The Marietta journal. [volume] (Marietta, Ga.) 1866-1909, 1885-04-30
HOW FAMILY NAMES ORIGINATED.

Although the fact is not generally
recognized, yet the review of Il ma
tons proper names, whether Of men
or of places, is in no inconsiderable
degree review Of the national his
tory. Names of places are even
more enduring than the places them
selves, but the names Of men were at
first transitory, one man having a
name given him on account of some
accidental circumstances attending
his birth or early life, later on taking
another from some achievment, and
and perhaps changing this as often
as caprice or necessity dictated, 50
that the early nomenclature of a
country is almost always more or less
clouded in obscurity. The fact that
these personal names for many ages
always changed with the individual
was an additional source of compli-
cation when men began to gather in
large communities, and it is no won
der therefore, that as early as the
time of Moses necessity was found
for more specific designation. Then
first began the mode of designating
man by the name of his father in adj
dition to his own, and we thus have
Joshua the son of Nun, and such
other names as this. Later, when
particular names became common,
men were named from peculiarties of
mind or body as Diogones the Cynic,
or Simon the Leper. 1t was only in
the eleventh and twelfth centuries,
when the commercial and social rela-
tons of the world became so enlarg-
ed that there seemed to be press
ing necessity for specific designations
that family names became hereditary,
the prosperity Of the family, and
handed down from father to son as
family heritage.
The Welsh APP has given us a key
to the solution of several names, in
which it does not appear as distinct
portion. Thus, ap-Hugh has become
Pugh; ap-Price, Price; ap-Owen,
Bowen; ap-Richard, Pritchard, and
ap-Howell, Powell. The tendency
in proper names has always been to-
ward Authorization, a short name be-
ing invariably more popular than a
long one. Another method of man
ufacturing family names was by adj
ding diminutiye to the proper name,
the chief diminutive in this use beng
the syllables kin, cox, and ct or OF;
another, ing, being found, but so
rarely that it need hardly be men
toned. Using these in combination
with proper names, from Simon we
have Simpkins, or Simcox; from
William, Wilkins, Wilcox and Will
lett. From Emma comes Emmett,
and from Ralph comes Rawlings and
Rawlinson. Emery has given us
Emeric, Americ, Almeric, and, be-
sides numbers of others, America. In
early English days, the pagan was a
favorite way of designating one who
had not conformed to Christianity,
and from this circumstance come the
Paines, the Paynes, the Pynes and
Pynsons; to whom may fifty be OPP
posed the Christians, the Christies
and the Christions, while the kitsons
are the descendants of some Christie
pher who was Familiarity known among
his friends as Kit.
In early times, however, it was
customary to call child by the name
of the saint whose festival occurred
first after the date of birth This
practice still prevails to some extent
in the country districts of Europe,
though not to the same degrees as
formerly, while it is curious to mo-
tice the ready manner in which To-
cal events, such as festivals of local
saints serve the purpose of furnish
ing names for children. The names
of the Scripture saints are common
enough, but it is not so common to
find Holiday, Hockerday and Hob
day, which all took their origin in
the same way by giving the name Of
the day rather than that of the saint
IN whose honor the day was celebra-
ted.-,N. Louis Globe Democrat.
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