Medieval Naming Guides: English Names 1450-1600
English Names 1450-1600
-
Faire Names for English Folk: Late
Sixteenth Century English Names, by Christian de Holacombe
- An excellent primer on late-period English names, including lists of
common men's and women's given names, a list of more than 1000
surnames, and discussion of patterns of name construction. This is a
great place to start!
- Feminine Given Names in
A Dictionary of English Surnames, by Talan Gwynek
- This dictionary, by P. H. Reaney, contains thousands of dated examples
of full names. Master Talan has collected all the period feminine
names cited in this work, which range from the Conquest to the end of
our period. This excellent piece of scholarship was previously
published in the proceedings of the Known World Heraldic Symposium in
1994. The names are presented here indexed by period: before 1250,
1250 to 1450, and after 1450.
-
"Misplaced" Names in Reaney & Wilson, by Jeanne Marie Lacroix
- A list of some medieval bynames in Reaney & Wilson's Dictionary
of English Surnames. Mostly 13th and 14th century, but some earlier
and later.
-
Surnames in Durham and Northumberland, 1521-1615, by Julie
Stampnitzky
- Over 5000 surnames recorded in Durham and Northumberland between 1521
and 1615.
- English Names from Pre-1600 Brass
Inscriptions, by Julian Goodwyn
- An analysis of names collected from a survey of English funerary
brasses. The data range from the 12th to the 16th century, but are
predominantly 15th and 16th century. The article offers alphabetical
lists of
masculine
and
feminine
given names with frequency counts; I have added lists sorted by
frequency, masculine and
feminine, using data from the
lady's original KWHS article. We've noticed some errors in the
article, so it's worth checking the original data in the
Monumental Brass index of the Ashmolean Library. Julian
included a link to the appropriate section of that website with
each citation in her article; unfortunately, the Ashmolean has
reorganized the website. The data can be found, organized by
county, under the 'catalogue' link.
- Ship Names from 1480-01,
by Maridonna Benvenuti
- Names of ships recorded in English customs documents.
- Given names
of women entered in the Guild of the Holy Cross, Our Lady, and
St. John the Baptist, Stratford-On-Avon, 1490-1534, by Douglas Galbi
- Part of Galbi's collection of lists of
Given Names in
England Before 1800, the names on these pages were collected
from J. Harvey Bloom, ed. (1907), The Register of the Gild of
the Holy Cross, the Blessed Mary and St. John the Baptist
(London: Phillimore & Co.). The database gives the date of record
in the first column, the actual spelling of the name in the
fourth, and a standard modern spelling in the last column. The
first few hundred names are from the first half of the 15th
century; the rest are late 15th-early 16th century.
-
An Index to the 1523 Subsidy Roll for York and Ainsty, England,
by Karen Larsdatter
- Lists of masculine & feminine given names and surnames.
- Names in Chesham, 1538-1600/1, by
Mari Elspeth nic Bryan
- A list of men's and women's given names and surnames collected from
the parish registers of Chesham.
- Women's
names from Warwick, 1538-1603, by Douglas Galbi
- Part of Galbi's collection of lists of
Given Names in
England Before 1800, the names on these pages were collected
from Richard Savage, The register of Solihull, Co. Warwick (Exeter:
Parish Register Society, 1904) and The registers of Stratford-on
Avon, in the county of Warwick (London: Parish Register
Society, 1905). The place where each name was recorded is given
in the first column, the year in the third, the original spelling
of the name in the fourth, and a standard modern spelling in the
last column.
- Naming Practices in 16th Century
Gloucestershire, by Mari Elspeth nic Bryan
- A survey of names and naming practices illustrated in Gloucester parish
registers, mostly from the second half of the 16th century. This article
analyzes the data presented in the following articles:
- Names and Naming Practices in the Registers of
the Church of St. Mary's, Dymock (Gloucestershire, England:
1538-1600/1), by Mari Elspeth nic Bryan
- The source lists several thousand names. The article currently offers
lists of men's and women's given names. The surname data is a work in progress.
-
Late 16th Century Gloucestershire Names, by Aryanhwy merch Catmael
- Lists of masculine and feminine given names and of surnames, taken
from marriage registers.
- Name Distribution in King's Stanley
Marriages: 1573-1600, by Mari Elspeth nic Bryan
- Lists of men's and women's given names and of surnames from 250 names
taken from a village marriage register.
- Index of Names in the 1541 Subsidy Roll of London, by Aryanhwy merch Catmael
- Names of English people and foreigners living in London.
- Index of Names in the 1582 Subsidy Roll of London, by Aryanhwy merch Catmael
- Names of English men and women and foreigners.
- Dictionary of Tudor London Names, by Aryanhwy merch Catmael
- An extended analysis of the same data as the previous two articles, with complementary data from the 1576 subsidy roll. Does not currently contain a discussion of the names of foreigners.
-
Names found in the Berkeley Hundred Court Rolls, by Aryanhwy merch
Catmael
- A list of 79 men and one woman mentioned in this 1543 document.
-
16th Century Names from Ormskirk Parish Registers, by Aryanhwy
merch Catmael
- A work in progress, currently offering lists of masculine and feminine
given names from this Lancastershire parish.
-
Names found in Maisemore, Glouchestershire Registers
1538-1600, by Aryanhwy merch Catmael
- Another collection of names from parish registers.
-
Biographical Index to the Elizabethan Theater, by David J Kathman
- A draft list of people involved in English theater between 1558 and
1642. Alternate spellings of names are given and all entries are
carefully referenced. This is a pretty good source for names,
particularly since it includes a large selection of dated surnames.
- Names Found in West Stow, West Suffolk Parish Registers 1558-1650, by Mari ingen Briain meic Donnchada.
- An analysis of 1360 names.
-
Names found in Frocester, Glouchestershire Marriage Registers
1559-1600, by Aryanhwy merch Catmael
- Lists of masculine and feminine given names and of surnames, taken
from marriage registers.
-
Names found in Rangeworthy Bishops, Glouchestershire, Registers
1575-1600, by Aryanhwy merch Catmael
- Lists of masculine and feminine given names.
- Names of Members of the Frobisher Voyages,
1576-1578, by Mari Elspeth nic Bryan
- An analysis of 583 names of men who participated in these explorations
of the New World. It includes lists of given names and surnames.
-
Alehouses in Derbyshire, 1577, transcribed by Eric Youle
- The text of a survey of alehouses with the names of alehouse keepers.
-
A list of people fined for not wearing caps to church in Sheffield,
1577, transcribed by Eric Youle
- The text of a period record, with mostly masculine names.
- Late Sixteenth Century English Given Names,
by Talan Gwynek
- An analysis of 6645 names appearing in court records from 1581 to
1595.
- Elizabethan Names,
by Gary Kephart
- Lists of masculine and feminine given names from a church register.
I have asked the author to tell me his source; I will post the details
when I get them. However, the list appears to be reliable.
- London Masters
of Defense, by Dylan ap Maelgwn