my 3rd great grandfather was a JOHN FALLAIZE LEWIS, baptised in 1835 in St Saviours, St Helier to a John Lewis and Grace Turner. Our family has often wondered about the origin of Fallaize, but we can see that the godparents were Thomas Fallaize and Francoise Joslin. I can't find evidence that these were related, but I have heard that godparents often were relations.
Yes, I agree that godparents were often relations, but I have a number of cases in this family where that isn't obviously so. However that may be a reflection on my lack of knowledge of the family.
Thomas Fallaize was from Guernsey, and his family seems to have been there for centuries. Presumably the surname originates from the town of Falaise in Normandy where William the Conqueror was born, and plenty of people in the Channel Islands had recent ancestry in Normandy. Françoise Joslin is something of an enigma, and it's certainly possible there is a connection there. Her parents were called François (Francis) Joslin or Goslin and Jeanne (Jane) Melet, Mailey, Mêlé or possibly even Kelly, but there trail goes cold for both. None of these are Jersey surnames (unless Melet is really a corruption of Mallet or Mollet), so I guess it's possible one or both of them might have come from the Tavistock area. I don't suppose you know of any similar names in John and Grace's family back in Tavistock? I can't identify anyone called Lewis or Turner in this branch of my family, aside from John Lewis Fallaize. After François's death, Jeanne married a Pierre Voisin and they had six children together. I mention that just in case that surname helps identify the connection.
Interestingly Richard, I see from your records that Thomas and Francoise had a son called John Lewis, born around the same time? I can only think that the families were close - unless you can shed any further light on the connection? Many thanks!
John Lewis Fallaize's godparents were listed as John Lewis and Grace Turner. That baptism was on 2 Dec 1832 at St Helier, so John Fallaize Lewis (who was baptised on 1 Feb 1835) was presumably John and Grace returning the compliment. But why did it happen in the first place? I cannot see a connection between the two families. They both lived in St Helier, but not close as far as I can see, and even then it was a big enough town that not everyone will have known everyone. Thomas Fallaize was variously described as a stonemason or house builder while John was described as a labourer, which could meany anything so I guess it's possible they worked together. By 1851, Françoise (Frances) Fallaize was described as a midwife on the census, so perhaps she had delivered one of the Lewis children? But this is all speculation.
