Family Names of the United Kingdom 2
Lead Research Organisation:
University of the West of England
Department Name: Fac of Arts Creative Ind and Education
Abstract
The proposed project, referred to below as FaNUK2, is to enlarge and to significantly enhance, in five additional ways, the resource created by the previously funded FaNUK1 project (2010-14), which seeks to explain the linguistic origin of all family names (FNs) in the UK with 100 or more bearers in the baseline year of 1997, and to establish as far as possible their geographical distribution and history for the benefit of genealogists, family historians, academic linguists (philologists), historians, and human geographers, as well as interested members of the general public.
(1) This bid is for support principally to lower the threshold for inclusion of traditional, established FNs in the database from those with 100 or more bearers in our baseline year 1997 to those with 20 bearers or more in our updated baseline year 2012. This will involve conducting entirely new research on about 15,000 additional FNs, not one of which has ever been satisfactorily explained. The definition of "traditional, established" FNs for this purpose is as in the current project (FaNUK1): names present both in the 1881 census and in our 1997 (2012) data. When this is done we can reasonably claim to have presented as nearly complete an account of the family names of the UK as is achievable in the present state of documented knowledge.
The new resource will be enhanced by the addition of other material and of hypertext links to relevant web sites or other means of accessing that material, in the following ways:
(2) In the course of FaNUK1 we have incidentally assembled information about several thousand recent immigrant names whose frequency of between 50 and 99 in the 1997 data means that they fall outside the scope of the deliverable of FaNUK1. This information will now be checked, enhanced where practicable, and entered in FaNUK2, though without further systematic research in all relevant languages.
(3=) At present, the database does not systematically explain the origin of place-names (like Worcester) or topographical descriptions (like Bourne, 'stream') which give rise to FNs. There are many such FNs, and we have agreement in principle with the English Place-Name Society (EPNS) to use its collected data to explain their origin for users of FaNUK2. This information will be made available through the JISC-funded DEEP project, whose purpose is precisely to make EPNS material available to academic projects and other academic users. Our present wish is to include a button in database entries which will take users directly to EPNS-derived material in the form of a summary etymology. This could be done for many though not all of the relevant place-names.
(3=) At present, the database does not systematically explain the origin of the given-names ("first names") underlying FNs of relationship; for example, the words behind names of Continental Germanic origin such as *Alice* or the Anglo-Saxon *Edmund* are not explained. This will be done for the 400 or so names for which it is relevant, though a certain amount of original research will be needed on some name-elements.
(5) We have negotiated with the author of the British Surname Atlas, Stephen Archer, for permission to use or adapt certain FN distribution maps in the research database which will constitute the output deliverable to AHRC.
(6) We will return to those relatively few difficult names which eluded explanation in FaNUK1 (because of time constraints) and which we already believe are capable of being resolved with further philological and documentary (historical and geographical) work.
Our estimate of the length of time in which all this could be achieved is 33 months.
(1) This bid is for support principally to lower the threshold for inclusion of traditional, established FNs in the database from those with 100 or more bearers in our baseline year 1997 to those with 20 bearers or more in our updated baseline year 2012. This will involve conducting entirely new research on about 15,000 additional FNs, not one of which has ever been satisfactorily explained. The definition of "traditional, established" FNs for this purpose is as in the current project (FaNUK1): names present both in the 1881 census and in our 1997 (2012) data. When this is done we can reasonably claim to have presented as nearly complete an account of the family names of the UK as is achievable in the present state of documented knowledge.
The new resource will be enhanced by the addition of other material and of hypertext links to relevant web sites or other means of accessing that material, in the following ways:
(2) In the course of FaNUK1 we have incidentally assembled information about several thousand recent immigrant names whose frequency of between 50 and 99 in the 1997 data means that they fall outside the scope of the deliverable of FaNUK1. This information will now be checked, enhanced where practicable, and entered in FaNUK2, though without further systematic research in all relevant languages.
(3=) At present, the database does not systematically explain the origin of place-names (like Worcester) or topographical descriptions (like Bourne, 'stream') which give rise to FNs. There are many such FNs, and we have agreement in principle with the English Place-Name Society (EPNS) to use its collected data to explain their origin for users of FaNUK2. This information will be made available through the JISC-funded DEEP project, whose purpose is precisely to make EPNS material available to academic projects and other academic users. Our present wish is to include a button in database entries which will take users directly to EPNS-derived material in the form of a summary etymology. This could be done for many though not all of the relevant place-names.
(3=) At present, the database does not systematically explain the origin of the given-names ("first names") underlying FNs of relationship; for example, the words behind names of Continental Germanic origin such as *Alice* or the Anglo-Saxon *Edmund* are not explained. This will be done for the 400 or so names for which it is relevant, though a certain amount of original research will be needed on some name-elements.
(5) We have negotiated with the author of the British Surname Atlas, Stephen Archer, for permission to use or adapt certain FN distribution maps in the research database which will constitute the output deliverable to AHRC.
(6) We will return to those relatively few difficult names which eluded explanation in FaNUK1 (because of time constraints) and which we already believe are capable of being resolved with further philological and documentary (historical and geographical) work.
Our estimate of the length of time in which all this could be achieved is 33 months.
Planned Impact
Those likely to be interested in and benefit from the proposed project include:
1. Amateur and professional genealogists and family historians, mainly outside academia
The principal value of the resource created will be as a guide to surname variation and distribution, helping researchers to pursue or discard hypothesized family links.
2. Archivists and cataloguers
A by-product of the research done for FaNUK1, continuing into FaNUK2, will be the creation of medieval <--> modern surname indexes which can be used by cataloguers. Some advance work has already been embarked on to this effect with The National Archives.
3. Members of the public participating in the current considerable level of popular interest in family history
4. Teachers using the FaNUK material as an aid when dealing with cultural and historical issues, especially concerning identity
We believe that the work is likely to be of considerable interest to the general public, will serve to increase the amount of reliable knowledge in public circulation in an area which is pursued by many people both seriously and as a hobby, and will thereby enhance quality of life.
The public impact will be felt piecemeal, name-search by name-search, immediately on publication.
*** Research and professional skills which staff working on the project will develop which is applicable in a range of employment sectors include:
1. Organizing very large quantities of complex data
2. Computation database and spreadsheet management
3. Giving public presentations taking research methods and findings beyong academia, i.e. introducing non-academic audiences to the findings of scholarly research in a "user-friendly" style and thereby contributing to a perception of the "accessibility" and "relevance" of academic work in the humanities.
4. Giving presentations of the project material in schools with a view to stimulating historical and linguistic awareness and contributing to debate about identity
1. Amateur and professional genealogists and family historians, mainly outside academia
The principal value of the resource created will be as a guide to surname variation and distribution, helping researchers to pursue or discard hypothesized family links.
2. Archivists and cataloguers
A by-product of the research done for FaNUK1, continuing into FaNUK2, will be the creation of medieval <--> modern surname indexes which can be used by cataloguers. Some advance work has already been embarked on to this effect with The National Archives.
3. Members of the public participating in the current considerable level of popular interest in family history
4. Teachers using the FaNUK material as an aid when dealing with cultural and historical issues, especially concerning identity
We believe that the work is likely to be of considerable interest to the general public, will serve to increase the amount of reliable knowledge in public circulation in an area which is pursued by many people both seriously and as a hobby, and will thereby enhance quality of life.
The public impact will be felt piecemeal, name-search by name-search, immediately on publication.
*** Research and professional skills which staff working on the project will develop which is applicable in a range of employment sectors include:
1. Organizing very large quantities of complex data
2. Computation database and spreadsheet management
3. Giving public presentations taking research methods and findings beyong academia, i.e. introducing non-academic audiences to the findings of scholarly research in a "user-friendly" style and thereby contributing to a perception of the "accessibility" and "relevance" of academic work in the humanities.
4. Giving presentations of the project material in schools with a view to stimulating historical and linguistic awareness and contributing to debate about identity
Publications
Coates, R.
(2014)
Blackbeard's surname.
in Nomina
McClure, P.
(2015)
English topographic surnames with fused Anglo-Norman preposition and article: myth or reality?
in Nomina
Parkin, H.
(2015)
Family Names of the United Kingdom
in Nomina
Coates, R.
(2015)
Personennamen und Recht in Grossbritannien aus sprachwissenschaftlicher Sicht.
in Namenkundliche Informationen
Hanks, P.W.
(2016)
Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain and Ireland (4 volumes)
Hanks, P. W.
(2016)
The Oxford Handbook of Names and Naming.
Coates R
(2017)
Nigel of Canterbury's Surname(s) and a Specious Link with Guernsey
in Notes and Queries
Coates, R.
(2017)
The 99-year surname and God, by proxy.
in Journal of the Guild of One-Name Studies
Rambousek A
(2018)
Software Tools for Big Data Resources in Family Names Dictionaries
in Names
Rambousek A
(2019)
Software Tools for Big Data Resources in Family Names Dictionaries
Names: A Journal Of Onomastics
(2019)
Corrigendum
in Names
McClure P
(2020)
Migrants in Medieval England, c. 500-c. 1500
McClure, Peter
(2021)
Ar Drywydd Enwau Lleoedd: a festschrift in honour of Gwynedd Pierce
Parkin Harry
(2021)
The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain
Parkin, H.
(2021)
The concise Oxford dictionary of family names in Britain
Ogden, Trevor
(2021)
Are surnames from Old Norse personal names more frequent in areas of Viking settlement than elsewhere in Norfolk?
in Academia Letters
Muhr Kay
(2021)
The Oxford Dictionary of Family Names of Ireland
Cullen, P.
Locative surnames in East Anglia
Description | Discovery of the origin of many surnames currently found in the UK and Ireland, and correction of previous explanations of many others: in total about 46000 names have been explained in the published Dictionary (2016). Some 10,000 more above our working frequency threshold were identified during the course of FaNUK 2 research for future publication, as well as many more already identified rarer ones for possible public dissemination if/when time and funding and resources permit. Funding is being sought for bringing this collection of information to the public. [February 2021: Much additional work has been done, and continues to be done, by team members since the end of the award to improve, fine-tune and correct the research database entries where necessary with a view to a second edition of the OUP 4-volume dictionary (first edition 2016).] |
Exploitation Route | Expected to be of lasting public interest to the community of genealogists, professional and otherwise, in helping to establish or corroborate family histories. Team members continue to work on the database, including corrections and improvements, with a view to possible further bids for funding to develop the project in different directions. We also hope to produce a concise version of the database material for paper publication. Both these possibilities are under active discussion, and publication of the concise version is in prospect. Considerable use has been made of the findings in the preparation of the forthcoming Dictionary of American Family Names. [February 2021: The Concise dictionary, edited by Harry Parkin of the University of Chester, is presently at press with OUP and publication is expected in 2021/22. The Dictionary of American Family Names, edited by Patrick Hanks and Simon Lenarcic is also about to be delivered to OUP New York.] |
Sectors | Education Leisure Activities including Sports Recreation and Tourism Culture Heritage Museums and Collections |
URL | https://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-oxford-dictionary-of-family-names-in-britain-and-ireland-9780199677764?cc=gb&lang=en& |
Description | Please see report on the first FaNUK project, of which this is an extension; what is said there is valid here. (I have entered the following here because I could not identify a more satisfactory place.) Public engagement with the project has been demonstrated by numerous (30-40 in 2020 alone and several during the pandemic) submissions to the research team, either as a result of public lectures or direct contact with team members or with OUP, which have resulted in new information leading to improvements or corrections to individual database entries. The team members provided the direct stimulus for these contributions to knowledge which would probably not otherwise have seen the light of day. |
First Year Of Impact | 2020 |
Sector | Education,Leisure Activities, including Sports, Recreation and Tourism,Culture, Heritage, Museums and Collections |
Impact Types | Cultural |
Title | Databasing software |
Description | Customized lexicographical databasing software provided by Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic Also for *Research databases and models* section |
Type Of Material | Improvements to research infrastructure |
Provided To Others? | No |
Impact | None external to the research team's methodology and practice |
Title | Family Names of Britain and Ireland database |
Description | Published massive annotated database of all family names with more than 100 bearers in 1881 and/or 2011. The underlying research database is even more massive, and will eventually enable the treatment of more infrequent surnames. |
Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
Provided To Others? | No |
Impact | Considerably increased use of electronic resources within the project involving significant development work on the form of the database itself. Potential model for other projects to be described in upcoming invited events. Prospect of further funding bids involving computational and statistical manipulation of the material in the research database and associated databases. |
Description | Catalogue initiative |
Organisation | The National Archives |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Public |
PI Contribution | Preparation of (possibly funded) work to apply the findings of the project in cataloguing initiatives, and for statistical analysis of the relation between surnames and locations. [After significant discussions, this did not happen.] |
Collaborator Contribution | Making available material from the PROB 11 and Chancery Proceedings collections |
Impact | No formal outcomes yet; funding bid anticipated at the date of original writing |
Start Year | 2010 |
Description | Dictionary of American Family Names (DAFN) |
Organisation | Oxford University Press |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Private |
PI Contribution | This is not strictly a partnership, but I was not sure where else to report it. OUP is engaged in producing a second edition of its Dictionary of American Family Names, lead editor Prof. Patrick Hanks, who was lead researcher on the FaNUK and FaNUK2 projects. DAFN will incorporate a significant amount of newly created knowledge from the FaNUK project. Publication due 2021/22. |
Collaborator Contribution | Substantial number of FaNBI dictionary entries used in creating corresponding entries in DAFN. |
Impact | Publication expected 2012/22. |
Start Year | 2017 |
Description | Family Names databasing |
Organisation | Masaryk University |
Country | Czech Republic |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Facilitation of the work of a Masaryk PhD student, Adam Rambousek |
Collaborator Contribution | Provision of databasing software and support for the project research database in the form of hosting, maintenance and troubleshooting |
Impact | The outputs are the research database in its current state, and the version now published by OUP Linguistics, onomastics, computational lexicography |
Start Year | 2010 |
Description | Family Names databasing |
Organisation | Masaryk University |
Country | Czech Republic |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Overarching research concept and design, maintenance of research database, facilitation of continued access. |
Collaborator Contribution | Lexicographical computing expertise. |
Impact | Fully detailed in Publications. |
Start Year | 2010 |
Description | 2 contributions to media, BBC Radio Coventry Warwickshire and BBC News Online |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Radio: response to specific listener query Online: response to query arising from current news |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
Description | Correspondence with general public about individual family names |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | There is no suitable classification provided for one of our most frequent public engagement activities, namely responding to individual public queries, and engaging in dialogue which either improves the contact's knowledge or enables improvements to the research database. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014,2015,2016,2017,2018,2019,2020,2021,2022 |
Description | Lecture at conference in memory of George Redmonds, Huddersfield Local History Society |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | 2019 (23 November). 'George Redmonds and the Making of English Surnames', paper given at the Huddersfield Local History Society one-day conference in memory of George Redmonds, at Brian Jackson House, Huddersfield. The talk made a lot of use of FaNBI data, some of which had been generously provided by George Redmonds himself. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Lecture to Huddersfield Local History Society |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Other audiences |
Results and Impact | Lecture in memory of genealogist and surname historian George Redmonds |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Outreach session: lecture |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Schools |
Results and Impact | This was given by Dr Harry Parkin for the University of Chester's Kitchen Sessions, which are a series of short live video presentations on the research interests of lecturers. They are aimed at the general public and potential students. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
URL | https://www1.chester.ac.uk/events/language-surnames |
Description | Outreach session: lecture, accessible https://vimeo.com/389220917 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Talk at Chester's Storyhouse Theatre as part of their Lunchtimes Lectures series, looking at how surnames and their early forms can tell us about language and local history. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
Description | Press releases at time of award and completion of project |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Requests for interviews from national and local radio and print journalists (about 38). These generated follow-up requests for information and/or interviews from local print journals and radio stations. Together, these publicity activities provoked some 200+ emails requesting further information and in some cases providing usable detailed information for the future development of the Family Names project. Requests for interviews and public talks; supply of information by interested members of the public |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2010,2011,2012,2014,2016,2017,2018 |
Description | Public lecture/workshop |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Talk by Prof. Patrick Hanks on English surnames, with special reference to Northamptonshire, to the Northants Association of Family History societies. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
Description | Public lectures |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | At least 20 presentations to U3A and genealogist organizations, local history societies, and occasional fully public demonstrations. Many questions were raised and there was much discussion afterwards in all instances, based on demonstrations of the research database; some useful new information was provided to the project by the public on numerous occasions. Some requests for talks to other bodies |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2010,2011,2012,2013,2014,2015,2016,2017,2018,2019,2021 |
Description | Radio interviews |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
Results and Impact | The project has generated much media interest resulting in interviews relating specifically to family names, with knock-on interest in wider linguistic issues from radio stations and other media already acquainted with the work of team members. Some email follow-ups from public |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2010,2011,2012,2013,2014,2016,2017,2018 |
Description | Response to journalist's inquiry, Washington Post |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
Results and Impact | Contribution to article by Caroline Kitchener |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
URL | https://www.thelily.com/the-tradition-of-taking-a-mans-last-name-is-unquestionably-sexist-this-new-t... |
Description | School visits (Bristol) |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Local |
Primary Audience | Schools |
Results and Impact | Questions and discussion based on pupil and teacher interest, satisfying requirements of KS2 History Possible further such events mooted |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014,2015,2016,2017 |
Description | Several academic papers, publication if any to be reported in 2021 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Post-paper technical discussion |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Sixth form summer school (Nottingham) |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an open day or visit at my research institution |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Schools |
Results and Impact | About 50-60 pupils attended for a school visit to the University of Nottingham, which sparked reported interest afterwards. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Surnames, language and identity in Cheshire (Dr Harry Parkin) |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Historically oriented lecture to general public. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
Description | The Family Names of the UK project: retrospect and prospect (Moscow City Pedagogical University) |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | Purpose: to develop interest in English onomastics in Russia. Lecture videoed for further transmission; no personal follow-up because of COVID-19 restrictions in Russia, therefore impact hard to calculate. PowerPoint available at http://www.mgpu.ru>FaNUK-Moscow. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
URL | http://www.mgpu.ru |