The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1886-06-26
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Family Names.

residence. Inc name Oh street, UOWu,
particular district of country, with the
syllable at or after or by as an introduce
ton, gave such names as Atwood, Byford
Byatt Another class of names arose from
the practice of appending to the name
termination indicative of the place of res
idence. Thus the rustic often became
known among his acquaintance as Robert
the Field, or Fielder, or Filder; if he lived
in forest, he YVES a Wooderer, or Wood,
or Woodman; if by the church, he was
Churchman, or, in Scotland Kirkman; if
by monastery, Temple, or Templeman, or
Templer; if by the cross, to be found in
every village, he was Cross, or Crossman,
or Croucher, or Crouchman; if by the
bridge, he became Bridger or Bridgeman.
From similar reasons came the names
Brooks, Brookman, Wells, Wellman,
Beecher, Beechman, Hollywood, Oker and
many Others The word hurst or hirst is
often found as part of a proper name.
II originally meant wood, and the COM
pounds formed with it are numerous. If
hazels are about it is Hazelhurst; if lindens,
tits Lyndhurst; if hawks are often found,
it is Hawkhurst, and Brockelhurst is often
seen for badgerwoods, Deerhurst for deer
forest, the proper names of men following
these appellations.
The holt was less extensive forest than
the hurst, and from it we have Aldershot,
Oakshot and Bagshot. A shaw was small
woody covert, common shelter for game,
and it remains in our language as Hind
shaw, Cockshaw, Henshaw, or Hernshaw
and Earnshaw, an abreviation of Heron
shaw. In old English den was sunken
cover or shelter for animals, usually of the
more ferocious kinds, and so we have VOL
fenden, Harden or Hareden, Buckden,
Ramden and Rewden or Reeden. The
names of the domestic animals are found
in Horseden, Oxenden, Cowden, Borden,
Sowden and Ogden, or Hogden. While
the den gave shelter the lea afforded pas
ture for both wild and tame, and we thus
have Horseley, Cowley and Kinley, Sheep
ley from Sheeplea, Buckley and Hindley,
The nature of the surrounding trees gives
Ashley, Lindley, Elmsley and Oakley.
Some of the surnames of men indicate
the clearings that were made in the forests.
Thus, rod or rood was cleared place in
the woods, whence we have Acroyds, where
the acorn trees have been taken away,
Lindrood, Holyrood and others of this
kind. A greave was woodland avenue
graved or carved out of the forest, the idea
of cutting being. still preserved in our grave.
Thus we find Hargrave, where the hares
were numerous; Congrave, where the same
was true of the cronies, and Bargreave, in
dicating the former profusion of bears.
A slade was a small strip of open land in
forest, and thus came Grenslade and
Whitslade. A lande was rich piece of
grassy, but uncultured ground surrounded
by trees, and hence the Launders, the
Landes, the Lowndes and the Laundes.
A knowl was small, skull-shaped hill,
whence our Knowles, Knowlings. The
home was meadpwland lying about the
winding of stream, and from it are de-
rived the Holmers and the Holmans.
The clough was formerly narrow fs-
sure between the hills, and the proper name
was thence derived, while the Cliffes, the
Cleve, the Clevelands, the SATELLITES, the
Netherclifes, Topclifes, Redcliffes, the
Radcliffes, the Stoneclifes, Rookcliffes and
Mardcliffes are all from the same source.
A dune was a hillyslope, and the Dams came
from such locality, while combe was
the cup-shaped depression of the hillside
whence we have Cumberland, Newcombe
and Slocome, with one hundred others.
Any prominence of earth or rock was cop,
or cope. Hence come Copes, the Copeleys,
the Copelands and the Copestakes. Cob
was but another form of the same word,
whence come the Cobbs, the Cobhams, the
Cobwells, the Cobdens and the Cobleys.
Some of the trees have given family
names to quite number of distinguished
families. The Nashes once lived near ash
trees, the Naides close to alders, while the
origin of the Nokes, the Beeches, the Linds
and Lindenwoods, the Lindhurst and the
Birches is equally plain. But other rural
objects also contributed their share to the
names of families. A common English
site is the park gate which is often conspi-
cuous from afar, and the Lindgates, the
Floodgates, the Parkgates and the Rirgates
still testify to the original occupations of
the founders of the families bearing those
names. Aherne was any nook or corner
of land, SO those who lived there became
known as the Hearnes, while gore was a
narrow defile in the mountains and gave a
name to those living near it.
A croft was an enclosed pasture, and
has given us the Meadowcrofts, the Rye
crofts and the Haycrofts. A hay was a
bridge, whence comes the Hayes, the
Woodhayes, the Haynes, the Hewes, the
Rundhayes, the Heywoods and others.
An acre was piece of cultivated land
whence the Akermans, the Oldacres, the
Goodacres, the Longacres and the Whit
takers. Of the Barnes it was not necessa'
ry to speak, but the Booths were so called
from their habitation of boughs, as were
also the Boothmans, the Bowers and the
Bowermans. Town formerly meant farm
as Wycliffe used it with this signifcatior
in his translation of the scriptures, and the
Towns, the Townes, the Towners and the
Townsends or the Townsenders still remain
to perpetuate the name, The family resi-
dence in many parts of England is still tht
bury; the Burys, the Bourrows, the Bur
roughs, the Broughs and the Bugges still
recall it. Another form of the same WORD
was bere, and the Berrys, the Berriman'
and the Beers and the Bearers commemor
ate the old significance of the word.
Names of occupation are perhaps still
more common than names of residences
No doubt to some worker in metals we owe
the Hammers, to some dealer in earthen
ware our Pottes and Kettles, to a hattel
our Hats, while the origin of Baskets
Lasts, Cheeses, Plows, Tubbs, Cakes, Bar
rels and Puncheons is equally obvious
st. Louis Globe Democrat.
Antiquity of Bridges.