Kinship
In surnames taken from words indicating family relationship we come across some survivals of terms no longer used, or occurring only in rustic dialect. The Mid. Eng. eme, uncle, cognate with Ger. Oheim, has given Eames. In Chaucer’s Troilus and Criseyde, the heroine addresses Pandarus as “uncle dere” and “uncle mine,” but also uses the older word—
“‘In good feith, em,’ quod she, ‘that liketh me’ “(ii. 162); and the word is used more than once by Scott—
“Didna his eme die... wi’ the name of the Bluidy Mackenzie?”
(Heart of Midlothian, ch. xii.)
It is also one of the sources of Empson, which thus corresponds to Cousins or Cozens. In Neame we have a prosthetic n- due to the frequent occurrence of min eme (cf. the Shakespearean nuncle, Lear, i. 4). The names derived from cousin have been reinforced by those from Cuss, i.e. Constant or Constance (Chapter X). Thus Cussens is from the Mid. English dim. Cussin. Anglo-Sax. nefa, whence Mid. Eng. neve, neave, is cognate with, but not derived from, Lat. nepos. 1
This is now replaced as a common noun by the French word nephew, but it survives in the surname Neave. It also meant in Mid. English a prodigal or parasite, as did also Lat. nepos—
“Neve, neverthryfte, or wastowre” (Prompt. Parv.).
It is likely that Nevison and Nevinson are sometimes derivatives of this word.
Child was sometimes used in the special sense of youth of gentle blood, or young knight; cf. Childe Harold and Childe Rowland (Lear, iii. 4). But the more general meaning may be assumed in its compounds, of which the most interesting is Leifchild, dear-child, a fairly common name in Anglo-Saxon. The corresponding Faunt, whence Fauntleroy (Chapter XV), is now rare. Another word, now only used in dialect or by affectation, is “bairn,” a frequent source of the very common surname Barnes; cf. Fairbairn and Goodbairn, often perverted to Fairburn, Goodburn, Goodban. Barnfather is about equivalent to Lat. paterfamilias, but Pennefather is an old nickname for a miser—
“Caqueduc, a niggard, micher, miser, scrape-good, pinch-penny, penny-father; a covetous and greedy wretch” (Cotgrave).
The name Bastard was once considered no disgrace if the dishonour came from a noble source, and several great medieval warriors bore this sobriquet. With this we may compare Leman or Lemon, Mid. Eng. leof-man, dear man, beloved, and Paramor, Fr. par amour, an example of an adverbial phrase that has become a noun. This expression, used of lawful love in Old French, in the stock phrase “aimer une belle dame par amour,” had already an evil meaning by Chaucer’s time—
“My fourthe housbonde was a revelour,
This is to seyn, he hadde a paramour” (D, 453).
With these names we may put Drewry or Drury, sweetheart, from the Old French abstract druerie, of Germanic origin and cognate with true—
“For certeynly no such beeste
To be loved is not worthy,
Or bere the name of druerie.”
(Romaunt of the Rose, 5062.)
Suckling is a nickname applied to a helpless person; cf. Littlechild and “milksop,” which still exists, though rare, in the forms Milsopp and Mellsop. The heir survives as Ayre and Eyre. Batchelor, the origin of which is one of the etymological problems yet unsolved, had in Old French and Mid. English also the meaning of young warrior or squire. Chaucer’s Squier is described as—
“A lovyere and a lusty bacheler” (A, 80).
May, maiden, whence Mildmay, is used by Chaucer for the Holy Virgin
“Now, lady bright, to whom alle woful cryen,
Thow glorie of wommanhede, thow faire may,
Thow haven of refut, brighte sterre of day” (B, 850).
This is the same word as Mid. Eng. mai, relative, cognate with maid and Gaelic Mac- (Chapter VI). A form of it survives in the Nottingham name Watmough and perhaps in Hickmott—
“Mow, housbandys sister or syster in law” (Prompt. Parv.).
I imagine that William Echemannesmai, who owed the Treasury a mark in 1182, was one of the sponging fraternity.
Virgoe, a latinization of Virgin, is perhaps due to a shop-sign. Rigmaiden, explained by Lower as “a romping girl,” is local, from a place in Westmorland. Richard de Riggemayden was living in Lancashire in 1307. With this group of names we may put Gossip, originally a god-parent, lit. related in God, from Mid. Eng. sib, kin.
With names like Farebrother, Goodfellow, we may compare some of French origin such as Bonser (bon sire), Bonamy, and Bellamy
“Thou beel amy, thou pardoner, he sayde,
Telle us som myrth, or japes, right anon.”
(B, 318.)
Beldam (belle dame), originally a complimentary name for grandmother or grandam, has become uncomplimentary in meaning—
First Witch. “Why, how now, Hecate! you look angerly.”
Hecate. “Have I not reason, beldams as you are,
Saucy and overbold?” (Macbeth, iii. 5).
From the corresponding Old Fr. bel-sire, beau-sire, we have Bewsher, Bowser, and the Picard form Belcher
“The great belsire, the grandsire, sire, and sonne,
Lie here interred under this grave stone.”
(Weever, Ancient Funeral Monuments.)
Relationship was often expressed by the use of French words, so that for son-in-law we find Gender, Ginder, corresponding to Fr. Legendre. Fitch, usually an animal nickname (Chapter XXIII), is occasionally for le fiz, the son, which also survives as Fitz. Goodson, from the personal name Good (Chapter I), is sometimes registered as Fiz Deu. Cf. Fr. Lefilleul, i.e. the godson.
Notes
1 In all books on surnames that I have come across this is referred to Old Fr. le neve. There is no such word in old French, which has nom. niés, acc. neveu.