What’s in a name?

I love names. What they mean, where they come from, and all they tell us about our family and communities. Our names are among the most important things any of us possess and yet, we generally don’t choose them for ourselves and, even though they change in different settings, they always identify us.

My name, for example, is actually Kathy. I was named for my Nana, Mary Catherine, but my parents felt that was too old-fashioned so they gave me a modern version. A cousin started calling me Kate when I was in high school. Of course, these days, I’m more often called Mom or Gigi (my granny-name).

Names can be very regional and Surry County has quite a few names I had never heard before. Some, it seems, were even invented here. Within them are buried a myriad of clues to the person’s or the community’s history.

Names serve the fundamental purpose of distinguishing us one from another. Surnames or family names help distinguish one Mary or Robert from another of the same name. Generally speaking they’re based on parentage (Jackson, Edwards), occupation (Smith), place of origin (York), or a nickname of some sort (Little or Snow).

Surnames were not inherited across most of Europe until the 1400s. John Baker’s red-headed son could be William Reid.

Because many of the early settlers in Surry County were from the British Isles, the meaning and origin of some names is pretty straight forward: Taylor, Carpenter, Livingood.

Others are a bit trickier. Below is a brief list of some I was able to find early instances and definitions for.

Allred – Edd Allred/Alret was collected by William the Conqueror’s men in the Doomsday Book, a complete record of all people in the defeated England, in 1066. It is from the Old English language AE(dth)elraed or Ealdred meaning ‘ancient or noble counsel.’

Draughn – Irish Gaelic from O’ Druachain meaning son of Druachan.

Gilmer – Irish Gaelic found across Ireland and in the western borderlands between Scotland and England. The Gaelic-speaking folk of Ireland and Scotland were converted to Christianity relatively early in the 3rd and 4th centuries. Both cultures, where female deities were already important, considered Mary, mother of Christ, far to sacred to name a child after.

Instead, they named their children and families after some aspect of her. Gilmer, a variant form of Gilmour, began as Gille Moire, ‘servant of Mary.’

Goad – From the Old English ‘God’ or ‘Gode’ meaning a good person, found in the Doomsday Book Hadleigh, Suffolk

Griffith – Gruffyd ap Madog, 1392; Jone Gryffyth, 1524; Old Welsh, Griffiud combining Gryfja, ‘hollow or pit’ and -iud, ‘chief’

Gwyn – Thomas filius Wyn, 1255; Gwynne ap Griffud ap Tudur, 1474; David ap Gwyn, 1327; Old Welsh, gwyn ‘fair, white’

Haynes – Given names Hagene, and Hagana appear in the Doomsday; Roger filius Hane in 1198; from the Old Danish, Haghni; Old Swedish, Hagne; and Old German, Hagano all meaning ‘hawthorne’

Slawter – There are two possible origins for this name, both likely English. Robert de Sloutre in 1251 was so called for the slough or muddy place he lived near or it could be an occupational name from the Middle English ‘slahter’ for a butcher.

Lovel – Surprisingly, this name has nothing to do with affectionate emotions. It comes from the Latin for an animal associated with terror, the wolf. William Luuel was noted in 1130 and Willelmus Luvel in 1206; Anglo-French, lovel meaning ‘wolf cub,’ is a nickname that would be given to the son of a man known as Love, meaning ‘wolf’, likely a man with a violent temper.

Lowry –Robert Lowri, 1332; Lowry Smith, 1467; English pet form of Laurence

Vaughn – Grifit Vehan, 1222; Jeuan Vachann and later Vaghann, 1391; Welsh meaning ‘small’

This is, by no means, a complete list, just a fun way to look at history. I will likely do similar columns in the future with more of the wonderful collection of names that populate this region.

###

CAPTIONS:

BRIGGS PRATHER girls – Lilla Briggs Prather was named after her mother, Lilla, and her father’s mother, Charity Briggs, both fairly common practices across the South from Colonial times through the mid-1900s. Her father, Jesse H. Prather, was mayor and a prominent manufacturer until his death in 1912. Briggs indicates someone who lived by a bridge. It is the Middle English turn on the Old Norse word, bryggia, meaning bridge. Left to right, Briggs Prather, Mary Fulton standing behind her and an unknown girl in a coat circa 1910.

KIZZIE JONES VENEBLE head shots– There were several women called Kizzie in this region in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Short for Kizziah it means ‘beautiful girl’ in various Middle Eastern languages. Kizzie Vashti Jones married Stephen Venable who served as Surry County sheriff in the 1880s which is likely when this portrait was made. Venable is a town in Normandy, France. It came to England via the Norman invasion under William the Conqueror in 1066. I have no idea where her middle name comes from yet.

SWANNANOAH HADLEY box – Swannanoah Brower Hadley seems to have been named for the North Carolina town and river of the same name. It is an Anglicized form of the Cherokee name for the trail that lead to the Cheraw tribe who lived to the east. Based on records made by Hernando de Soto’s expedition in 1540, the Cherow apparently called themselves something close to “Suwala.” The Cherokee called the trail to the Suwala/Cherow Suwa’li-nunnohi, ‘Suwali path,’ which, on the English tongue became Swannanoah. This velvet-covered Princess Pat toiletry box belonged to Swann who died in 1973 at 109 years old.

.neFileBlock {
margin-bottom: 20px;
}
.neFileBlock p {
margin: 0px 0px 0px 0px;
}
.neFileBlock .neFile {
border-bottom: 1px dotted #aaa;
padding-bottom: 5px;
padding-top: 10px;
}
.neFileBlock .neCaption {
font-size: 85%;
}

Plutina Greenwood, second from the left in this 1909 group, has a unique name. Plutina seems to be an invented name that shows up only a few times across the Southern US from the mid-19th century into the early 20th. It is most often seen in Surry, Stokes, Wilkes, and Yadkin counties. The earliest example I know of was Penelope Dickens born in 1804 in Surry County. She was called Plutina. The name also appears as the heroine of Waldron Baily’s novel “The Heart of the Blue Ridge” published in 1915. It was set in Wilkes County.

https://www.mtairynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/web1_Plutina-Greenwood.jpgPlutina Greenwood, second from the left in this 1909 group, has a unique name. Plutina seems to be an invented name that shows up only a few times across the Southern US from the mid-19th century into the early 20th. It is most often seen in Surry, Stokes, Wilkes, and Yadkin counties. The earliest example I know of was Penelope Dickens born in 1804 in Surry County. She was called Plutina. The name also appears as the heroine of Waldron Baily’s novel “The Heart of the Blue Ridge” published in 1915. It was set in Wilkes County.

The Snow family moved to Surry County from various places in Virginia before the American Revolution and have been involved in military, industry, and farming ever since. Snow first appears as a surname in 1221 and was likely a nickname for a man with white hair. It’s obvious they have a sense of humor about the family name with members named Frost And Snow, Early Snow, and I. C. Snow throughout the generations. Frost Thomas “Tee” Snow and his wife Mary Ann Wilmouth, seen here in the early 1900s, ran a store in Zephyr and were postmaster and postmistress for many years.

https://www.mtairynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/web1_Frost-T-Snow.jpgThe Snow family moved to Surry County from various places in Virginia before the American Revolution and have been involved in military, industry, and farming ever since. Snow first appears as a surname in 1221 and was likely a nickname for a man with white hair. It’s obvious they have a sense of humor about the family name with members named Frost And Snow, Early Snow, and I. C. Snow throughout the generations. Frost Thomas “Tee” Snow and his wife Mary Ann Wilmouth, seen here in the early 1900s, ran a store in Zephyr and were postmaster and postmistress for many years.

Lilla Briggs Prather was named after her mother, Lilla, and her father’s mother, Charity Briggs, both fairly common practices across the South from Colonial times through the mid-1900s. Her father, Jesse H. Prather, was mayor and a prominent manufacturer until his death in 1912. Briggs indicates someone who lived by a bridge. It is the Middle English turn on the Old Norse word, bryggia, meaning bridge. From left in this photo are Briggs Prather, Mary Fulton standing behind her and an unknown girl in a coat circa 1910.

https://www.mtairynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/web1_Briggs-Prather.jpgLilla Briggs Prather was named after her mother, Lilla, and her father’s mother, Charity Briggs, both fairly common practices across the South from Colonial times through the mid-1900s. Her father, Jesse H. Prather, was mayor and a prominent manufacturer until his death in 1912. Briggs indicates someone who lived by a bridge. It is the Middle English turn on the Old Norse word, bryggia, meaning bridge. From left in this photo are Briggs Prather, Mary Fulton standing behind her and an unknown girl in a coat circa 1910.

Swannanoah Brower Hadley seems to have been named for the North Carolina town and river of the same name. It is an Anglicized form of the Cherokee name for the trail that lead to the Cheraw tribe who lived to the east. Based on records made by Hernando de Soto’s expedition in 1540, the Cherow apparently called themselves something close to “Suwala.” The Cherokee called the trail to the Suwala/Cherow Suwa’li-nunnohi, ‘Suwali path,’ which, on the English tongue became Swannanoah. This velvet-covered Princess Pat toiletry box belonged to Swann who died in 1973 at 109 years old.

https://www.mtairynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/web1_Swannanoah-Makeup-Box.jpgSwannanoah Brower Hadley seems to have been named for the North Carolina town and river of the same name. It is an Anglicized form of the Cherokee name for the trail that lead to the Cheraw tribe who lived to the east. Based on records made by Hernando de Soto’s expedition in 1540, the Cherow apparently called themselves something close to “Suwala.” The Cherokee called the trail to the Suwala/Cherow Suwa’li-nunnohi, ‘Suwali path,’ which, on the English tongue became Swannanoah. This velvet-covered Princess Pat toiletry box belonged to Swann who died in 1973 at 109 years old.

There were several women called Kizzie in this region in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Short for Kizziah it means ‘beautiful girl’ in various Middle Eastern languages. Kizzie Vashti Jones married Stephen Venable, who served as Surry County sheriff in the 1880s, which is likely when this portrait was made. Venable is a town in Normandy, France. It came to England via the Norman invasion under William the Conqueror in 1066. I have no idea where her middle name comes from yet.

https://www.mtairynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/web1_Kizzie-Jones-Venable.jpgThere were several women called Kizzie in this region in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Short for Kizziah it means ‘beautiful girl’ in various Middle Eastern languages. Kizzie Vashti Jones married Stephen Venable, who served as Surry County sheriff in the 1880s, which is likely when this portrait was made. Venable is a town in Normandy, France. It came to England via the Norman invasion under William the Conqueror in 1066. I have no idea where her middle name comes from yet.

Source

Source: https://www.mtairynews.com