The Grenada sentinel. [volume] (Grenada, Miss.) 1868-1955, 1915-02-19
How We Get Our Names.
By David Horace Bishop. Professor of
English Language and Literature.

The names we bear to-day come to
US without our seeking. and the process
by which we get them seems most
natural. Except in such instances as
the multiplied John Smiths of every
community. they sufficiently identify
US. However, there was a time when
individuals were not so clearly distin-
guished by names. In England. and in
modern Europe generally, surnames
take origin and become fixed between
the eleventh and thirteenth centuries.
1t is not possible in the limits of this
paper to enumerate even the various
sources of them; nor is it actually pos
sible TO determine the source of a name
in every instance. Merely asserting
that every name has an explanation.
whether we find it or not, we undertake
to indicate the most frequent sources of
our surnames.
From Christian names a large num-
Der of nam are derived either di-
rectly or by the addition of affixes.
Thus we have Williamson, johnson,
manifestly sons of William, John, etc.
The prefix Fitz from the Norman fils),
as in Fitzhugh, indicates the same re-
lationships. In this same group belong
names ending in ct, OF, and kin, suffixes
meaning little.
Many place names gave designation
| to people and this became surnames.
| Hence our Lanes, Hills, Heaths, Mid
dleton (Middle-town). and so on end
lessly. Originally, propositions con
nected the given name with the place
name, as John-in (the) Lane, Thomas
Of Middleton, etc. These connecting
particles were soon weakened to {
Uohn-a-Lane and then were dropped
entirely.
Probably offices and occupations have
given names to the largest number o.
| individuals, tho the list of separate
names would not be so large as in some
other groups. In this list are such
names as Reeves, Chamberlain, Falk.
ner (F~alconer), officers of the king
But the largest number are from names
of occupations quite familiar to US
Here are our Smiths, Clarks, CLERK
still pronounced Clark in England
Cooks. Websters, (early English 70,
Weaver, Painters, and SO on through
the list.
Many names are obviously due t.
certain personal peculiarities or distinc
traits of character. We have Long,
and Smalls and Shorts and Stouts ant
Whiteheads and Blacklocks that have
their manifest origin in physical fea
lures. The Gays, the Smarts. thu
Moodys, the Wilds, and the Savage
bear testimony to distinguishing ment
al or tempermental traits of far-awa.
ancestors. These names when first ap
piled had the character of nick-names
and these would themselves make
large list, including many that We coult
not ascribe to personal traits or fea
lures. Many of these are ludicrous il
suggestion. They were doubtless NOR
so in their first application. If Turnip
seed is not a corruption of some foreigl
name, it must have originated in a joke
1t is quite clear that identity of name
is by no means an indication Of commo
descent, since by the processes abov
given the same names would original
independently in different localities. L
short, the large number of Smiths, i
not to be attributed to the prolific ten
denotes of past generations who Dor
that name, but to the fact that ever
locality had its Smiths.
49,