WHAT’S IN A FAMILY NAME?

When the various holidays come around this time of year, families tend to gather or reach out to get in touch with each other.  Have you ever wondered about the origins of your family’s name?  This article published by the St. Louis Genealogical Society provides some insight on the subject of surnames and how many were derived from occupations.

OCCUPATIONAL SURNAMES

Most genealogists know that early people had only given names. When communities were small, there likely was just one John and he lived near the church on a hill or one Mary, and she was little. However, by the time of the Middle Ages, villages had become more populated, and calling someone just John or Mary now became problematic. As a result, names became more specific so one person could be separated from another. Now, John’s name may have transitioned into John Churchill and Mary might have become Mary Little, to distinguish them from the John near the mouth of two rivers (John Rivers) or the Mary who had long white hair (Mary Whitehead). This didn’t just happen to English names, of course. You will see the same thing occurring in most other languages.

Geographical surnames were expanded by surnames derived from a father or mother’s name. Now, John, son of John, might be John Johnson, and Mary, daughter of Agnes, might, in the Middle Ages in England, become Mary Anotdoghter.

Piper, Miller, Weaver, Shoemaker, and Gardener are just a few examples. And these names appear with their equivalents across Europe. Since blacksmiths were so important everywhere, the fact that we have smiths in so many languages shows just how dominant that occupation was throughout the world.

Most of us have occupational names in our family trees, no matter where our family originated. Your first German Lederer was probably a leather worker, same as an English Tanner or a Jewish Garber/Gerber. Your early French Ferrier and your Italian Ferraro were both likely blacksmiths; their names translate to Smith, just as the German Schmidt does. 

Here are just a few common surnames that might give you a clue as to what your ancestors did for a living:

Bailey: bailiff

Barker: shepherd or tanner

Baxter: female baker

Clark: clerk

Coleman: someone who gathered charcoal

Collier: coal miner

Cooper: barrel maker

Faulkner: falcon trainer

Hager: woodcutter

Keeler: bargeman

Kellogg: hog breeder/slaughterer

Kemp: warrior, champion (perhaps at wrestling or jousting)

Mercer: merchant, especially of fine cloth

Parker: gamekeeper

Redman: roof thatcher

Salzman: salt merchant

Schumacher, Sandler, Schuster: shoemaker

Scully: town crier

Todd: fox hunter

Travers, Travis: toll-bridge collector

Ward: watchman, guard

Webb/Webster: weaver (male and female versions)

There are many more occupational surnames in just about every language and in everyone’s family tree. Some will be quite familiar to you, like Miller, Tailor, Baker, or Bishop; others will be more challenging to decipher, such as some in the above list. 

So as you spend time with your families this holiday season, think a bit about your family’s surnames.  Do they tell you the occupation of your early ancestors?   Many came from laborers like the wagon makers (Wainwrights), barrel makers (Coopers), goat herders (Goddard), Hunters, Masons, and millions like them who came before us. 

No matter from what country your family originated, those early laborers in our families helped to define how we think of ourselves today.

St. Louis Genealogical Society, Publications@stlgs.org via gmail.mcsv.net. 

A Few More Resources:

“England Surnames Derived from Occupations, Ranks (National Institute), FamilySearch Wiki, https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/England_Surnames_Derived_from_Occupations,_Ranks_(National_Institute)

“German Surnames from Occupations,” Wiktionary, https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Category:German_surnames_from_occupations

“Occupational Surnames,” Namenerds.com, http://www.namenerds.com/uucn/listofweek/jobnames.html

 “Surnames via Occupations,” Behind the Name, https://surnames.behindthename.com/names/source/occupation