Monday 21st July a few of our members gathered in the local pub to discuss the origin of their selected names. Most chose their mother’s maiden name and one had researched her mother’s Christian name. Some names appeared at first glance to be obvious such as Shipman which you could easily assume was connected to the ships or the sea. However after more research it became apparent that using old English it could also mean ‘Schep’ which related it to a Shepherd.
A lively discussion led us to consider other names and we concluded that most surnames are linked to occupations, locations, parentage or physical traits. One member discovered a surname that was related to the name of a coastal community village that was lost to the sea back in Mediaeval times in the North East. This led to a wider discussion about local villages lost to flooding and dams. (Derwent and Ashopton).
The evening sparked an interest in family histories and some members vowed to look further into the genealogy of their families.