Surname Origins

[dotty.]

Just done a quick survey of the first 3 of my sons tree , (16 surnames)) 2 are patr0nymics, 1 is a nickname, 3 are occupational and 10 are place names, (only 1 being a towm place name, the rest are natural place names, anyone ever looked at their names this way?

[Mamyalynne]

No I haven't but it sounds interesting to do so, which is the best site for this type of research.?

[dotty.]

I just did it in my head, why would you need a site?

[Old_Geezer]

I'll try to do it in my head, let me see. Mine I have no idea, that one I have no idea, that one sounds like a flower, or maybe they were really naughty in medieval times, that one I don't know, That one I don't know but is certainly Scottish, that one I don't ... mmmm .... seem to be getting a repeating pattern here :-)

[dotty.]

sorry I know whay you mean,
there are 5 types of surname, patronymics, named for the father eg John, Johnson, Roberts, etc
Place names have 2 kinds, named for a town, country or county, London, France, Lancashire,
then general place names, Wood, Ford, Clough. Then there are iccupational names, Hawkes, Smith, Cooper, then nicknames, Redhead, Broardhead, Bigfoot.
the last type is matronymic but we leave those to the scandanaivians

[Bbbananas]

I don't think my surname comes under any of those categories dotty. I think it may have french origin (the first part in particular) but not sure. Maybe it's matronymic?

[craft1948]

On my father's side a lot are bastardised Norwegian names, and my mother's side don't seem to fit into any category....

[dotty.]

they will it's a house rule

[Bbbananas]

Ok - what would you class 'Sallabanks' as?

[dotty.]

cumbrian

[craft1948]

Curtis, Bellwood and Wombell?

[Mamyalynne]

Sorry if I appeared dense there, but a fair few of mine do not seem to fit the other categories, so may indeed be Patronymic.

[Bbbananas]

Cumbrian dotty? How come? Not French then?

[LoftyLottie]

My maiden name was derived from a very famous Lord whose country seat funnily enough is very close to where I now live.

My married name is not British and is uncommon even in it's country of origin. Certainly not a trade or a profession or patronymic. Perhaps it started as a nickname!! We will never know.

[dotty.]

No I don't think so, why do you think French?

[TheOtherHalf]

We have some weird names in our tree

Easter Liddy Watson

James Golden Royal

Iset Watson

Hammish Watson


and many more which I cannot remember off the top of my head.

[dotty.]

Watts son patronymic
curtis is a nichname for someone curtious
Bell wood is a place name and Wombell is obviously an occupational name craft for a rubbish collector lol (asctually it's Wombwell in yorkshire)

[Bbbananas]

Salla - French for room, as in Salle de Bain, salle de sejour, salle a manger - maybe not then?! Where does the cumbrian connection come in?

[dotty.]

Royal is an occupational name

[merciasounds]

'Salla' is a ski-ing resort - a place advertised as 'in the middle of nowhere'', (actually It's in Finland,) and 'banks' a steep sided slope so, Sallabanks is a place name where somebody lived and was named after...!

[craft1948]

lol dotty I think the rubbish collector would be closer.