The Butte inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1901-1912, 1901-10-09

The Mac, it need scarcely be said, though
often considered essentially Scotch, is
common to the two nations, as wit
ness the well known dsgerel:
BY Mac and o., you'll always know
True Irishmen, they say;
But if they lack both O. and Mac
No Irishmen are they.
While Mac may be translated son.
80" is more properly grandson. The
Norman equivalent is "'Fitz," a corrup-
ton of fills" The Russian termination
witt signifies the same word. as also
the Polish sky" With regard to the
Welsh "ap." which also means son. mat
ters stand rather differently; for III this
case "ap," is a separate word, and is not
Incorporated in the whole name except
as corruption: also it may be introduce
ed an indefinite number of times in the
name appellation, SO that Welsh sur
name can convey complete Seneralogy
and be, moreover, one of the longest
words in civilization. 1t is a common joke
to laugh at Welshman for his long list
of ancestors with the connecting APPS.
There is an old story of an Ensllshman
foreign to the principality and it's ways.
riding after dark near a ravine from
which issued a cry for assistance from
one who had fallen in.
who's there? shouted the English
man. "Jenkins-a -Grifith-a -Williamap
-Rees -ap- Evans APP Robin came the re-
ply.
Lazy fellows half dozen of you. why
can't you help each other out?' ex-
claimed the Enslishman. ignorant of the
fact that he was addressing but one man.
The corruption of the zap has led to a
number of common notifications of old
Welsh names as Price for ap-Rhys,
Pritchard. for APP Pritchard, Powell for
ap-Powell, and many others. Probert.
Probyn, Pugh. Penny, as also the 3D. be-
ing similar to the ''p'-Bevan. Barry,
and the like. Another Welsh form or
family name that which simply puts
the Christian name into the genitive
case-has contributed many of our conf
monest surnames, as Jones' l. e.. johns,
Harry's- Harris. Williams. Hughes, etc.
The roots of our family names, as of
our families themselves. have sprung
from among many nations, and many
tongues There are innumerable
cases in England of surnames which
point Enthusiastically to the foreign coun-
try. and frequently. too. actual neigh
borhood or town even, from which the
family originally came from over seas.
OF the original Anglo-SaNon there are
some few survivals. Some can be traced
in the termination ing which, among
Teutonic people. signified 'offsprins.'
Browning and Whiting in this way would
mean the dark or fair children
Place names from Normandy and Brit
tany are very common, as might be sup
posed. Darcy, Nevill, Ferrers. Dever-
eux, Warren, Percy, Marmion, Tanker
vile, ST. Aubin Lascelle Morely-all
these and many others can readily be
referred to their original birthplaces. In
others, through corruption Of the word,
the locality is not so easy to trace, though
still there-as, for example, the name ST.
Mature, which by process of time, has
come to stand as Seymour; Naloins,
which we now know only in its English
surname, as Valance, etc. Some of our
names, again, have Netherland birth
place, as Gaunt, which was originally
Client; st. Leger and Bridges. which
last is a corruption, in all probability, OF
Burgess.
1t needs no pointing out how easily
place names can become family names.
To distinguish an individual by the name
of his home, birthplace. or residence was
a ready means of securing his Identity
In rural districts and among a popuia-
ton that continued for generations IN
the same homesteads. place names would
be given from trivial features of the To-
cality, as Wood and Hill and Lane and
Dalee In this connection we can find
a number of ancient words for country
objects which have long ago become
obsolete and forgotten. "Cowdray," for
instance in olden days signified a grove
of hazel; Garth" is old English for yard
"Hithe" for haven; Garnet" for gran
ary: shaw" for a small wood. The COM
mon surname Head is really a place
name Head" meaning a frequent term
for a promontory or cape, as Beachy
Head. The suffix Bee" as in "Ashbee
Holmbee, is survival Of the Danish
"By, a habitation.
The name Dean is not from the church
dignitary but signifies hollow or dell,
whence we get Dean Forest and Arden.
Another word still in common use in
certain parts of England for the same
thing is bottom" Higginbottom thus
means the dell where "hicken' or noun
tain ash flourished ""Becket" is little
brook, still called a beck in the north;
boys" is the English corruption OF
"bois," a wood. Dome means down.
".Holt' a grove and Hurst copse.
STEAD" of course, is farmhouse, ana
it's surroundings. Lynne is pool,
Law" once meant a hill, and Homer
a corner. Townsend would signify 1.-The
towns end" Brock" was the old term
for a badger-hence Broxburne and 9TH
err similar titles; while "gos,' as in Cos
ford, and other examples, merely refer
red to a goose.
1t is needless to say that vast ma
jority of English surnames, among which
are to be numbered our very commonest,
derived from trades and CGlllngS-
Smith and Baker, and Turner and Tay-
lor, and others past enumerating. Here,
too. we may trace ancient word. which
have since completely dropped out.
"Chaucer" and "Sutor' are to US now
inn