Angarad, Angharat, Anghared, Ankaret, Ankret, Ankrift, Ankritt, Enkret (Welsh) Various spellings, by mainly English clerics, of the Welsh feminine name Angharad ‘much loved one.’ The surname indicates a descendant of a woman so-named.
Angliss, Angless, Anglish see ENGLISH.
Ankaret see ANGHARAD.
Ankelsmith, Ankersmith see SMITH.
Ankret, Ankrift, Ankritt see ANGHARAD.
Annable, Anable, Annaple, Anniple, Hannibal, Hanniball, Honeyball, Honeybell, Honiball, Honneybell, Honniball, Hunnable, Hunneyball, Hunneybell, Hunnibal, Hunnibell (Eng) Descendant of Annable, a woman’s name which was originally Amable or Amabel, from Latin amabilis, lovable. Other forms of the name were Annaple (Scottish), Annabella, Arabella, Mabel.
Anwyl, Annwell, Annwill, Annwyl (Welsh) Descendant of Anwyl, which has the basic meaning ‘dear one.’
Appleby, Appledore, Appledram, Appleford, Applegarth, Applegate, Applegath, Appleshaw, Applethwaite, Appleton, Appletree, Applewhite, Appleyard (Eng) Someone who originally came from one of the many places so named, in each of which there was originally an ‘apple farm or orchard’. Apple and Appleman also occur, indicating a grower/seller of apples. Ablewhite is another form of Applethwaite. Apley, Appley and Apperley probably refer to a wood with wild apple trees.
Arable see ORABLE.
Arasmith see SMITH.
Arber see HARBER.
Arblaster see ALABASTER.
Archer (Eng) Occupational name of a bowman.
The Archers, ‘an everyday story of countryfolk’ centred on Dan and Doris Archer, has been broadcast since 1950, making it the longest-running BBC radio-serial.
Argue, Argument (Fre) Professor Weekley plausibly suggested in his Surnames that Argument is a form of the common French place name Aigremont, indicating someone who originally came from that place. Argue is likely to be from a similar source, eg one of the many French places which begin with an element such as Aigre or Aigue.
A firm of solicitors in Sligo, Ireland, has attracted a certain amount of publicity at various times because of the partners’ names - Argue and Phibbs.
Arkwright, Artrick, Hartrick, Hartwright, Hattrick (Eng) Occupational name for a ‘maker of bins, meal-chests.’ Many names ending in -wright are of this type, eg BOATWRIGHT, CHEESEWRIGHT, PLOWRIGHT, SHIPWRIGHT, WAINWRIGHT, WHEELWRIGHT, but in some cases this ending has replaced an original -ric, -rich, etc., in Old English personal names. Thus Godric has become both GOODRICH and GOODWRIGHT; Aethelric is concealed in ALLWRIGHT, ALLRIGHT, OLDWRIGHT; Bealdric survives as BOLDWRIGHT, BOLDRIGHT.
Arlington (Eng) Someone who came from one of the several places so-named because it was ‘Alfred’s or Aelfrith’s settlement,’ or ‘the earl’s settlement.’
Arliss see AIRRLESS.
Armour, Armor, Armsmith (Eng) Occupational name of an armourer.
Armstrong (Scot, Eng) Nickname for a strong man. The variant Strongitharm is also found.
A character in Sir Walter Scott’s Guy Mannering tells a stranger: ‘The folks hereabout are a’ Armstrongs and Elliots, and so the lairds and farmers have the names of their places that they live at - as for example, Tam o’ Todshaw, Will o’ the Flat, Hobbie o’ Sorbietrees … and then the inferior sort o’ people, ye’ll observe, are kend by sorts o’ by-names, as Glaiket Christie, and the Deuke’s Davie or Tod Gabbie, or Hunter Gabbie.’
Arnold, Arnald, Arnason, Arnatt, Arnaud, Arnhold, Arnison, Arnot, Arnott, Arnould, Arnson, Arnull (Eng) Descendant of Arnold, a Germanic personal name meaning ‘eagle rule.’ The name can also refer to an ancestor who came from one of the English places named because of a nearby ‘eagle hollow.’ The Scottish place name Arnot derives instead from Gaelic ornacht ‘barley.’
Arrowsmith, Arousmyth, Arowsmith, Arrasmith, Arsmith, Arusmyth (Eng) Occupational name of a maker of arrow heads.
Arrowsmith is a novel by the American writer Sinclair Lewis, about the life of an idealistic doctor, Martin Arrowsmith. Lewis was offered the Pulitzer Prize for the novel but turned it down.
Arthur see MACCARTNEY.
Artrick see ARKWRIGHT.
Arusmith see ARROWSMITH.
Ash, Aish, Asch, Asche, Ashall, Asham, Ashby, Ashcroft, Ashdown, Ashe, Ashenden, Asher, Ashfield, Ashford, Ashley, Ashman, Ashton, Ashurst, Ashwell, Ashwood, Ashworth, Aysh, Daish, Dash, Dashwood, Daysh, Esh, Naish, Nash, Nayshe, Rasch, Tasch, Tesche, Tesh (Eng) Dweller near an ash tree or trees, or someone who originally came from one of the many English places named for its ash trees.
Ashplant see ABSALOM.
Ashton, Ashurst, Ashwell, Ashwood, Ashworth see ASH.
Aspenlon see ABSOLOM.
Aspig, Aspol see GILLESPIE.
Aspland, Asplen, Asplin, Aspling see ABSOLOM.
Aston (Eng) Someone who came from one of the several places so-named because it was an ‘eastern settlement.’
Atack see OAK.
Atberry, Atbury see BURY.
Atfield see FIELD.
Atha, Athawes see ABADAM.
Atherden see DEAN.
Atherlee see LEE.
Atkin, Atkins, Atkinson see ADAM.
A private in the British Army became generically known as a Tommy or Tommy Atkins in the early years of the 19th century, when Thomas Atkins was used as a specimen name on Army forms in the same way that Richard Roe and John Doe were used on legal documents. No one has ever managed to trace a particular Thomas Atkins whose name was borrowed. Kipling has a poem called ‘Tommy’ in which occur the well-known lines:
Oh, it’s Tommy this, an’ Tommy that, an’ ‘Tommy, go away’;
But it’s ‘Thank you, Mr Atkins,’ when the band begins to play.
Atlee, Atley see LEE.
