The examiner. [volume] (Louisville, Ky.) 1847-1849, 1849-11-10


were taking an evening walk, an owl cross
ed their path, on which Mr.. Fuller said to
his companion, "Pray, sir, is thai bird a
jay7" "No sir, was the reply. sits not like
a jay-.its fuller in the eyes, and fuller in
the head, and fuller all over
at is related in Collins Peerage, that a
certain unmarried lady once dreamed Of
finding a nest containing seven young
fnchss, which in course Of time was real
lied by her becoming the wife Of MIR.
Finch, and mother Of seven children
Flom one Of these nestlings is descended
the present earl Of Winchelsea, who still
retains the surname OF Finch.
at is an inquiry not devoid OF some in
terest: What would the annals of mankind
and the records Of biography be, if people
had never borne proper namesl "Sine
nomine homo non est.
In tie first ages OF the world, siRgle
name was sufficient for each individual
"nomen olim aq,ld omnes tere gentes sim
pier and that name was generally in
vented for the person, in allusion to the Cir
cumstsnces attending his birth. or 10 some
personal quality he possessed, or which bis
parents Goudly hoped he might in future
possess.
The Greeks commonly named their In
iants on the tenth day after birth, Oh which
occasion, hospi,able entertainment was
given by the parents to their friends, and
sacrifices were offered to the gods. Thus,
in the birds Of Arislophanes, we read,
"On the tenth day I offered sacrifice,
And as child's her name imposed"
or sur names, Du Cange says, they
were at first written, not in a direct line
after the Christian name, but above it, be-
tween the lines, and hence they were called
in Latin, supraRomina, in Italian, supra
nome, and in French, strnoms--"over
Names" Those who contend for the non.
identity Of the two words, assert that, al.
though every sir-name is surname, every
surname is not a sir-name-a question
which | shall not tarry to discuss.
The Highlanders of Scotland employed
the sr.name with Mac, and hence our
Macdonalds, and MISUNDERSTANDING re-
spectively, the son OF Donald and OF Ar.
thur. The Irish had the practice probably
derived from the patriarchal sges,) of pre-
fixing Oy or o, signifying grandson-as
O'Hara, O'Neale-a form still retained in
many Hibernian surnames.
1t is related in the Encyclopedias. Per.
thensis, that an antiquated Scottish dame
used to make it matter Of boasting, tina.
she had trod the worlds stage long enough
to possess one hundred Dyes.
Many of the Irish also use Mac. Ac.
cording to the following distich, the titles
Mac and o. are not merely what the logi
clans call accidents, but altogether essential
to the very being and substance Of an Irish.
man:
Per Mac at que o, tn veros cognoscis Hlbernos
His duobus demptia, nullus Hibernus adest.
Which has been translated.
"By Mao and o,
You'll always know
True lrishmen, they say,
For if they lack
Both o. and Mac,
No InshmeE are they"
The old Normans prehxed to their names
the word "Fitz," a corruption OF Fills, and
that derived from the Latin Filius, as Fitz.
Hamon, Fitz- Gilbert. The peasantry OF
Russia, wins are some centuries behind the
same class in other countries, affix the ter.
"Witz," (Which seems to have
some affinity to the Norman Fiz,) to their
names; thus, Peter Paulowitz, for Peter.
the son Of Paul. The Poles employ Skv
in the same sense, as James Petrowsky.
James, the son OF Peter.
Until comparatively recent period. no
adjunct was used in Wales. be-
yond ap or son, as David-ap- Howell, Evan.
ap. Rhys, Griffith-ap- Roger, John.ap. Rich.
ard, now very naturally corrupted into
Powell, Price, Prodger, and Prkchard. ItI
was not usual, even but century back, to
near of such combinations as Eyan.ap.
irfith-sp- David-ap-J enkin. and so ON TO
he seventh OF eighth generation, so tha, an |
Individual carried his pedigree in his name. |
The following curious description of a |
Welshman occurs Is Henry s: "Morgane |
Phillip alias dicto MOrgano vap- David vap, |
Philip"
The church Of Langollen, in Wales, is
aid to be dedicated TO st. Collen-sp. G wyn.
lawg APP lyndawg-ap . Courda-ap. Carsdoc-
neutrality-suspicious. Meiim-ap. Einon. Yrth
p- Cunedda- Wledig, name that casts tha,
# the Dutchman, ACKNOWLEDGMENT
nkadraehdern, into the shade.
To burlesque this ridiculous species Of
some seventeenth
Vag described cheese as being
adams own cousin-german by its birth.
Ip- Curds-ap- Milk-ap- Cow-ap- Grass-ap- Earth"
An Enelishman. riding one dark night
mong the mountains, heard cry of dis
ress. proceeding apparently from man
Who had fallen into ravine near the high.
way, and on listening more attentively,
card the words, "Help, master, help" in
voice truly Cambrian. "Help! what
Who are you?" inquired the traveller.-l
Jenkin-ap. Grifith-ap- Robin-ap- William
p Rees-ap-Evan." was the response i
Lazy fellows, that ye be-" reioined the
inglishman, setting spurs to his horse, "to
e rolling in that hole, half dozen Of We,
7hy, in the name Of common sense, don't
e help one another QUIT"
FAsTIDIoUsNEss.--Fastidiousnes is a
readful weapon Of domestic tyranny
lany household can tell the grinding
over of sel6shness which DISCUSSES itself
nder the form of delicacy OF tastes and
ahitS Manu- arc the to-. ,f ,.o.o,.~