New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1881-05-22
FACTS OF FAMILY NOMENCLATURE.
Ft,om he Geniieu,nn.s lfnonuns.


Passing on to the materials out of which our sur
names have been made must set IN the first place
the names OF towns, villages and estates. Under
the feual system landed possessions naturally gave
names to their owners, while at markets and other
public meeting places persons bearing the same
baptismal names were often distinguished by the
names of the parishes or hamlets in which they
lived; or again, migrants from country to town, or
from city to city. associated by new neighhors with
the places they had travelled from, came TO be called
by the names Of those places.
With cognomens drawn from names of places are
to he ranked those Grated by the situations or cir
cumstances Of dwellings, The jutting cliff, the airy
heath the shetering oak nsh or elm, the " brook
that babbed by" the wayside crucifix, the rustic
grange, ford, stile; all these and many other
kindred objects lent their nameS-varied in q hun
dred ways as their special characteristics differed
to the inhabitants OF houses placed near amidst
them; and like others, these names became heredi-
tary: The Atrells the BROKERS, the Bygrores, tho
Combses, the Greene the MoOrts the Ndshes the Red
chtcs, the Ruda,ans, and many Others among to-
day owe their family denominations 10 the source
we refer 10.
Trades, occupations and Offices have, as everyone
knows given family names Ia argr numbers. The
familiar Smith Is the most prominent example of the
trade-namcs. The Rcgstrar-Gencral has shown by
his figures that it is what il would bc expected to be-
the common"st surname in England and Wales: and
Idy0r. kindred cogn0nen stands fourth III point
of frequency. The thatcher who sheltered
fathers from the storm the Aeshcr who fed them;
the crOwtcr who hddlcd for their emf rta!nment;
the Shower who covered them IN their last earthly
resting -plac.-cach has bcqHcathcd the name that
his ealing gave him TO descendants who
discloS ThIcht1Ggs. Fichcrs Cr0UthIrs and SOrtt
Some surlaiS Of the occupation class, rs Co0ks0a,
Hini'cH, Sharardsor and UriChtson, indicate that
their first bearers distinguished, not by their
trades Callings. but b. those Of their hers.
Baptismal or personal names constitute third
great fund from which the ncccSsitia> Of family
nomenclature have been supplied They have be-
come slTnalucs, not only in their complete forms,
but III the many familiar shapes which usa-e may
have assigned tO thcn-asthe m0nOSyllIbir appclla-
tivrs once current i'll the Workshop on the farm.
am ds the ahcCtOnatc GlmmUtlVrs that found favor
IN the domestic circle. Thus with the everyday
Rckdrd Prom the name proper. 81 4 careful stu
dent OF parish registers. and an Interesting ritter
surname "wc ct RchardS aud RiChdrdsou, Rioks aud
Htr EieL.,a and EinoH or Esoa, EtcGGrds and Rick
Dicks or Iir. bicksOn Di<On, Dickens Uicoons.
and Dbk.asoh or DicooasoR. From litghin,
ron, HicfcoA and Hifch,,U." Nos. sIruauic- of the
ia lily now under constipation add to the iarsonsl
naInc on which thry are ba~d either the ~ ssiye
g on the more explicit son, theS' s.ing the
Saxon Ya.ruyia.c forms, as the pr,GAos F.tL" and
" Al or " Ap from Alab>Onl arr respective. y the
Norman and Welsh. But souc are devoid of any such
explanatory qualifications There ar, ioT example.
ancient N.@l"-Slxon names now existing as sur
name. ia , II original -haps. OF these il Is
cctusrd thar in po-t-Nounan day they wcgc revived
10y pcr-on~ of Ango-SaNOn origin. and adopted by
them family suruan,s IN dricrrnce to ancestral
memories. Oh the first tIdnSnIttors of patrunynllo
surname, in General II may IL. safely assumes, that
they were the sfdy-okoRcs OF their famllcsihc do
me>tic and unaulltlou, ones who were content TO
tread quietly in th,r fathers footsteps. While the
cnt,IpTi,inR brother travelled to distance. and az
quircd II Surname. pc hap> from the Remote town or
shire of lis birth with Inch new associates Idcnlled
him: while the bIutAcT Of strong predictions
seized his tavoritc occupation AMI rNtrtctcd from
il his ~ ,iuCu.,ng appD llat'On-ir asst >iUguinc,
least original of the three. hc'0ok himself calmly to
las fathers business. was naturally c.lL1 merely
the sOH III his tIfh1 aud handed dow IA his descend
ants Il srrnanc baec d upon that fathers bIPtislhh
d, nomination.
The remaining cognOnrnS existing in England
sem 10 nave been very y1TioHsly IL, rived IL rsonal
characteristics: the animal, grtaDlc and mineral
worlds incidents of history; abstract ideas; sym
hnls 500. al and domestic relations. rtc.. hayo sup
piled or appear 10 have supplied them. But in FAM
liz no,iic aturc-Jnd cNp', Tally III that hIauch Of
II Of which now speak-it i emphatlcIl lily tr1Io
that - THINGS not what they seem y; and tho
nanr-ll-tN formed ia dcfcn'nce 10 the stm6tdnoes
Oi their component denominations are found 10 be
much battered when cty1nololy has been brought 10
bear ulH,n them.