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General => The Common Room => The Lighter Side => Topic started by: SmallTownGirl on Thursday 16 February 17 11:12 GMT (UK)
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Just been musing to myself about naming patterns in large families.
Say, for instance, there's a chap called John Smith who has seven sons who each have a son of their own. Following the English naming pattern strictly, all of these seven grandsons of John would also be called John. Wouldn't that make life rather confusing for everyone? Or would it be a case of the first-born grandson being called John and then the rest being "excused" using that name for another name from the pattern further down the list?
Perhaps I need to get out more? ;D
STG
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My husband's large family was easy to trace through the generations but in each generation only one son was named after the father. It just happens that in his direct line it goes Robert/John/Robert/John/George/John/Jack/John/Jonathan so they found ways round it, thankfully! ;D (and my husband's middle name is John ::) )
Pat
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Why couldn't all eldest grandsons have been named after same grandfather?
In our family there was a William Stevenson whose coffin was carried by 4 grandsons named William Stevenson. All the grandsons had nicknames (Willie of the Big House, Singing Willie, Carpenter Willie & one whose name escapes me at the moment) so there was no confusion either in the family or amongst people in the area.
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there was no confusion either in the family or amongst people in the area.
But there might be great confusion for their ancestors. Their nicknames wouldn't be of any help when trying to find their BMD certs, or census entries.
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But there might be great confusion for their ancestors. Their nicknames wouldn't be of any help when trying to find their BMD certs, or census entries.
The ancestors won't be confused as they are long dead. I guess you mean descendants ? ;)
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Just been musing to myself about naming patterns in large families.
Say, for instance, there's a chap called John Smith who has seven sons who each have a son of their own. Following the English naming pattern strictly, all of these seven grandsons of John would also be called John. Wouldn't that make life rather confusing for everyone? Or would it be a case of the first-born grandson being called John and then the rest being "excused" using that name for another name from the pattern further down the list?
Perhaps I need to get out more? ;D STG
Oh yes, desperately confusing.
I spent about 15 years thinking 2 sisters had married the same man. [i.e. The younger married her brother-in-law after he became a widower, which bothered me because I think that was considered illegal.]
BUT NO........ turned out they had married cousins who had the same name!! ;)
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It does mean you have to research very carefully and ensure you are following the correct line
If each of John SMITH's grandsons had a son and named him John SMITH and so ad infinitum!
As for nicknames - these are not recorded so you are relying on family stories and histories
My grandmother was always known by her husband's name; Mrs. Peter
There were at least seven people of the same name in the small townland she lived in either by birth or marriage
Many Irish women retained their maiden names.
The book Peig Sayers being a good example.
My Aunt was known by her maiden name all her life as her husband and three of his brothers all married a woman named Mary.
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Here in West Yorkshire you still hear folk referring to "our Jack " , your "Mary", "his Susan's Peter".
Though nowadays with smaller families and greater variety of names it is usually clear who is being referred to without needing to say who they"belong" to.
In the past and certainly in our tree, it must have been essential to do this in order to be sure exactly which (of many) Martha's, Hannah's, Eliza Mary's , Herbert s, etc etc you were talking about!
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Scotland did seem to adhere to naming patters more than in England.
Although my ancestor was the son of Matthew and Margaret Coombs and he named his first son Matthew and first daughter Margaret.
Sometimes such patterns can be helpful as well as confusing. Say if you found a Zebediah Bloggs born in 1800 in a parish in Suffolk and his mother was Mary Bloggs nee Soap, and you have not yet found her baptism but then come across a Mary Soap born a few miles away in 1775 the daughter of Zebediah Soap it can be a lead even if you need to confirm (or deny) a probable link.
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Just found a family on the 1881 census - head, wife, 3 grown-up children (one called Mary), and 2 granddaughters who were both called Mary, aged 5 and 2. Must have been confusing!
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there was no confusion either in the family or amongst people in the area.
But there might be great confusion for their ancestors. Their nicknames wouldn't be of any help when trying to find their BMD certs, or census entries.
No, actually quite easy to spot in official records since all lived in different locations and birth years were far enough apart to be sure of correct ones.