Surnames as a Science Part 28

Edmund, also with a Tuica found in Tuicanham, now Twickenham. I take it to be from the same root as "twig," viz. A.S. _tweg_, two, and to have perhaps the meaning of "twin." (Names of a similar kind may be Twine, with its patronymic Twining, and also Twiss, corresponding with an O.G.

Zuiso, A.S. _twis_, twin.) Sprigg I cla.s.s along with Sprague, Sprack, and Spark, corresponding with a Spraga in the _Lib. Vit._, as from O.N.

_sprackr_, Prov. Eng. _spragg_, _sprack_, smart, active. We have also, as a diminutive, Spracklin, corresponding with a Spraclingus in the _Lib. Vit._, and we have Spreckley, probably the same name as that of Sprakaleg, brother of Sweyn, king of Denmark, from O.N. _spraeklegr_, sprightly.

_Names apparently from Complexion or Colour of Hair._

Such names as Black, White, Brown, have been no doubt in many, probably in most cases, original surnames. Nevertheless they are also ancient baptismal names, and it is not by any means certain that these are from the same origin as the surnames.

BLACK, BLACKER, BLAKE, BLANK, BLANCHARD, WHITE, BROWN, DUNN, GRAY, GREGG, CRAIG, MURCH, MURCHIE, SMIRKE.

The Blacingas were among the early settlers. Blecca was the name of a governor of Lincoln, A.D. 627; Blaca is an early name in the _Liber Vitae_, and Blac is a name in _Domesday_. I am inclined to take Black, along with Blake, to be (of course as an ancient name) the same word as _blic_, found in some Old German names, and to find the sense concerned in A.S. blican, to shine (which indeed is the root of _black_), hence to give it, like Bright, the sense of "ill.u.s.trious." Hence I take our Blacker and the French Blacher to be the same as an O.G. Blicker (_hari_, warrior)--the ancient family of Blacker, I believe, trace their origin to Nancy. I further take Blank and Blanchard (_hard_, fortis) to be a nasalised form of the above, and to have the same meaning. The stem will be found in more detail p. 46.

I take White, so far as it may be of ancient origin, not to be from colour; in some cases it may be from _wid_, wood, and perhaps in others from _wit_, wisdom. In Anglo-Saxon names it is spelt _wiht_, as if from _wiht_, man--Cf. O.G. Witgar, A.S. Wihtgar, O.G. Witleg, A.S. Wihtlaeg, O.G. Widrad, A.S. Wihtraed, though, as I take it, it is the same word common to the Teutonic system.

The Brownings (Bruningas) were also among the early settlers, and Brun frequently occurs in after Anglo-Saxon times; among others there is a Brun bydel, "Brown the beadle," in a charter of manumission. Bruno also occurs as an Old German name, and Bruni was not an uncommon name among the Northmen. I am rather disposed to question the derivation from brown, _fuscus_, and as in the case of Black, to take the sense contained in the root, which seems to be that of burning or brightness.

One of the Northmen, called Bruni, was surnamed "the white," so that in his case, at any rate, the name was not derived from complexion. Dunn is another name that is found among the early settlers, and also in after Anglo-Saxon times. It seems to me to be at least as probably from O.N.

_duna_, thunder, as from _dun_, fuscus.

The Graegingas (A.S. _graeeg_, grey) are also found in the list of early settlers, though the name does not seem to figure much in after Anglo-Saxon times. There are Old German names Grao and Grawo, and various compounds. The root-meaning seems to contain the sense of "horror," which may be that which is present in names, the idea being of course that of one who is a terror to others. As well as Gray, we have Gregg, and perhaps as another form Craig,[58] and the Germans have Grau.

The Myrcingas among the early settlers may perhaps be represented in our Murch and Murchie (whence Murchison), possibly also in S(mirke). Whether the name is from A.S. _mirc_, dark, mirk, may be uncertain; Professor Skeat thinks of _marc_, limes, for the Myrcingas, who are probably the same as the Myrgingas of the "Traveller's Song."

_Names apparently from Scriptural Personages._

While names taken from the eminent characters of Scripture have, ever since the advent of Christianity, been in favour for the names of men, there are among our surnames some names which we must reasonably suppose are to be otherwise explained.

PHAROAH, HEROD, ESAU, CAIN, JAEL, POTIPHAR PUDDIFER (ABLARD).

Of the above, Pharaoh is only a misleading spelling of an O.G. name Faro, perhaps come to us through the Normans. And Esau is a similar perversion of another O.G. name Eso, probably from _as_ or _os_, semi-deus. Cain is, along with Gain, from the name Gagin, Cagen, p. 10, probably signifying victory. Herod is, no doubt, the same as an A.S.

Herrid in a charter of Wihtraed, from, as supposed, A.S. _herad_, princ.i.p.atus, found also in some Old German names. Jael I take to be most probably a softened form of Gale, from a stem referred to A.S. _galan_, to sing. Potiphar, along with Puddifer, a French Potefer, and perhaps a Low German Botefur,[59] I take to represent an ancient name not turned up, from _bod_, _bud_, or _pot_, envoy or messenger, and _faran_, to travel, found as an ending in some Old German names. Abel is a name which, as frequently used for a Christian name, might also be found in surnames. But there is a Teutonic word _abal_, signifying strength, which may be more probably that which is found in the French Abeillard, with which we have a name Ablard to correspond.

_Names apparently Descriptive of Moral Characteristics._

There are a number of names which, if they had been found as Christian names, might have been supposed to be of Puritan origin, but which as surnames must be otherwise accounted for.

GOODHEART, STONEHEART, G.o.dWARD, LOVEG.o.d, LOVEGOOD, LOVEMAN, MANLOVE, GOODLIFFE, FULLALOVE, G.o.dLIMAN, GOODENOUGH, THOROUGHGOOD, HUMBLE, SAINT, BADMAN, PAGAN, BIGOT, G.o.dDAM, SWEARS, SWEARING, SCAMP.

Of the above, Goodheart and Stoneheart are compounds of _hart_, hard, pp. 53, 63. So also G.o.dward LoveG.o.d, Lovegood, Loveman, Manlove, Goodliffe, and Fullalove will be found in their places as ancient compounds in Chap. III. G.o.dliman I take to be a corruption of an O.G.

G.o.dalmand (the _l_ being introduced in accordance with a principle referred to at p. 114) Goodenough is referred to at p. 119, and Thoroughgood at p. 120. Humble I take to be the same name as the German Humboldt, from an O.G. Hunbald, the ending _bald_ often in our names becoming _ble_. Saint I take to be the same as Sant, _sand_ or _sant_, verus, the stem on which is formed Sander in the list of early settlers.

Of the names apparently of an opposite character, Badman, corresponding with a Badumon in the _Liber Vitae_, is a compound of _bad_, war. G.o.ddam stands for G.o.dhelm as William for Willihelm. Swears and Swearing are explained, p. 160. Scamp corresponds with an O.G. Scemphio, derived by Foerstemann from O.H.G. _scimph_, jocus. This may possibly be the older sense of the word, and Scamp may have been nothing worse than a wag.

Pagan, with its contracted form Paine, I have referred to p. 118. Bigot, along with Pigot, Pickett, and probably Beckett, and a Pigota and Picotus in the _Liber Vitae_, may be the same as an A.S. Picced, p. 101, which I take to represent the form Pichad or Bighad, from the stem _big_, with _had_, war. There is, however, another explanation suggested by our name Bidgood. This name, for which the ancient equivalent has not turned up, seems to be from _bad_, war, and might have been BidG.o.d (for _G.o.d_ and _good_ constantly interchange), which would readily contract into BiG.o.d or Bigot.

_Names apparently from Nationalities._

While we have a number of names derived from nations or races in accordance with the Teutonic system, there are some others which might seem more obviously than most others to be from such an origin, and yet which must I think be referred to some other source. Three of these, England, Scotland, and Ireland, I have already referred to at p. 9.

ENGLISH, INGLIS, ROMAN, NORMAN, GENESE, TURK, SPAIN.

English I take to be a phonetic corruption of Inglis, which seems to be the same as an Ingliseus in the _Pol. Irm._, and which I rather suppose to be a transposition of an Anglo-Saxon Ingils, for Ingisil, from the stem _ing_, p. 56. Roman, I doubt not, is contracted from Rodman, p. 61, as Robert is from Rodbert, and Roland from Rodland. I introduce Norman here as not being, in my view, from "Norman" as we generally understand the term, but as representing more probably the word in its original sense of "Northman." Nordman was a Scandinavian name, and hence it is I think that we have the name, which seems to occur more especially in Scotland and the Danish districts of England. Genese I take to be most probably from the old Frankish name Genesius, perhaps from a stem _gan_, p. 52, with the ending in _es_, p. 33. Turk corresponds with an A.S.

Turca, p. 111, which again is probably the same as a Gothic Turicus of the fifth century, a diminutive from the stem _dur_ or _tur_ found among the early settlers, and of uncertain meaning. Spain I take to be from the A.S. _spanan_, allicere, found in some ancient names, and from which I take to be our name Spenlove, (_leof_, dear) with the corruption, Spendlove. The name Spegen, corresponding with our Spain, occurs in the _Liber Vitae_ more than once--Is its aspirated form due to the Northumbrian dialect?

Of the names which are truly derived from nationality I will here only refer to one as an ill.u.s.tration of successive forms built one upon the other in accordance with the principle referred to in treating of the ending _en_, p. 27.

BOY, BYE, PYE, BOYER, BYARD, BOYMAN, PYMAN, BEYERMAN, BYRON.

There are three forms, the first representing the form _boi_, as found in the name of the Boii, who gave the name to Boioaria or Bavaria, the second representing the extended form found in German _Baviar_, the third the further extended form as found in _Bavarian_.

SIMPLE FORM BOI.

O.G. Boio, Beio, Peio, ninth century. A.S. Boia (in a charter of c.n.u.t).

Eng. Boy, Bye, Pye. Germ. Boye French, Boy, Boye, Poy, Poye.

_Compounds._

(_Hard_, fortis), Eng. Byard--French Boyard, Poyart--Italian Boiardo.

(_Man_, vir), Eng. Boyman, Pyman.

EXTENDED FORM BOYER.

O.G. Baior, Peior, ninth century. English, Boyer, Byer. French, Boyer, Boyreau, Poyer.

_Compound._

(_Man_, vir), English Beyerman.

FURTHER EXTENDED FORM--BAVARIAN.

O.G. Beiarin, eighth century. English Byron. French Boiron, Boyron.

_Names apparently from abbreviated Christian names of men._

As I began this chapter with names apparently from women, such as Moll, Betty, Pegge, so now I propose to conclude it with names of a similar kind derived apparently from men.

BILL, BILLY, BILLOW, WILL, w.i.l.l.y, WILLOEE, WILKE, WILKIE, WILKIN, WILLIS, WILLING, d.i.c.k, d.i.c.kLE, TICKLE, d.i.c.kEN, BENN, BENNEY, BENNOCH, BENNELL, TOM, TOMB, TOOMEY, TOMEY, DUME, DUMMELOW, DUMBELL, TOMMELL, TOMLIN, DUMLIN, DUMPLIN, HARRY, JACK, JAGO, JACKLIN, BOBY, BOFFEY, BUBB, BOBBIN.