Chapter Ix. the Bible and the Calendar

" 'O Now you see, brother Toby,' he would say, looking up, 'that Christian names are not such indifferent things;--had Luther here been called by any other name but Martin, he would have been damn'd to all eternity' "

(Tristram Shandy, ch. xxxv).

OLD TESTAMENT NAMES

The use of biblical names as font-names does not date from the Puritans, nor are surnames derived from Abraham, Isaac and Jacob necessarily Jewish. The Old Testament names which were most popular among the medieval peasants from whom we nearly all spring were naturally those connected with the most picturesque episodes of sacred history. Taking as an example the father of all men, we find derived from the name Adam the following: Adams, Adamson, Adcock, Addis, Addison, Adds, Addy, Ade, Ades, Adey, Adis, Ady, Addey, Aday, Adee, Addyman, Adkin, Adkins, Adkinson, Adnett, [Footnote: Adenet (little Adam) le Roi was an Old French epic hero.] Adnitt, Adnet, Adnot, Atkin, Atkins, Atkinson, and the northern Aitken, etc. This list, compiled from Bardsley's Dictionary of Surnames, is certainly not exhaustive. Probably Taddy is rimed on Addy as Taggy is on Aggy (Agnes). To put together all the derivatives of John or Thomas would be a task almost beyond the wit of man. Names in Abb-, App-, may come from either Abraham or Abel, and from Abbs we also have Nabbs. Cain was of course unpopular. Cain, Cane, Kain, when not Manx, is from the town of Caen or from Norman quene, an oak.

Moses appears in the French form Moyes (Moise) as early as 1273, and still earlier as Moss. Of the patriarchs the favourites were perhaps Jacob and Joseph, the name Jessop from the latter having been influenced by Ital. Giuseppe. Benjamin has sometimes given Benson and Bennett, but these are generally for Benedict (Chapter IV). The Judges are poorly represented, except Samson, a name which has obviously coalesced with the derivatives of Samuel. David had, of course, an immense vogue, especially in Wales (for some of its derivatives see Chapter VI), and Solomon was also popular, the modern Salmon not always being a Jewish name.

But almost the favourite Old Testament name was Elijah, Elias, which, usually through its Old French form Elie, whence Ely, is the parent of Ellis, Elliot, and many other names in El-, some of which, however, have to be shared with Ellen and Alice (Chapter X). Job was also popular, and is easily recognized in Jobson, Jobling, etc., but less easily in Chubb (Chapter III) and Jupp. The intermediate form was the obsolete Joppe. Among the prophetic writers Daniel was an easy winner, Dann, Dance (Chapter I), Dannatt, Dancock, etc. Balaam is an imitative spelling of the local Baylham.

In considering these Old Testament names it must be remembered that the people did not possess the Bible in the vernacular. The teaching of the parish priests made them familiar with selected episodes, from which they naturally took the names which appeared to contain the greatest element of holiness or of warlike renown. It is probable that the mystery plays were not without influence; for the personal name was not always a fixed quantity, and many of the names mentioned in the preceding paragraph may have been acquired rather on the medieval stage than at the font.

This would apply with still more force to names taken from the legends of saints and martyrs on which the miracle plays were based. We even find the names Saint, Martyr and Postill, the regular aphetic form of apostle (Chapter III), just as we find King and Pope. Camden, speaking of the freedom with which English names are formed, quotes a Dutchman, who--

"When he heard of English men called God and Devil, said, that the English borrowed names from all things whatsoever, good or bad."

The medieval name Godde may of course be for Good, Anglo-Sax. Goda, but Ledieu is common enough in France. The name seems to be obsolete, unless it is disguised as Goad. The occurrence in medieval rolls of Diabolus and le Diable shows that Deville need not always be for de Eyville. There was probably much competition for this important part, and the name would not be always felt as uncomplimentary. Among German surnames we find not only Teufel, but also the compounds Manteufel and Teufelskind.

NEW TESTAMENT NAMES

Coming to the New Testament, we find the four Evangelists strongly represented, especially the first and last. Matthew appears not only in an easily recognizable form, e.g. in Matheson, but also as Mayhew and Mayo, Old Fr. Mahieu. From the latter form we have the shortened May and Mee, whence Mayes, Makins, Meakin, Meeson, [Footnote: One family of Meeson claims descent from Malvoisin.] and sometimes Mason. Mark is one of the sources of March (p, 90), as Luke is of Luck, whence Lucock, Luckett, etc, though we more often find the learned form Lucas.

Of John there is no need to speak. Of the apostles the great favourites, Simon, or Peter, John, and Bartholomew have already been mentioned. Almost equally popular was Philip, whence Philp, Phipps, Phelps, and the dim. Philpot, whence the aphetic Pott, Potts. Andrew flourished naturally in Scotland, its commonest derivative being Anderson, while Dendy is for the rimed form Dandy. Paul has of course had a great influence and is responsible for Pawson or Porson, Pawling, Polson, Pollett, and most names in Pol-. [Footnote: This does not of course apply to Cornish names in Pol- (Chapter VI)] It is also, in the form Powell, assimilated to the Welsh Ap Howel. Paul is regularly spelt Poule by Chaucer, and St. Paul's Cathedral is often called Powles in Tudor documents. Paul's companions are poorly represented, for Barnby is local, while names in Sil- and Sel- come from shortened form of Cecil, Cecilia, and Silvester. Another great name from the Acts of the Apostles is that of the protomartyr Stephen, among the numerous derivatives of which we must include Stennett and Stimpson.

Many non-biblical saints whose names occur very frequently have already been mentioned, e.g. Antony, Bernard, Gregory, Martin, Lawrence, Nicholas, etc To these may be added Augustine, or Austin, Christopher, or Kit, with the dim. Christie and the patronymic Kitson, Clement, whence a large family of names in Clem-, Gervase or Jarvis, Jerome, sometimes represented by Jerram, and Theodore or Tidd (cf. Tibb fron Theobald), who becomes in Welsh Tudor. Vincent has given Vince, Vincey and Vincett, and Baseley, Blazey are from Basil and Blaine. The Anglo-Saxon saints are poorly represented, though probably most of them survive in a disguised form, e.g. Price is sometimes for Brice, Cuthbert has sometimes given Cubitt and Cobbett, and also Cutts. Bottle sometimes represents Botolf, Neate may be for Neot, and Chad (Ceadda) survives as Chatt and in many local names. The Cornish Tangye is from the Breton St. Tanneguy. The Archangel Michael has given one of our commonest names, Mitchell (Chapter IV). This is through French, but we have also the contracted Miall--

"At Michael's term had many a trial, Worse than the dragon and St. Michael."

(Hudibras, III. ii. 51.)

This name exists in several other forms, e.g. Mihell, Myhill, Mighill, and most frequently of all as Miles (Chapter VIII). The reader will remember the famous salient of Saint-Mihiel, on the Meuse, held by the Germans for so long a period of the war. From Gabriel we have Gabb, Gabbett, etc. The common rustic pronunciation Gable has given Cable (Chapter III).

Among female saints we find Agnes, pronounced Annis, the derivatives of which have become confused with those of Anne, or Nan, Catherine, whence Call, Catlin, etc., Cecilia, Cicely, whence Sisley, and of course Mary and Margaret. For these see Chapter X. St. Bride, or Bridget, survives in Kirkbride.

FEAST-DAYS

A very interesting group of surnames are derived from font-names taken from the great feasts of the Church, date of birth or baptism, etc. [Footnote: Names of this class were no doubt also sometimes given to foundlings.] These are more often French or Greco-Latin than English, a fact to be explained by priestly influence. Thus Christmas is much less common than Noel or Nowell, but we also find Midwinter (Chapter II) and Yule. Easter has a local origin (from a place in Essex) and also represents Mid. Eng. estre, a word of very vague meaning for part of a building, originally the exterior, from Lat. extra. It survives in Fr. les etres d'une maison. Hester, to which Bardsley gives the same origin, I should rather connect with Old Fr. hestre (hetre), a beech. However that may be, the Easter festival is represented in our surnames by Pascall, Cornish Pascoe, and Pask, Pash, Pace, Pack.

Patch, formerly a nickname for a jester (Chapter XX), from his motley clothes, is also sometimes a variant of Pash. And the dim. Patchett has become confused with Padgett, from Padge, a rimed form of Madge. Pentecost is recorded as a personal name in Anglo-Saxon times. Michaelmas is now Middleman (Chapter III), and Tiffany is an old name for Epiphany. It comes from Greco-Latin theophania (while Epiphany represents epiphania), which gave the French female name Tiphaine, whence our Tiffin. Lammas (loaf mass) is also found as a personal name, but there is a place called Lammas in Norfolk. We have compounds of day in Halliday or Holiday, Hay-day, for high day, Loveday, a day appointed for reconciliations, and Hockaday, for a child born during Hocktide, which begins on the 15th day after Easter. It was also called Hobday, though it is hard to say why; hence the name Hobday, unless this is to be taken as the day, or servant (Chapter XIX), in the service of Hob; cf. Hobman.

The days of the week are puzzling, the only one at all common being Munday, though most of the others are found in earlier nomenclature. We should rather expect special attention to be given to Sunday and Friday, and, in fact, Sonntag and Freytag are by far the most usual in German, while Dimanche and its perversions are common in France, and Vendredi also occurs. This makes me suspect some other origin, probably local, for Munday, the more so as Fr. Dimanche, Demange, etc., is often for the personal name Dominicus, the etymology remaining the same as that of the day-name, the Lord's day. Parts of the day seem to survive in Noon, Eve, and Morrow, but Noon is local, Fr. Noyon (cf. Moon, earlier Mohun, from Moyon), Eve is the mother of mankind, and Morrow is for moor-wro, the second element being Mid. Eng. wra, comer, whence Wray.

MONTH NAMES

We find the same difficulty with the names of the months. Several of these are represented in French, but our March has four other origins, from March in Cambridgeshire, from march, a boundary, from marsh, or from Mark; while May means in Mid. English a maiden (Chapter XXI), and is also a dim. of Matthew (Chapter IX). The names of the seasons also present difficulty. Spring usually corresponds to Fr. La Fontaine (Chapter II), but we find also Lent, the old name for the season, and French has Printemps. [Footnote: The cognate Ger. Lenz is fairly common, hence the frequency of Lent in America.] Summer and Winter [Footnote: Winter was one of Hereward's most faithful comrades.] are found very early as nicknames, as are also Frost and Snow; but why always Summers or Somers with s and Winter without? [Footnote: Two other common nicknames were Flint and Steel.] The latter has no doubt in many cases absorbed Vinter, vintner (Chapter III) but this will not account for the complete absence of genitive forms. And what has become of the other season? We should not expect to find the learned word "autumn," but neither Fall nor Harvest, the true English equivalents, are at all common as surnames.

I regard this group, viz. days, months, seasons, as one of the least clearly accounted for in our nomenclature, and cannot help thinking that the more copious examples which we find in French and German are largely distorted forms due to the imitative instinct, or are susceptible of other explanations. This is certainly true in some cases, e.g. Fr. Mars is the regular French development of Medardus, a saint to whom a well-known Parisian church is dedicated; and the relationship of Janvier to Janus may be via the Late Lat. januarius, for janitor, a doorkeeper.

"De par le Roi, defense a Dieu De faire miracle en ce lieu."]