Abbey

If you lived near an abbey or worked at the abbey, then your name might be Abbey.

Harper

If you made harps or played harps, then your name might be Harper.

Blackburn

If you lived near a black stream, then your name might be Blackburn.

Barker

If you tanned leather, then your name might be Barker.

Cartwright

If you made carts for a living, then your name might be Cartwright.

Appleby

If you lived near an apple orchard or owned an apple orchard then your name might be Appleby.

The Shires of England

Some English surnames came from the shires of England. If your ancestors lived in that particular shire, then they might acquire the shire's name as their last name. Examples would be: Lincoln, Durham, Bedford, York, Kent, Westmoreland, and Buckingham.

Mercer

A mercer was someone who dealt in fine cloth. Therefore, if this was your occupation back in the fourteen hundreds then you name might be Mercer.

Stanwood

If you lived in a stony wood, then your name might be Stanwood.

Son Of Surnames

Many surnames in England developed because some people were named after their father. These type of names are called patronymic. Examples would be Richardson, which is the son of Richard and Robertson which is the son of Robert. In Scotland,"Mc," means son of, thus we have McDonald which is son of Donald. In Ireland, we have"Mac" which means son of. We also have"O," which means grandson of. Thus we have O'Quinn, O'Bannon, and O'Brian.

When William the Conquer came from Normandy to England, many French people came to the British Isles with him. They brought the term"Fitz" with them. This means son of in French. Thus we have Fitzgerald or son of Gerald.

The Welsh's term for son of was "Ap." Son of Owen was Ap Owen and over time became Bowen. Ap Rice became Price and Ap Richard became Prichard. Why it changed over the years I'm not sure.

Horner and Spooner

The name Horner comes from the occupation of making things from horns. Probably cow horns. Spoons were sometimes made from horns, so your name could be Horner or it might be Spooner.

Cliff-Clifton-Cleaver-Radcliff-Redcliff

If your name was Cliff, it was usually because you lived near a cliff. A cleave was a cliff; therefore, the name Cleaver. Clifton was a town on a cliff and if you lived near a cliff of red dirt and red rocks, your name might be Redcliff or Radcliff.

Hayward

The hayward was in charge of the fields that produced hay. He was also responsible for the hedges(fences) around the hayfield. This is how the name Hayward came about.

Sawyer

A person whose occupation was sawing trees into boards was called a sawyer. If you did this, your name might be Sawyer.

Draper

If someone made or sold cloth, then their name might be Draper.

Marshall

A marshall was a person whose occupation was to care for horses such as a groom. If you cared for horses your name might be Marshall.

Shaw

A shaw was a small wood or clearing with-in the trees. If you lived next to the shaw then your name might be Shaw.

Moore

If you lived near a marsh or bog your name might be Moore.

Prescott

Your name might be Prescott if you were the gardener at the priest's cottage, or maybe you were the cook at the priest's cottage.

Glover and Weaver

If your name is Glover, then your ancestors probably made or sold gloves. If your name is Weaver, then your ancestors did weaving.

Archer and Fletcher

An archer was a bowman, while a fletcher made arrows. So if your name is Archer or Bowman your ancestors derived their names from their occupations.

Cooper and Chandler

A cooper made barrels and a chandler made candles.

Thatcher and Tyler

The thatcher made roofs for houses usually out of sod and straw, while the tyler made tiles. Most often these tiles were used for roofs for churches and castles. So if your last name is Tyler or Thatcher your ancestors back in the 1200's acquired these names because of their occupation.

Hurst

A hurst was a grove of trees, usually fruit trees. So if you lived near a hurst or in a hurst your name might be hurst. (Saxon origin)

Coombs and Holcombe

Coombs is a valley between two hills and Holcombe is a wooded valley between two hills. So if you lived in a valley between two hills or a wooded valley between two hills then your name might be Coombs or Holcombe.

Surname Snooks

The surname Snooks was derived from the name Seven Oaks. If you lived near seven oak trees, then your name became Seven Oaks. Over the years Seven Oaks became Snoaks. The eve was dropped first. Then the a became an "o". Thus we have Snooks. This probably took about six hundred years to happen.

Surnames Croft-Bancroft-Ryecroft

If your last name was Croft, then you probably lived in a house next to an enclosed field used to grow a crop. Bancroft grew beans in their croft. Ryecroft grew rye in their croft.

Introduction

English surnames or last names came about around 1200 A.D. As the population began to increase, it was necessary to distinguish one individual from another. If you had five Johns living on a road, how would you know who paid their taxes? So people started to have two names.

Some names were derived from the persons father like Richardson, which is son of Richard. Some names came about because of where you lived like Churchhill. The Churchhills usually lived by the Church on the hill. Some names were derived from a characteristic such as white hair. Then your last name could be White. Finally, some names were derived from ones occupation such as Carter. One who carted goods to town.