What does your Surname say about You?

"What's in a name?  That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet…"  We've all heard the poetic phrase by Shakespeare and have learned that who we are isn’t defined by our name.  Or is it? 

Surnames, as we know them, are the link that chains us to our family tree.  Our identity is indeed genetically linked to our ancestors, so maybe the poetry of the great bard isn't as concrete as our literature instructors would like us to think.

The Purpose of a Surname

The first people known to have used surnames were the Chinese.  Their surname structure was vastly different in that surnames came first and were all taken from a then-famous poem.  Later Romans adopted a variation of using surnames to identify families.  Finally the Venetian aristocracy in Italy introduced the method of using surnames that we know today.

Since the 1300's, surnames have served three main purposes.

• Identify our family
• Provide a link to our ancestors
• Preserve family identity for future generations

Surname Basics

In my research, I've come across five different ways families acquired surnames:

1. Father's Name:  These surnames always imply "the son of" in some sort of variation - depending on the nativity of the father.

   1. Scandinavians added "son" to the end of the father's name.  The surname Watson means the son of Watt.
   2. The Gaelic prefix "Mac" means son.  I got a laugh when I discovered that Macleod literally means son of ugly.
   3. Norman’s used the prefix "Fitz" to indicate "the son of." 
   4. O is the Irish indicator of "the son of."

2. Occupation: Another way surnames were acquired was business or occupation of the head of the house.  Milliner, Bishop, Baptiste are all pretty self explanatory, but not all occupational names are as basic because of the evolution of language.  For example Smith indicated a blacksmith, but Goldsmith actually means banker.  Other examples that caught my attention were Barker (meaning tanner), Spelman (meaning fiddler), and Fabian (meaning bean man or bean farmer).
3. Location:  Winston Churchill's name is a great example of surnames by location.  Obviously his forefathers lived on a hill by a church.  These names are fairly easy to identify.  They will include a city, or landmark indicator like Brook.
4. Status:  Families were often set apart with surnames that indicated their status in society.  A few examples that come to mind are Laird (Lord), Legard (protector) and Rian (chief).  These surnames aren't among the most popular but fairly easy to spot.
5. Description:  Unfortunately not all family names based on description are complimentary.  You might not enjoy knowing that your ancestors were known for having broad heads or flat feet, but then again you might be surprised by what you find when you uncover the meaning of your surname.  Who would have thought that Roy means red headed or the Richmond means smooth talker?

Do you have an unusual surname discovery, a cool research site, or a question?  Join us in our Chat Forum and post a new topic.  We'd love to hear about it.