies a cliff, a steep place, or rock; as, CLIFTON. COMP at the beginning of words, and Comв at the ending, denotes the lower situation of a place or a valley, from the Celtic kum; as, Compton. CROSS has reference to the practice of placing a cross at the meeting of different ways to indicate the proper road. Thus, at Charing CROSS, Waltham CROSS, there must have been a cross formerly. The term is also applied to the places where roads cross each other. DALE, a valley; as, Ken-DAL, a corruption of Kent-DALE. DEAR, BY, the habitation or place of deer DEN indicates a valley; as, SenterDEN. = DerBY. DON, DUN, Down, Anglo-Saxon denu, signifies a hill gently sloping; as, Dunkirk, South Down. FLEET, Anglo-Saxon fleot, is an inlet for water; as, WainFLEET. FORD, the passage of a river; as, OXFORD, HartFORD. HAM, at the termination to the names of places, signifies house, a habitation or home, in the southern counties pronounced hame. The original form still remains in HAMlet, and in DedHAM, SouthHAMton South-home-town. HAMtonshire was abbreviated to HAMpshire. = HURST, from the Saxon hyrst, signifies a wood; as, PenHURST. ING, a meadow or field; as, ReadING, BirmINGham. LEY, LEIGH, comes from the Saxon leag, a pasture field; as, OakLEY, ChudLEIGH. Low, from the Saxon hlow, a hill; as, HoundsLow. MARSH, MAS, from the Saxon mersc, a marsh; as, MARSHfield, MAsbrough. NESS, from the Anglo-Saxon næse, nose, signifies a place at or near a promontory; as, HolderNESS. OVER denotes the situation over a hill or a river; as, Wendover. PEN, from the Celtic, the top of a hill. RIC, RIDGE, seem to denote a range of hills on the top of a hill; as, WoldRIDGE. STEAD, Anglo-Saxon slide, a place, a station; as, HomeSTEAD. STOWE, from Anglo-Saxon stowe, a place; as, GodsTOWE, a place dedicated to God. THORPE, from Anglo-Saxon thorpe, a village; as, BishopsтHORPE. TUN, TON, DON, Anglo-Saxon dun, a hill, a town; as, HuntingTON. WEOLD, WOLD, is a wild or wood; as, CoteswOLD, famous for its sheep and pasture ground. WORTH, Anglo-Saxon weorth, a village or street; as, KillingswORTH. WICK, WICH, Danish vig, Dutch wyk, a bay or creek formed by a curve in a river, a retreat or station; as, GreenwICK or WICH, the green village; Sandwich, sand village. SECTION CCCCXXXVI. NAMES OF THE MONTHS. The names of the months are of Roman origin; thus: : JANUARY, Januarius is from Janus. He was the sun-god, or god of the year of the early inhabitants of Italy. In the ancient language (Anglo-Saxon) it was called Wulfemona, Wolf-month, because in that month the wolves were most mischievous. FEBRUARY, Februarius, is from Februa, which were purifications performed this month. In the ancient language it was called Sprout-kele, Spring-wort, because the worts then began to sprout. MARCH, Martius, is from Mars, the supposed father of Romulus. In the ancient language it was called Lenct-mona, the Lengthening month, because the days then begin to exceed the nights in length. APRIL, Aprilis, from the verb aperio, is the month in which trees and flowers open their buds. In the ancient language it was called Oorten-monao, because Easter fell in April. MAY, Maius, is from Maia, the mother of Mercury. In the ancient language it was called Tri-milei three milkings, because the cows were then milked three times a day. JUNE, Junius, is from Juno. In the ancient language it was called Mede-monað, Meadow-month, because the cattle were then turned out to feed in the meadows. JULY, Julius, is from Julius Cæsar. In the ancient language it was called Hey-monað, Hay-month. AUGUST, Augustus, is from Augustus Cæsar. In the ancient language it was called Arnmona, Barn-month, because the barns were then filled. SEPTEMBER, September, is the seventh month. In the ancient language it was called Gerst-mona, Grist-month, because the new corn was then carried to mill." OCTOBER, October, the eighth month. In the ancient language it was called Wynmona, Wine-month, because the grapes were then pressed to make wine. NOVEMBER, November, the ninth month. In the ancient language it was called Wyndemonað, Windy-month, because high winds prevailed that month. DECEMBER, December, the tenth month. In the ancient language it was called Wyntermonað, Winter-month, because the cold was then growing intense. The Romans are said originally to have had but ten months, commencing with March. SECTION CCCCXXXVII.-NAMES OF THE DAYS OF THE WEEK. The names of the days of the week are derived from the gods worshipped by the northern nations of Europe. Out of the seven days of the week, three of them correspond, in the origin of their names, with the Roman Calendar. = = Tuisco's day. SUNDAY (dies Solis) was the day sacred to the Sun = Woden's day. god Seater Seater's day. |