The Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain and Ireland

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The Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain and Ireland

Edited by Patrick Hanks, Richard Coates, and Peter McClure

Covers over 45,000 family names in the UK, including immigrant names
Each entry includes the current and 1881 frequencies of the name, its main GB location, and its language or culture of origin
Each main entry explains the name's origins and history, supported by a selection of early bearers taken from a wide range of sources such as wills, tax records, court records, parish registers, Nonconformist circuit records, and many other documents
Entries for variants direct the reader to the main entry where the history and etymology of the name is covered
Contains a full list of published and unpublished sources consulted
Introductory essay explains the origin, history, and typology of family names in Britain, Ireland, and elsewhere in the world, the research methods used, the sources used. and some of the problems encountered in researching family names
Explains many surnames never previously explained and corrects many widely believed errors in the light of new evidence

The Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain and Ireland

Edited by Patrick Hanks, Richard Coates, and Peter McClure

Description

Containing entries for more than 45,000 English, Scottish, Welsh, Irish, Cornish, and immigrant surnames, The Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain and Ireland is the ultimate reference work on family names of the UK. The Dictionary includes every surname that currently has more than 100 bearers.

Each entry contains lists of variant spellings of the name, an explanation of its origins (including the etymology), lists of early bearers showing evidence for formation and continuity from the date of formation down to the 19th century, geographical distribution, and, where relevant, genealogical and bibliographical notes, making this a fully comprehensive work on family names.

This authoritative guide also includes an introductory essay explaining the historical background, formation, and typology of surnames and a guide to surnames research and family history research. Additional material also includes a list of published and unpublished lists of surnames from the Middle Ages to the present day.

The Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain and Ireland

Edited by Patrick Hanks, Richard Coates, and Peter McClure

Table of Contents

Introduction
Glossary of Terms
List of Source Documents
A-Z of family names of Britain and Ireland

The Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain and Ireland

Edited by Patrick Hanks, Richard Coates, and Peter McClure

Author Information

Professor Patrick Hanks holds research professorships at the Bristol Centre for Linguistics in the University of the West of England, and at the Research Institute of Information and Language Processing in the University of Wolverhampton. He is an expert lexicographer, corpus linguist, and onomastician.

Professor Richard Coates is a Professor in Linguistics at the University of the West of England. He is particularly interested in the area where linguistics, history, and geography meet and specializes in onomastics, historical change in northern and western European languages, and dialectology. He is Hon. Director of the Survey of English Place-Names and Vice-President of the International Council of Onomastic Sciences.

Dr Peter McClure is an Honorary Research Fellow and former Senior Lecturer in English Language and Literature at the University of Hull. He has published widely on the origins and historical implications of English given names and surnames, and on the methodology of anthroponymic research and anthroponymic dictionaries. He is President of the Society for Name Studies in Britain and Ireland (2014-17), a Vice-President of the English Place-Name Society, and an onomastic consultant to the Oxford English Dictionary.

Contributors:

Project team
Editor-in-chief: Patrick Hanks
Principal investigator: Richard Coates
Principal etymologist: Peter McClure
Research Associates: Paul Cullen, Simon Draper, Harry Parkin, Duncan Probert
Researchers, Irish names: Kay Muhr, Liam Ó hAisibéil
Editorial Research Associate: Kate Hardcastle
Database manager: Adam Rambousek
Project coordinator: Deborah Cole
Editorial Assistant: Jennifer Scherr

Consultants and contributors
Database population: Richard Webber
Census Analysis: Steve Archer
Scottish names: Matthew Hammond, Tom Turpie, Thomas Clancy, Simon Taylor
Welsh names: Prys Morgan
Cornish names: Oliver Padel
Jewish names: Daniel Morgan-Thomas
Indian names: Rocky Miranda
Arabic and Muslim names: James Hodsdon
Chinese names: Horace Chen
Korean names: Gary Mackelprang
Nigerian names: Eunice Fajobi

The Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain and Ireland

Edited by Patrick Hanks, Richard Coates, and Peter McClure

Reviews and Awards

"The pedigree of the work is excellent and in keeping with the scholarly reputation of works from Oxford University Press. All three editors are highly regarded experts in the study of names and lexicology. The work is the result of extensive research into family names covering British and Irish family names." -- Diana Dixon, Reference Reviews

The Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain and Ireland

Edited by Patrick Hanks, Richard Coates, and Peter McClure

From Our Blog

The history behind selected family names in Britain and Ireland [map]

We all have a surname, but how many of us know anything about its roots ' origin, history, and what it means today? Family names are evidence of the diverse language and cultural movement of people who have settled in Britain and Ireland over history. Surnames can be varied, but not uncommon - for example there a large amount of occupational names like Smith and Baker.

Posted on December 6, 2016

Read the blog post