|
|
The Use of Surnames in the Middle Ages What the Farndale History tells us about the use of names
|
|
Categories of surname
These names
tend to be:
(1) locative
(eg Farndale);
(2) descriptive
(Taking some families who are closely related to Farndales in later times,
examples are Whitelock, from the complexion of hair - Pybus, middle English ‘pikebush’, prickly character – Husband = Middle English ‘huseband’, Old Norse ‘husbondi’,
to dwell, so a householder - Wallace descriptive and locational from the Old
French ‘waleis’, Welshman);
(3) occupational
(eg Smith, Baker, Shepherd, Yeoman, Butcher); or
(4) patronymic
(eg Atkinson, Richardson, Jackson, Wilson, Thompson,
Wilkinson).
The evolution of the
surname
Anglo Saxon
tradition had tended to use Christian names, whilst Norse tradition often used
patronymic names (Harold Godwineson). Descriptive
names or occupational names were sometimes used. Often people used nicknames,
which might have related to physique or characteristics.
The villeins
or serfs at the time of the Domesday book, and at the time they started to be
placed by the feudal lords onto the land, including Farndale, might have used
Christian names, at least within families. There is no evidence of the use of
surnames.
Individuals
appeared by name in records by the end of the twelfth century. Often it was
priests of freeholders who were named, for instance as witnesses. The first
personal name linked to Farndale was Nicholas de Farndale (FAR00006)
who paid taxes to the Eyre Court in 1280.
The use of
names reflected significant change after the Norman Conquest. French personal
names became dominant, with a hint of Flanders and Brittany. Scandinavian first
names became rarer.
The ordinary
folk started using descriptions beyond Christian names probably in the early
thirteenth century, say about 1230. Historians tend to think there was
fluctuation until the fourteenth century when names became become fixed.
Naming traditions in and
around Farndale
We can see the
folk in Farndale might call themselves by descriptive or occupational or
patronymic names. For instance we have records of William the Smith of Farndale
(FAR00009),
John the Shepherd of Farndale (FAR00010).
We find the first person who has adopted the Farndale name, Nicholas de
Farndale (FAR00006)
who paid taxes in 1280, born in about 1230. In 1301 the lay subsidies provide a list of the names
of 39 taxpayers of Farndale (FAR00029).
A lot of these names are of other locations indicating they’ve moved in to
Farndale. But in the same year at Eggleton we find Johanne de Farndale (FAR00014)
who must have left Farndale and settled at [Egton? check].
In the early days
we don’t know how fixed these names were. Johannes might have called himself
Johanne de Farndale for a few years when he settled in [Egton check],
but then another John from Farndale might have settled there and he might have
started to call himself John ‘the Smith’, or he might have moved from [Egton check]
to York and started calling himself Johannes de Eggleton.
We can actually
see this happening in the Farndale history. From about 1310, we see the ‘de’,
‘of’ being dropped. This tends to suggest folk no longer defining themselves as
‘of’ a place, but using a name, with more permanency. So we see the first
example of William Farndale (FAR00034)
born in about 1310, and then William Farndale of Sheyrefhoton
(Sheriff Hutton)(FAR00036),
born about 1332. He is not William of Sheriff Hutton, but William Farndale, who
lives in Sheriff Hutton. Then we find
Sir William Farndale, who became the vicar of Doncaster, born in about 1335 (FAR00038). I think at this stage (mid c14th) we can see
some permanency arising.
Perhaps at the
same time that names became more permanent, names also became hereditary. That
makes sense and again we can see it happening in the Farndale history. So at
this time, we see family groups in the Sheriff Hutton Line and the York 1 Line.
It is of note that the Sheriff Hutton Line all share the same Christian and
surnames. That seems to be almost like the style sometimes used in the States –
there is no evidence that they called themselves John Farndale Junior, Senior,
and maybe III, but it the same sort of thing.
So by the mid c14th,
our own family history demonstrates the evolution of name use from (1) unknown
villeins, in c12th, maybe they had a Christian name amongst the family; to (2)
locative, descriptive, occupational, patronymic surnames from say about 1230,
but not necessarily fixed, then (3) fixed surnames from turn of c14th, say
about 1310 and probably hereditary surnames at about the same time.
Christian names after the
Norman Conquest
Old Saxon names
such as Edgar and Eadric fell out of use. However there was some
resurgence with Edward and Edmund.
Christian names
became overwhelmingly Norman. William was the most used name for centuries, as
any genealogist will have witnessed. Names like Richard, Robert, John, Mary,
Margaret and Emma were Norman influences.