A History of British Surnames / Edition 1

by Richard Mckinley

Overview

Aiming to avoid technical terminology, Richard McKinley provides an introduction to the history of hereditary surnames in Britain from their first appearance to the present day. Devoting a chapter to each of the main categories of name, he enables readers to set the facts they discover about their own ancestry, family history and surnames into the context of general surname development. The author deals with those names that originate in England, Wales and Scotland; and since these tend to have their own distinct histories, he discusses developments in each of the three countries separately, wherever appropriate. The book uses the study of surnames to illuminate social history and draws attention to the complex patterns of population mobility that have always characterized British Society. It also describes regional and class differences in surnames, some features of which survive to our own time.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781138836181
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	02/09/2015
Series:	Approaches to Local History
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	240
Product dimensions:	5.44(w) x 8.50(h) x (d)

Table of Contents

Editorial preface vii

Introduction 1

Definition of terms 9

Surnames originating outside Britain 11

Regional differences in the character of surnames 20

Chapter 1 The evolution of hereditary surnames 25

Beginnings of hereditary surnames in England 25

Hereditary surnames of townspeople 35

Hereditary names of small free tenants 36

Hereditary surnames of serfs 37

Evolution of surnames in Wales 39

Development of surnames in Scotland 44

Surnames used by married women 47

Chapter 2 Locative surnames 51

Ramification of locative surnames 60

Dispersal of some locative names 66

Chapter 3 Topographical surnames 72

Surnames such as Bridger or Bridgman 80

Presence of final '-s' in topographical surnames 85

Attachment of prepositions to topographical surnames 87

Chapter 4 Surnames derived from personal names 90

Surnames derived from personal names without any suffix or prefix 97

Surnames from personal names with the ending '-son' 110

Surnames formed from a personal names with the addition of a possessive '-s' 118

Surnames formed from a personal name with the prefix 'Mac-' 121

Surnames prefixed by 'Ap' or 'Ab' 124

Surnames prefixed by 'Fitz-' 126

Metronymics 127

Chapter 5 Occupational surnames 131

Surnames from high lay or ecclesiastical offices 135

Surnames from terms for free or unfree status 138

Surnames such as Brewster, Webster, etc 140

Occupational surnames from Latin words 141

Regional distribution of occupational surnames 143

Surnames denoting a relationship of service 147

Welsh and Scots occupational surnames 150

Chapter 6 Surnames derived from nicknames 156

Interpretation of surnames from nicknames 162

Surnames of relationship 170

Chapter 7 Some general themes in the history of surnames 177

Surnames as a guide to shared relationships 177

Ramification of surnames 187

Migration of surnames 189

Chapter 8 Surnames and local history 194

Surnames as evidence for migration 196

Surnames and the social structure of communities 199

Value of topographical and occuptional surnames 203

Surnames and local dialects 205

Chapter 9 Advice on further reading 207

Dictionaries of surnames 207

General works on surnames 210

Index 213