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Nicknames
Nicknames, or ‘eke’ (alternative) names as they were firstly, arose from a custom especially prevalent among peasants and so are thought to point to a village or rural origin. One only has to compare the whimsical and ephemeral nature of modern-day nicknames, which typically stem from colloquial or slang language, to realize that they are the hardest group of surnames to explain. Many were bestowed facetiously or ironically to indicate someone who was the exact opposite of the descriptor, just as men nearly seven feet tall are dubbed ‘Tiny’ today. Some words have changed their meanings during the ensuing centuries, thus John Daft was meek, Thomas Yapp was clever or crafty, whilst Roger Nice was simple. Then again, not all names are what they seem, as some ‘obvious’ nicknames like Broadhead actually arose from place names. Nicknames fall into several basic categories among which are:

 Physical description, including size (Armstrong, Lang, Longshanks, Short, Small), or colour of hair, beard or complexion, {Blunt (‘fair hair’ or ‘light complexion’), Brown, Grey, Hoar, Lilywhite, Lock, Reid}.  Character such as Bellamy (‘good friend’), Blunt (stupid), Bold, Cockayne (‘idle dreamer’), Darling, Fane (‘well disposed’), Goodfellow, Makepeace, Merriman, Moody, Slyman, Smart, Stern, Sweet, True (‘trustworthy’), Wild, Wise.

 Animal and bird names, referring to either appearance or character of these creatures, as in Brock (‘badger’, one who teases or is teased), Cock (a swaggerer), Dove (gentle), Fox (a wily person), Hare (swift), Heron (long legged), Jay (showy), Kidd and Lamb (meek and gentle), Lowell (‘wolf’, a fierce person), Oliphant (‘elephant’ from his size), Peacock (proud), Pullen (chicken), Todd (fox).  Personal actions or incidents. Our mediaeval ancestors were not reticent about bestowing vulgar nicknames, in fact there are hundreds of them like Bullock, Gotobed, and Purdue and many are far too obscene for me to put into print and, happily, many have died out. The origins of many of these names are not generally understood nowadays but if, for example, you are one of the following: Finnemore, Drew and its diminutive Drewell, Leger, or Petter you might consider changing your surname! They refer to your ancestor’s personal habits or prowess! (See Percy H. Reaney’s The Origins of English Surnames (1967) for more details!) Gotobed may have been lazy but may also have been fond of the pleasures of the flesh, along with Messrs Fullalove, Paramor and Tiplady! I don’t think I can improve upon Kent’s description of the meaning of the group including Shakespeare, Shakeshaft, Waghorn, and Wagstaff: “The first element denotes oscillation, the second an aggressive weapon of more-or-less cylindrical form. It seems likely that the first men to bear these names were notable and unashamed womanizers.”  Seasonal surnames may refer to time of birth, baptism or conversion, or for Jews, registration of the surname. Examples include: May, Friday, Christmas. Some may also be considered nicknames for those with a frosty (Winter) or sunny (Summer) disposition.  Some ancestors whose origins seem unfindable may have changed an uncomfortable surname for one less so at the time. One can understand the feelings of those saddled with names such as Death changing to D’Eath or De Ath, Cocks to Cox, Onions to O’nions or O’Kill to Oakhill. As language evolves so perfectly good names can become onerous to bear. My children were highly amused when I announced that they had Gay ancestors, but that was a perfectly acceptable, even pleasant word and surname in the 17th century. Would you like to carry the surname Bastard or Balls for the rest of your life? Peter Boyce was brave enough to tell us that he started out as the son of Henry Boyce Balls. The researcher confronted with a disappearance would be well to consider a name change.

Study of the early forms of a surname with reference to a good surname dictionary may help to establish which country or region it comes from by language, dialect or usage.

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Information in this Wiki page is excerpted from the online course English - Understanding Names in Genealogy offered by The National Institute for Genealogical Studies. To learn more about this course or other courses available from the Institute, see our website. We can be contacted at wiki@genealogicalstudies.com We welcome updates and additions to this Wiki page.

Category: England