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Usenet Posted 19 years ago
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Etymology of Surnames?
Greetings,
A friend has asked me if I knew a site dedicated to the etymology of surnames and I came up blank, so I am looking for help.
The particular name she is interested in is: Snow, or Snowball. I pointed her to dictionary.com for the word "snow" rather than the name, where one sees:
(Origin: bef. 900; (n.) ME; OE snÄw; c. D sneeuw, G Schnee, ON snÇ£r, Goth snaiws, L nix (gen. nivis), Gk nÃps (acc. nÃpha), OCS snÄ?gÅ; (v.) ME snowen, deriv. of the n.; r. ME snewen, OE snÄ«wan; c. OHG snÄ«wan (G schneien), MLG, MD snÄ«en)
however she believes (hopes?) it is (exclusively) British.
URLs, references gratefully accepted.
-het
"We can bomb the world to pieces
But we can't bomb it into peace" -Michael Franti, Bomb the World
Terror War: http://www.autobahn.mb.ca/~het/terror war/twartn.html H.E. Taylor http://www.autobahn.mb.ca/~het/
A friend has asked me if I knew a site dedicated to the etymology of surnames and I came up blank, so I am looking for help.
The particular name she is interested in is: Snow, or Snowball. I pointed her to dictionary.com for the word "snow" rather than the name, where one sees:
(Origin: bef. 900; (n.) ME; OE snÄw; c. D sneeuw, G Schnee, ON snÇ£r, Goth snaiws, L nix (gen. nivis), Gk nÃps (acc. nÃpha), OCS snÄ?gÅ; (v.) ME snowen, deriv. of the n.; r. ME snewen, OE snÄ«wan; c. OHG snÄ«wan (G schneien), MLG, MD snÄ«en)
however she believes (hopes?) it is (exclusively) British.
URLs, references gratefully accepted.
-het
"We can bomb the world to pieces
But we can't bomb it into peace" -Michael Franti, Bomb the World
Terror War: http://www.autobahn.mb.ca/~het/terror war/twartn.html H.E. Taylor http://www.autobahn.mb.ca/~het/
Top answer
[nq:1]Greetings, A friend has asked me if I knew a site dedicated to the etymology of surnames and I came up blank, so I am looking for help. [/nq] The Oxford Dictionary of English Surnames has both. For "Snow," it has citations starting in 1221, and says "From Old English 'snaw', snow, a nickname for someone with white hair.
- [nq:1]Greetings, A friend has asked me if I knew a site dedicated to the etymology of surnames and I came up blank, so I am looking for help.
- [/nq] The Oxford Dictionary of English Surnames has both.
- For "Snow," it has citations starting in 1221, and says "From Old English 'snaw', snow, a nickname for someone with white hair.
- For "Snowball," citations begin 1301 Robert Snawbal.
- " Best Donna Richoux
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10 Answers
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[nq:1]Greetings, A friend has asked me if I knew a site dedicated to the etymology of surnames and I came up blank, so I am looking for help. The particular name she is interested in is: Snow, or Snowball.[/nq]
The Oxford Dictionary of English Surnames has both.
For "Snow," it has citations starting in 1221, and says "From Old English 'snaw', snow, a nickname for someone with white ha
The Oxford Dictionary of English Surnames has both.
For "Snow," it has citations starting in 1221, and says "From Old English 'snaw', snow, a nickname for someone with white ha
00
[nq:1]Greetings, A friend has asked me if I knew a site dedicated to the etymology of surnames and I came ... snīwan (G schneien), MLG, MD snīen) :however she believes (hopes?) it is (exclusively) British. URLs, references gratefully accepted. -het[/nq]
Googling for "etymology" and "surnames" turns up several sites, e.g.,
Googling for "etymology" and "surnames" turns up several sites, e.g.,
00
[nq:1]Greetings, A friend has asked me if I knew a site dedicated to the etymology of surnames and I came up blank, so I am looking for help.[/nq]
http://www.google.com/search?q=etymology+surnames
http://www.google.com/search?q=etymology+surnames
00
[nq:2]Greetings, A friend has asked me if I knew a ... it is (exclusively) British. URLs, references gratefully accepted. -het[/nq]
[nq:1]Googling for "etymology" and "surnames" turns up several sites, e.g., http://surnames.behindthename.com/
[nq:1]Googling for "etymology" and "surnames" turns up several sites, e.g., http://surnames.behindthename.com/
00
[nq:2]Greetings, A friend has asked me if I knew a ... particular name she is interested in is: Snow, or Snowball.[/nq]
[nq:1]The Oxford Dictionary of English Surnames has both. For "Snow," it has citations starting in 1221, and says "From Old ... a nickname for one with a snow-white patch of hair, or, possibly, with a whitish bald spot amid jetblack hair."[/nq]
Thank you Donna, that is go
[nq:1]The Oxford Dictionary of English Surnames has both. For "Snow," it has citations starting in 1221, and says "From Old ... a nickname for one with a snow-white patch of hair, or, possibly, with a whitish bald spot amid jetblack hair."[/nq]
Thank you Donna, that is go
00
[nq:2]The Oxford Dictionary of English Surnames has both. For "Snow," ... or, possibly, with a whitish bald spot amid jetblack hair."[/nq]
[nq:1]Thank you Donna, that is good to know, and will, I am sure, satisfy her query.[/nq]
I've always had an unquantified impression that "Snow"/"Snowy" is commoner as a nickname in Australia than in the Br Is. If the impression is right, why?
[nq:1]Thank you Donna, that is good to know, and will, I am sure, satisfy her query.[/nq]
I've always had an unquantified impression that "Snow"/"Snowy" is commoner as a nickname in Australia than in the Br Is. If the impression is right, why?
00
[nq:1]I've always had an unquantified impression that "Snow"/"Snowy" is commoner as a nickname in Australia than in the Br Is. If the impression is right, why?[/nq]
Instant reaction: Why not?
Nicknames vary by time and place as do given names. They are subject to fashion.
I don't recall having come across many "Snowy"s in the UK, but I think they all had the surname "White".
P
Instant reaction: Why not?
Nicknames vary by time and place as do given names. They are subject to fashion.
I don't recall having come across many "Snowy"s in the UK, but I think they all had the surname "White".
P
00
[nq:2]The Oxford Dictionary of English Surnames has both. For "Snow," ... or, possibly, with a whitish bald spot amid jetblack hair."[/nq]
[nq:1]Thank you Donna, that is good to know, and will, I am sure, satisfy her query.[/nq]
The behavior of H. E. Taylor is passing strange. It posted a query to (inter alia) sci.lang, but set the followups to aeu only; it then posted its thanks for a rep
[nq:1]Thank you Donna, that is good to know, and will, I am sure, satisfy her query.[/nq]
The behavior of H. E. Taylor is passing strange. It posted a query to (inter alia) sci.lang, but set the followups to aeu only; it then posted its thanks for a rep
00
[nq:2]The Oxford Dictionary of English Surnames has both. For "Snow," ... or, possibly, with a whitish bald spot amid jetblack hair."[/nq]
[nq:1]Thank you Donna, that is good to know, and will, I am sure, satisfy her query. -het[/nq]
The UK magazine Your Family Tree, December 2006 issue, had a bonus CD which contains a reproduction of Henry Harrison's Surnames of the United Kingdom publis
[nq:1]Thank you Donna, that is good to know, and will, I am sure, satisfy her query. -het[/nq]
The UK magazine Your Family Tree, December 2006 issue, had a bonus CD which contains a reproduction of Henry Harrison's Surnames of the United Kingdom publis
00
[nq:1] The UK magazine Your Family Tree, December 2006 issue, had a bonus CD which contains a reproduction of Henry Harrison's Surnames of the United Kingdom published in 1912. Might be of interest to you.[/nq]
Thanks.
I have passed it on.
-het
"The uncertainty of our times is no reason to be certain about hopelessness." -Vandana Shiva
Energy
Thanks.
I have passed it on.
-het
"The uncertainty of our times is no reason to be certain about hopelessness." -Vandana Shiva
Energy
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