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Beginners => Family History Beginners Board => Topic started by: cdemo on Thursday 08 May 14 05:32 BST (UK)

Title: Wales - Father surnames different from childs
Post by: cdemo on Thursday 08 May 14 05:32 BST (UK)
Can someone please explain these searches I found on ancestry.co.uk while searching for the surname Simeon?  As you can see there are a number of people from Wales with the last name Simeon but the father's name is consistently Simon and I'm not really sure if that is even the last name or first name.  Is there a reason so many different families would change their children's last name?  It just seems unreasonable that it would be the same typo over and over again.
If anyone has any insight I would be curious to hear it.
Thanks,
Cathy
Title: Re: Wales - Father surnames different from childs
Post by: Ruskie on Thursday 08 May 14 06:10 BST (UK)
It's not a typo. There is lots on the web which explains this. (google 'welsh patronymic').

Here are a couple of articles to start you off:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/history/sites/themes/society/family_03_welshnaming.shtml

http://welshpatronymics.blogspot.com.au/
Title: Re: Wales - Father surnames different from childs
Post by: cdemo on Thursday 08 May 14 15:41 BST (UK)
Wow, thank you for the links. They explained it beautifully.