Amusing English surnames and their origins

Something fun for the weekend

The English only started to use surnames en masse in the 12 and 13th centuries and most were given to them as occupational names, habituational names (where they lived or had came from) or from personal characteristics. Many of these became corrupted over time. I am planning to write something more serious and boring about the history and development of English surnames soon.

But in the meantime here is a list of funny surnames and their origins.

1. Gotobed

The first person recorded as having this surname was John Gotobedde, who lived in Cambridge in 1269. The name originated from people who simply had a bed, which was rare in the 12th century. If someone was walking around their village boasting about this fact, it would probably have became the asset they were most known for.

2. Naggington

This is actually one of my family names, my great-great-grandad was John Naggington and he came from High Offley in Staffordshire. The name has several different spellings, among them: Nagginton, Nagington, Naginton. It originated as a place name in Shropshire, but no one is quite sure of its meaning. One theory is that it means a place to keep a horse. But who knows really.

3. Hardmeat

Some names are just mistakes. People couldn’t read or write and relied on their parish priests and clerks who registered their births, marriages and deaths to know. There is a village in England called Hardmead, near Milton Keynes. It is likely that Hardmead was this family’s surname originally but over time it ended up being broken down into ‘Hardmeat’ due to a series of mispronunciations or some inept parish clerks.

4. Bastard

This happens to be one of the oldest surnames in England, being around since the Norman Conquest in 1066. But not all Bastards are related. The surname quite literally means “child of illegitimate birth” and was applied to many illegitimate children who had been abandoned by their parents. Some tried to posh up the name by making B’Astard - much like Rik Mayall’s Alan B’Stard in the New Statesman.

5. Culpepper

Not particularly amusing but I like it all the same. It was an occupational name for a herbalist or spicer, with the cul coming from the Middle English cull(en) meaning to pluck or pick. Another possible meaning is that the ‘cul’ means ‘false’ and a Culpepper was a ‘false pepperer’ who traded outside the Fraternity of Pepperers.

6. Bytheseashore

I like this surname for its almost poetic quality. It is a location surname and would have be given to someone who lived close to the sea. Although some lived by lakes.

7. Pussmaid

This name has now disappeared, which is a shame. It was once part of a serious of cat names, including Puscat. They probably started as affectionate names for children.

8. Glasscock

Another location name. This one relating to Glascote, near Tamworth in Staffordshire that probably got its name from a glass blower having lived there. But you really do have to suspect that a few hundred years ago a parish priest was just having a laugh.

9. Roadman

In 1891 95% of Roadmans lived in Lancashire and the remaining 5% lived in Monmouthshire. It most likely came from someone whose job meant they had to travel a lot or from someone who built roads. Some names become funny with time.

10. Halfnaked

This surname probably doesn't come from an ancestor who stumbled around a medieval village without his trousers on. The first Halfnaked was Water de Halfenaked who lived in Sussex in the 14th century. His surname came from his manorial estate, which probably began as a variant name for ‘Halfacre.’