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General => The Common Room => The Lighter Side => Topic started by: Fraser178 on Wednesday 27 July 11 16:42 BST (UK)
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Hi,
i have two queries!
In my reasearch i have stumbled across many odd first names, all in the 19th century/ealry 20th century?
The oddest are
Alonzo Aston
Mager Ernest Edward Aston
Were Alonzo and Mager Rare as first names??
Also..
What odd forenames have you come across in your research?
Regards,
Joel
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What odd forenames have you come across in your research?
There is a 45 page thread :o :o on that subject here http://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php/topic,69223.0.html
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Magers could possibly be from the battle of Magers' Fountain (11 December 1899) which took place during the Second Boer War.
Alonzo is a Spanish or Italian name.
The oddest forename in my family is 'Diehappy'. Her mother was also called Diehappy.
Cati
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suspect 'Mager' is a mistran or even mis-hearing error - this looks more likely (altho unusual vs 'Odd')
Births Mar 1900
Aston Major Ernest E Walsall 6b 756
Alonso / Alonzo is not uncommon really ......
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i know that Alonzo isn't really rare, but considering that the family had no italian ties whatsoever, it just kinda cropped up
oooh yes i've also seen that spelling of Major, but still, i've never come across it before, it could b derived from the army rank, or that battle, but still seems very odd!
Joel
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that birth Index entry is for the lad who appears on the 1901 census as 'Mager' - phonetics innit ;D
There are over 1200 people with that forename in the 1901 census alone ....
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ohh perhaps i was wrong about it being unusual!
but i suppose it must've died out, as we dont see it very often nowadays!
Joel
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sorry - but since 1916 there have been 15000+ people with Major as one of their forenames :P
so yes, not too common, but not too rare either ....
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ooh i see
well i feel abit silly!
but it its all in learning i suppose :)
still, dosn't mean anyone else can't share their unusual family names on this thread ;D
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I agree - just caught me in pedant mode :P
Have you seen how the Census transcribers butchered poor Alonzo's spelling :D
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i know!
the spelling was awful, i believe at one point they spelt it badly to the point it looked like 'Aloya!' :o
Joel
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I have personally worked with a man named Baden Powell as Christian names, also a man named Messines! Baden Powell was the founder of the scout movement and a commander in the Boer War. Messines is named for the battle of Messines Ridge in WW1. The name "Alma" which is relatively common with both boys and girls originated from the battle of Alma in the Crimean war against Russia. Likewise I have seen the word Crimea used as a girl's Christian name. The most unusual in my family in the 18th century Hieronymous, unusal not only in that it was carried by a girl usually a male name, it was grossly mis-spelt Eranamus!
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that certainly is a collection of odd names!
particular Hieronymous as a girls name, i'm not suprised that that isn't so common anymore!
Joelo
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I feel sorry for the poor lasses who were actually named 'Queen Victoria'
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i do feel sorry for those poor souls, who were the victims of extreme patriotism
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that certainly is a collection of odd names!
particular Hieronymous as a girls name, i'm not suprised that that isn't so common anymore!
Joelo
She was interesting in that she had a child outside her marriage, her husband "invited her to leave" and was permitted to remarry in the local church. This in the late 1750s. Dorset.
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hmm oh i see, that quite a rare occurance, particular in that day and age really
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I've got an ancestor with forename of "Sharp". Born in Yorkshire. No Sharp surname in previous generations found to date. Anyone have any thoughts on why? Jenny
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Odd names in one family won't necessarily be odd to others!
I have planty of surnames being used as first names:
Garrad Baker
Baker Garrad being 2 obvious ones.
Whitmore
Golding
Barrymore
but also:
Iden
Jesabell
Kipps
Winogene
Jubilus
Tubeles
Freelove to name but a few!
My grandson of 1 year is called Bentley - 200 or so of them in 1901 census.
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My great grandfather's first name was Al(l)ison, and he had a cousin with the same name, plus a brother-in-law and he had an uncle with that name. So four of them in quite a small area. We think that is strange, but if you analyse the name Alison, then it is logical for it to be a male forename - son of Alice.
BumbleB
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Odd names in one family won't necessarily be odd to others!
My mother's Ayres/Cornwell clan has this habit too, the surnames Stubbing, Holmes and Ayres being used across the surnames and generations as forenames. I have several Stubbing Ayres and at least one Holmes Cornwell, they do come in useful for tracking purposes when someone marries out of the clan, the resultant "Ayres Smith" etc. is a certain sign of relationship.
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Got a couple of odd ones with these but their father was a grammar school master
Percy Herbert Benoni
Stanley Tertius Benoni
and Archer from another line who was baptised as such but disappeared forever after baptism.
joboy
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Quite Odd There
Tertius sounds Latin to me, perhaps a link to their father being a grammar school master
perhaps Archer died soon after baptism?
Joel
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I have personally worked with a man named Baden Powell as Christian names, also a man named Messines! Baden Powell was the founder of the scout movement and a commander in the Boer War. Messines is named for the battle of Messines Ridge in WW1. The name "Alma" which is relatively common with both boys and girls originated from the battle of Alma in the Crimean war against Russia. Likewise I have seen the word Crimea used as a girl's Christian name. The most unusual in my family in the 18th century Hieronymous, unusal not only in that it was carried by a girl usually a male name, it was grossly mis-spelt Eranamus!
I have a Baden Powell and a Redvers (nicknamed Buller) in my tree. Both were notable figures during the Boer War.
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My Allsop(p) clan from Wirksworth, Derbyshire used Wandell (various spellings) as a first name from the 1620's to the early 1800's. I nearly used it as second name for my younger son, wish I had now, but I wasn't so into family history back then.
Jan ;)
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In the Raunds PRs I am transcribing, there was a large clan of 'Ekins'. There are also families using Ekins as a forename, so I guess the MMN was Ekins. There is also 'Major' as a first name. This is in the 1700s
My own oddest name is my aunt's name,- Veve.
My paternal grandmother was born in Canada so I guessed the name came from there. With the help of some quick thinking by Rootschatters, the favourite explanation is that she had a friend called Genevieve, known as 'Veve', and my aunt was named after her
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Got a couple of odd ones with these but their father was a grammar school master
Percy Herbert Benoni
Stanley Tertius Benoni
Benoni is Biblical - it was the name given to Benjamin by his mother Rachel, and means 'son of my sorrow'. Sometimes given to children whose father had died, or whose mother died giving birth, as Rachel did.
Genesis 35:18
And it came to pass, as her soul was in departing, (for she died) that she called his name Benoni: but his father called him Benjamin.
Tertius suggests that he was the third child, so if he appears to be the second, I'd be looking for an older sibling who died in infancy.
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My paternal grandfather was called Jeuel Jabez Gray. He's the only Jeuel I've found in the censuses - and in each one he's been mistranscribed! He's also listed in the electoral roll as Jule!
Jeuel is a name mentioned only once in the Bible, in Chronicles. My gt grandmother was very devout and gave several of her 10 children Biblical names, including Samuel and Lemuel.
My husband's Jewish gt x 2 grandfather was registered as Zusman, though he's appeared as Zuzeman, Zuesman, Zuseman and Zuzman. As if that wasn't bad enough, he's been mistranscribed as Tesman, Luisman and other variants.
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My favourite family name is Kaniaronkas (she gathers snakes) whose brother was Atonwa (great sky)- much more original than their 'English' names Marie Joseph and Thomas. Their uncle was an Indian Chief called Oughtsorengoughton (he passes through the year) who'd been christened Timothy.
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reading all these different names i got to wondering what the 2011 census will show in 100 years time? we have so many odd names nowadays but i wonder if the names that are around now that are seen as odd have been used before?
my son is called leland which i though was a new name, but there seem to be a lot in the census so its obviously not. in fact doing some research into my dads family, his ancestors were all married by reverand leland in the 1800's!
i do have a decima in my tree which i had never heard of, i now know the meaning of it and that it was used a lot. poor girl went on to marry a man called knob! :o
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As it happens, the statistics for baby names registered in 2010 were published this week. They are on Excel documents, so it's not really possible to give a link, but start here
http://www.statistics.gov.uk/statbase/product.asp?vlnk=15282
then click on either 2010 Baby Names Statistics Boys or 2010 Baby Names Statistics Girls .
The resulting spreadsheets have several different tables: go to tab 6 (at the bottom of the sheet) where it lists all names given in 2010 and their frequency (down to 3). Fascinating stuff! The only problem (in my eyes) is that spelling variations are all treated as different names, which does skew the results rather. (eg Isabel, Isabelle, Isobel etc)
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On the earlier version of this thread we decided that a person named Pelligin was probably a mangled version of Peregrine. While checking out at Waitrose today I say a person on the next aisle with 4 bottles opf S.Pelligino water, so who knows? I also knew a Redvers, who was born in the Boer War; not named for the General though in this case it was his mother's maiden name!
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Nothing to do with my family but I thought I should mention that this week's local paper has a report of a wedding where the bride's first name is "Weed". I don't think its a mis-print as the name also appears on the caption to the photo.
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Oh dear!! Had someone been watching too much children's television, whilst pregnant :o I know she was a flower, BUT !!!!! Or maybe it was the other kind ::)
BumbleB
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Got a couple of odd ones with these but their father was a grammar school master
Percy Herbert Benoni
Stanley Tertius Benoni
Benoni is Biblical - it was the name given to Benjamin by his mother Rachel, and means 'son of my sorrow'. Sometimes given to children whose father had died, or whose mother died giving birth, as Rachel did.
Genesis 35:18
And it came to pass, as her soul was in departing, (for she died) that she called his name Benoni: but his father called him Benjamin.
Tertius suggests that he was the third child, so if he appears to be the second, I'd be looking for an older sibling who died in infancy.
I had'nt thought that there may have been an older child ........ thanks for that I shall start looking.
Joe
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Whilst the forenames in my Flower (maternal line) are not unusual in themselves when linked to the surname they can be sweet and amusing.
On the sweet side I have May,Lily and Rose and in a fellow Flower researcher's list he has Wall and Colly which I think are most amusing;
A Pallot's birth record ;
Flower, Rebecca
Baptism Date: 1797 St. Anne Soho
Parents: "Colly" and Rebecca.
The father of 'Colly FLOWER' worked at Covent Garden..... (where else?)
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"Onesimus" in Long Island, New York tops the list. I can't even imagine where it comes from.
In the name of God, Amen. January 21, 17 22/23. I, ONESIMUS TALMAGE, of East Hampton, being sick. I leave to my wife Rebecca, the use of the west end of my dwelling house "from the Bottom to the Top," during her life, also the use of my barn next to my house and my "teams and wainage," and one-third of the rest of my personal estate except farming tools. I leave to my daughter, Phebe Gould, the other part of my house and barns, and two-thirds of my home lot, and two thirds of 6 acres of land adjoining to the land of John Hedges; and two-thirds of my meadow lying at Little Northwest, and one-third of all my right at Montauket, and in the Town Commons. I also give to her, after my wife's decease, all the other part of my home-lot, house, and barn. I leave to my daughters Sarah and Mary all my other goods and lands, and they are to live in that part of the house left to my wife until they marry. I make Edward Jones, Jr., and my brother-in-law, John Wheeler, executors.
Witnesses, John Davis, Thomas Matthews, Nathan Mulford. Proved, March 29, 1723
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"Onesimus" in Long Island, New York tops the list. I can't even imagine where it comes from.
It's a Biblical name- the name of a saint and comes from the Greek
http://www.behindthename.com/name/onesimus
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Nothing to do with my family but I thought I should mention that this week's local paper has a report of a wedding where the bride's first name is "Weed". I don't think its a mis-print as the name also appears on the caption to the photo.
I believe it, in the 1964 election at Billericay a candidate Eric Moonman was asked if he minded his Eric, but was referring to his election slogan "Launch Moonman"
I obviously don't know but was the bride referred to of a different ethnicity?
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An ancestor sibling wed a lady called Spanisher Robson.
I have a Melbourne Auber in my tree and a Lorken Wallaker.
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Can anyone think of a reason why Ada Shee, born 1865 in Salford, might be given the name "Malvina" ?
The name was reused a couple of generations later, but does anyone know whether the Falklands had been in the news in the early 1860s?
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Can anyone think of a reason why Ada Shee, born 1865 in Salford, might be given the name "Malvina" ?
The name was reused a couple of generations later, but does anyone know whether the Falklands had been in the news in the early 1860s?
'Malvina' was a name used by the poet James Macpherson in his poem 'Ossian' - McPherson's work was quite popular, so perhaps Ada's parents had heard the name and liked it?
Cati
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Britain had claimed the Falkland Islands formerly the Malvinas in 1833, a generation earlier, so possibily you should go back a generation. According to Wikipedia the 1860s saw the settlement of the previously un populated West Falkland so that may have attracted some publicity here.
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With parents from Leeds and Stockport, I don't think that a Falklands connection is as likely as the James Macpherson one.
I hadn't heard of him, but I'm not exactly well up on the literature popular in mid-Victorian times.
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Not sure if she belongs to my family or not, but came across the name Cyllenius Martha Maddock whilst researching a possible ancestor.
Liz
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my husbands tre there is a joseph ticke and an elizabeth pottle
and i have foun another load of smiths just when i thought it could not get any worse
marji.
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Grandad was born 1877 and his middle name was Delhi. There is a child registered in the family of same (full) name in 1870 who died.
They were Lancashire mill workers.
He was really proud of his name which he pronounced with a long 'i' sound but don't think he ever knew why he was named that. The rest of the family had relatively ordinary names.
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I have two members of my family called Friend,There is no connection with Quakers so where the name came from I have no idea.Up until then they had used the names,John Alexander,or William.
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I have seen the name "Friend" used by non Quakers in Yorkshire in the 1980s. I suppose no one is likely to quarrel with a person called Friend.
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i have been spending tme on my smith family tree as if i did not have enough already,i found a william smith living with s msry smith(whom i thought were brother and sister with a family in aberdeen one son was named thomas which is ok another george,and another named anstruther.
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I have found some with Orceneth as a Christian name in the US.
While on that point, I have some Scots female ancestors called Christian: looks like this changed from being a girl's name to a boy's name at the end of the 19th century?
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I have a relative in my tree with the forename Servetus, sounds to have Latin origins to me! His surname is less impressive - Heap! ;D
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Not sure if she belongs to my family or not, but came across the name Cyllenius Martha Maddock whilst researching a possible ancestor.
Liz
I have three generations of Xantippe Maddocks in my tree - I wonder if they are related!
I am also fond of Christmas as a first name, very common in Wales.
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Tertius sounds Latin to me, perhaps a link to their father being a grammar school master
Tertius is third so third-born; I found a Septimus (seventh) with five known older brothers, gave me the clue to look for and find the sixth.
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And while I'm on the subject, my gg grandfather was Cobbett Davies, with a brother Naasson Davies.
Any ideas where they came from? Welsh again... parents were named John and Mary Davies, so maybe they fancied something a bit different!
Caroline.
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Still looking for another Hosetta, like my ggrandmother...
Also, have always rather liked the man called Original Bower, not a relative, but who appeared often as a neighbour to my forebears on the mid-1800's.
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With parents from Leeds and Stockport, I don't think that a Falklands connection is as likely as the James Macpherson one.
I hadn't heard of him, but I'm not exactly well up on the literature popular in mid-Victorian times.
I wouldn't be so sure about the Falklands connection. Nothing to do with peoples names but there are two properties a couple of miles from Prestbury in Cheshire (not that far from Stockport); one called Goose Green Farm and one was called Falkland Cottage, although its name was changed couple of years ago. I've often wondered where the names came from. ???
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Although not unusual names, I have always wondered why my father and two of his cousins (all born in 1920's) were all called Trevor Douglas. The Trevor part we can just about explain away as it was the second name of the father of one of the three, but we have no idea why it was paired with Douglas each time
Otherwise the most unusual names are the several generations of Francis Drake Walrond Wheaton
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I can offer Hazelelponi. Her parents were so keen to have her that when the first one died aged 2, they called the next daughter Hazelelponi as well.
It comes from I Chronicles 43.
BTW, returning to Mager, could it be a variant of Moger? I knew a Moger once: he always got miscalled Roger of course.
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I have a job davies whose mother was eleanor father unknown who named one ofhis daughters mary after a sister of the same name.
marcie on my marsh brown fanily tree which is my husbands tree
marcie]
Hi Marcie, I have some Jobs in my tree too. Naasson and Cobbett had brothers Jason and Joel, so their parents were quite creative for the time. The names passed down through the generations, except Cobbett, which I have never seen anywhere else.
Caroline.
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I think it's rather good that we live in countries where you are allowed an almost free choice when naming your children- I understand that in some countries eg Portugal there is a limited list of first names which the state allows you to use!!
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I think it's rather good that we live in countries where you are allowed an almost free choice when naming your children- I understand that in some countries eg Portugal there is a limited list of first names which the state allows you to use!!
....but there are limits: http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2008/jul/24/familyandrelationships.newzealand
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I would say, offhand, the most nonstandard of miner I can think of would be my great-grandfather, Orestes Doe.
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Before our marriage the next door neighbour of my wife's family had a brother with the forename Paley; I don't know the surname as it was the lady of the house he was related to. Date 1950-1964 approx.
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Grandad was born 1877 and his middle name was Delhi. There is a child registered in the family of same (full) name in 1870 who died.
They were Lancashire mill workers.
He was really proud of his name which he pronounced with a long 'i' sound but don't think he ever knew why he was named that. The rest of the family had relatively ordinary names.
In 1877 Queen Victoria was proclaimed Queen Empress of India in Delhi.
Perhaps that was their inspiration!
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I'm very fond of the FiL in my tree named 'Theophilus Wedge' (always makes me giggle): he had brothers named Cornelius (doesn't quite seem to go with 'Wedge') and Aquilus.
Theophilus's daughter was christened 'Lizzie'. Perhaps he'd had enough of fancy names...
Cati
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I'm very fond of the FiL in my tree named 'Theophilus Wedge' (always makes me giggle): he had brothers named Cornelius (doesn't quite seem to go with 'Wedge') and Aquilus.
Theophilus's daughter was christened 'Lizzie'. Perhaps he'd had enough of fancy names...
Cati
Oooh, could have been a lot worse!
:-X
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I'm very fond of the FiL in my tree named 'Theophilus Wedge' (always makes me giggle): he had brothers named Cornelius (doesn't quite seem to go with 'Wedge') and Aquilus.
Theophilus's daughter was christened 'Lizzie'. Perhaps he'd had enough of fancy names...
Cati
Oooh, could have been a lot worse!
To make life even better 'Aquilius' is the Latin name for the Wedge tailed eagle - surely not a co-incidence... :D
:-X
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Alchin
Loveless (8th child)
Remillion
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Alchin
Loveless (8th child)
Remillion
The first two names are both surnames,so they are likely named from ancestors if you can find them; don't know about Remillion though.
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don't know about Remillion though.
They were never as good after Fish left ;)
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I have some unusual girls names in the family
any one know what the name Milchia (girls name ) means :-\
Moderator Comment: topics merged
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Suspect it means "Milk like"
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I have a family member whose great aunt was named Alluvial Goldmine in1898. :o It was the time of the goldrush in Australia. I would love to have been privy to the conversation when they chose that name.
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Thanks
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I have a family member whose great aunt was named Alluvial Goldmine in1898. :o It was the time of the goldrush in Australia. I would love to have been privy to the conversation when they chose that name.
Perhaps they had just made their fortune in an alluvial goldmine. If that is the case, the mind boggles at the possibilities; e.g. what would you call a child born the night you won the lottery? It occurs to me that I knew a man whose father was an inveterate gambler, he said that he would name the baby after the next racecourse he had a winning bet at. The boy was duly named Beverley, could have been worse i suppose, could have been Bangor on Dee. etc.etc.
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i found a son namedmud.
poor kid
marciedean
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Alchin
Loveless (8th child)
Remillion
My mother in Law was Rimmelion but the name has been used with a variety of spellings thought history
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i found a son namedmud.
poor kid
marciedean
An entry in the 1851 census "Useless" Apparently Useless was a son of the man's wife by a previous marriage. Never did find out his real name, unsurprisingly he had left home before the next census!
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i have a mud hamilton and a loveday.in another treeand what does duhb mean?
marciedean.
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i have a mud hamilton and a loveday.in another treeand what does duhb mean?
marciedean.
Perhaps you mean dubh which is the Scottish word for black- usually used as a nickname rather than first name.
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I have found a Linus Cletus Clementinus Hunt,the poor child!! All his brothers and sisters had normal names like Agnes and Patrick and Mary. I did google the names as I thought they were in Latin but couldn't find much only that they were names taken by a few different popes. If anyone can shed any light, I'd be most grateful. I'm sure poor Linus had a hard time in school. My dad has some interesting middle names...John Sylvester Pius...:)
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I recently discovered I had an aunt who died at about a year old, she was called Ellen Brynhilde. Heaven knows where they got that from! My mother in law was Rimmelion, so I have told my eldest daughter she is lucky she didn't get lumbered with Rimmelion Brynhilde
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One of my students has a ancestress called 'Parthenia'...
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one of my ancestors was named anleta another roscilla and a boy was named experience?
so maybethebeckhams are not original?
marcie
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Is it not a surname used as first name?
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One of my ancestors was called LARDINA which I have never heard of, the only trouble is she is on the 1891 census and nothing else, no birth or death certificate.
I thought it might be a mistake and tried Lavender but with no luck, two of her sisters were called Lavinia and Lucinda so that rules them names out.
I feel so sorry for her, with a name like that I'd probably want to disappear myself. : :-[
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Have you confirmed the existence of the name? If might be a mis-transcription causing the disappearance.
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Yes I checked the original 1881 census, it is very faint but after looking a few times and using other words and names on the page as a guide I thought it was right, but now you've got me wondering.
Maybe another pair of eyes would help if possible, the name is Lardina Hetherington RG11 Pce 5057 Folio163 Page 35 and it is on the first line.
I appreciate the advice anyway, thanks for your time.
Regards
Pat.
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Hi Pat :)
May I suggest Lordina? The second letter doesn't look like the 'a' in 'Sarah' on the next line. It's an uncommon name, but Google brings up a few examples.
Regards,
Carol
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Thanks very much for your help, its a good idea, I will have a good search this weekend.
Many thanks
Pat.