Two of the next three in my ‘rare Cornish surnames’ series have their roots east of the Tamar or straddle the border, while the third may possibly also fit that same category. There is a small hamlet called Crowden near Northlew, a few miles north west of Okehampton. This name, spelt Growden, was already found … Continue reading Cornish names with Devon roots
Category: surnames
Rare Cornish surnames explained. Perhaps.
Edward Bickerley was buried at St Ives in 1854. A few years later the only three Bickerley households appearing in the 1861 census were found less than ten miles to the east, at Gwinear. Was this distinctively Cornish yet very rare family name a respelling of Bickley (from the placename in Devon)? There were early … Continue reading Rare Cornish surnames explained. Perhaps.
Christmas offer
Stuck for something to buy that Cornish relative this Christmas? What better present could there be for someone of Cornish descent than a copy of the best-selling The Surnames of Cornwall? Moreover, as a pre-Christmas treat the ebook version of this will soon be available at the reduced price of £4.99 ($6.46/AU$9.47). And don't forget … Continue reading Christmas offer
Cornish surname conundrums and questions
What's the origin of these three rare Cornish surnames? The first Drowns were recorded close to the Tamar at Stoke Climsland and Lezant in 1544. Then a smattering of people with this surname popped up at various places across Cornwall in the later 1500s and 1600s in no particular pattern. Either the first Drowns were … Continue reading Cornish surname conundrums and questions
Tanners, talkers and trappers? Three Cornish nicknames.
These three rare Cornish surnames originated in nicknames or occupational names. Croggon is usually assumed to come for the Cornish word croghen (leather or skin) and be a name for a tanner. Its connection with Grampound’s tanning industry and its concentration in Grampound and Creed until the 1800s look to prove the point. The only … Continue reading Tanners, talkers and trappers? Three Cornish nicknames.
More rare Cornish surnames
Here are three relatively rare surnames that don’t appear in my book. All three were more likely to be met with in the 1600s in mid-Cornwall, on the north coast. Two of them definitely stem from placenames while the third is uncertain. The place Carevick in Cubert, near present-day Newquay, gave rise to the surname … Continue reading More rare Cornish surnames
Three more Cornish surname puzzles. Or are they?
Coplin Apart from the isolated example of Alice Copling, buried at St Columb in 1632, the name Coplyn first appeared in the Falmouth district in the 1670s and 1680s with baptisms and marriages at Mabe, Budock and St Gluvias. Does this geography, near the Fal estuary, indicate that it had arrived by sea? Is it … Continue reading Three more Cornish surname puzzles. Or are they?
Which is more ‘Cornish’, Stevens or Stephens?
In the 1950s the surname researcher Richard Blewett asked ‘are the Stevens at present in Cornwall descendants of Breton Celtic immigrants’, citing the Cornish revivalist Robert Morton Nance. This was repeated by G.Pawley White in 1972 who claimed that Stevens was the ‘Cornish form’ of Stephens. But is this actually the case? In 1881 both … Continue reading Which is more ‘Cornish’, Stevens or Stephens?
More Cornish surnames from places: Bosence, Buckthought and Carbines
Here are three more uniquely Cornish surnames that stem from placenames. In 1545 we find Richard and Thomas Bossens living at Sancreed in west Penwith. They no doubt lived at or were from the hamlet now spelt Bosence. Early 14th century spellings of Bosence were Boswyns or Boswens, which suggests the meaning was windy house. … Continue reading More Cornish surnames from places: Bosence, Buckthought and Carbines
Three surname puzzles: Badge, Bersey and Cheffers
These three surnames were all a lot more common in Cornwall in the later 1800s than anywhere else, but their origin is unclear or open to debate. If any reader has anything which will help clarify these particular puzzles do leave a comment. Badge might be a short version of Badger, which could apply to … Continue reading Three surname puzzles: Badge, Bersey and Cheffers
Cornish studies resources 