The Red Cloud chief., 1877-08-16
Names.

TheIe might be much amusement in
tracing the origin Of family names.
Long agC-say about six or seven hun
dred years since-there were 40 family
names at all. People had Christian
names and nothing more, and, of course,
there was often considerable difficulty
in distinguishing individuals. such at
present is The case in Turkey, where the
, old Eastern practice of using but a
single name continues Ia be followed.
Surnames were not introduced into
England until after the Conquest. The
fashion OF using two names came 10 us
from France, but for "A time was con-
fined TO families of distinction, ana eX-
tended slowly over the country. one
thing is said 10 have promoted It's use
young ladies Of aspiring tastes declined
to marry gentlemen who had only a
Christian name, such rs John or
Thomas. for they would necessarily
have still 10 be called by their OWL
name, Mary, Elizabeth, or whatever II
was. Spinsters accordingly thought 1t
TO be a grand thing to form an alliance
with a person possessing the dlStinc-
ton of a family name, by which they
should ever after be called.
CuriOusly enough, 50 difficult IS 1t 10
alter old usages, that until very lately
surnameS were scarcely used among
the humber classes OF people III some
parts of great Britain remote from cen
tiers of civilization. la these places d
creditor would enter the name of ms
debtor i'm his books as John the son OF
Thomas, Just as Won see genealogics III
the Old Testament. Only now, iroli
improved communication with theouteI
world, have practices Of this KIND goie
out of use. We "A easily understand
how the name ending in son. as John
son. Thomson, Manson (aDbreViatlon 81
Magnussen), originated; anditlsequaliS
easy to conjecture how names IRON
+ professions, such rs Smith, Miller ol
Cooper, came into existence. 1t Is
equally ohviousth that many family name:
=, are derived from the nature Of tie com
p!exion of individuals, rs Black, Brown
and White.
&. at first sight there IS a mystery IA
. regards the different ways iii Whici
, certain words are spelled. Smith i
I sometimes written Smyth, and IN SON
! instances Brown has an e at the enc
= of if. We see the name Reid spelled "a
, Reade, Reed and Rede. We see Long
, and Lang. ard LANG. all variations o
= one name. The same thing can he sai'
f of Strong, Strang. and Strange; o
Little and Liddle; of Home and Hume
of Chambers and Chalmers, and 50 Oh
p with a host of surnameS in daily use
y The mystery which hangs over varlou
, SD, llings is cleared up on a conSlier
alton of the indifferent scholarship
which prevailed until ever the mlddi
, of the eighteenth century. Names II
old legal documents and in the mscriI
tons on the blank leaves of fainli
O Bibles, are written III all sorts of way'
A man seldom writes his name twlc
h i'm succession the same way. lac
f member of a family followed the spell
G ing suggested by his own fancy, an
added TO or altered letters m his nam
4 with perfect Indifference. Eccentric
-, ties of this kind are still far from III
r. common in the signatures of impe,
,s fectly educated persons. There Is, l
fact. a constant growth of new name
springing from careleSsneSs though ais
% in some cases, from a ans Of REIN
I mpnt