Curiosities of Puritan Nomenclature

by Charles Wareing Endell Bardsley

CURIOSITIES OF PURITAN NOMENCLATURE : One grows too fat, another too lean: modest Matilda, pretty pleasing Peg, sweet-singing Susan, mincing merry Moll, dainty dancing Doll, neat Nancy, jolly Joan, nimble Nell, kissing Kate, bouncing Bess with black eyes, fair Phillis with fine white hands, fiddling Frank, tall Tib, slender Sib, will quickly lose their grace, grow fulsome, stale, sad, heavy, dull, sour, and all at last out of fashion.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Religion

292 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1880

About the author

Rev. Charles Wareing Endell Bardsley was born in 1844 in Burnley, Lancashire, the sixth son of Rev. James Bardsley. He attended the Manchester Grammar School and Worcester College, Oxford, where he earned a B.A. and M.A. He held a number of clerical posts, including curate at St. Luke's, Cheetham, curate at St. Paul's, Kersal, and vicar of Ulverston, Lancashire. Bardsley held the latter post for fifteen years and resigned in 1893 due to failing eyesight. In 1873 he married Annie Pearson of Manchester. Bardsley wrote many genealogical and antiquarian works such as Our English Surnames (1873) and Memorials of St. Ann's Church, Manchester (1877). In addition, he wrote the novel John Lexley's Troubles (1877). He retired to Oxford where he died in 1898.

From Victorianresearch.org.

Reviews

[Nemo ☠️ · Rating 5 out of 5]

i really like linguistics and onomatology so even though it could be said it's a tad dry, i didn't mind because i found the exploration of how names evolved in england to be really interesting. i would probably have given this five stars even if there hadn't been the section on puritan names, and the second half really was just the icing on the cake.

some of my favourite names mentioned in this book are:

- Kill-Sin
- Flie-Fornication
- If-Christ-had-not-died-for-thee-thou-hadst-been-damned (my child's name)
- No-Merit (me tbh)

and these excellent puns using surnames by some truly evil parents:

- Lemon Peel
- the brothers Jolly Death and Sudden Death
- Christmas Carrol
- Cannon Ball
- brothers Nothing New and Something New
- Pepper Mixer

[Shane Moore · Rating 3 out of 5]

A generally dry and thoroughly cited examination of the development of naming conventions among Puritans in England from 1560 to 1660, which briefly touches on the general English naming practices between the Norman conquest of 1066 and the end of the period in question.

During the height of the most unconventional naming crazy a pair of brother were named: "Jesus-Christ-came-into-the-world-to-save Barebone" and "If-Christ-had-not-died-for-thee-thou-hadst-been-damned Barebone", whose friends just called him "Damned Barebone".

Orphans found abandoned someplace would be named after the place, with "Mary Porch" and "John City Hall" as the best examples.

For anyone who does not have an especial interest in this book, I recommend skipping to the back and reading the names listed in the index of names, which include:

Anger, Ashes, Blaze, Bride, Cannon, Centurian, China Ware, Church-reform, Continent, Creature, Crestolot, Custance, Die-well, Dowsabel, Eli-lama-Sabachthani, Emperor, Experience, Faint-not, Fight-the-good-fight, Flie-fornication, From-above, Hate-bad, Humiliation, Job-rakt-out-the-asshes, Johnamaria, Judas-not-Iscariot, Kerenhappuch, Live-loose, Love-lust, Mahershalalhashbaz, Nab, Northamtonia, Nothing, Peacock, Properjohn, Revolt, Rutterkin, Sandercock, Sirs, Tribulation, Weakly, Wrestling

This book is available in the Public Domain, online at this website. If you want to follow my recommendation, you can navigate to the index at the end of the volume by clicking the visible page edges on the right side.

[Mary Catelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

A somewhat broader treatment, since it starts with the Norman Conquest, to set the stage. Witty in a dry academic manner. Sometimes goes into lists of instances of name to prove their use. A 19th century work so limited to before that time.

The Norman Conquest completely changed the name pool, and vastly shrank it, giving rise to numerous nicknames, down to ones with double diminutives. It also discusses religious names in use prior to the Reformation.

Then it goes into the effect of the Reformation and the Puritans in particular -- which drove out many of the religious names, even from the Bible. And introduced new ones. And the limited number of nicknames for them.

Then it goes into other techniques, such as virtue names, and the compound names that were sentences or phrases, and more. Rounds off with a discussion of the effect on American names.

Concludes with discussion of double names.

[Yicheng Liu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating read on the nomenclature of Puritan names, English evolution of Surnames and Given Names. This scholarly work is a riveting read for a long day and a somewhat informative read on certain naming conventions and how it came into being.

Would reccomend.

[Melissa]

Genealogy book

[Daniel Wood · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best book I’ve ever read 😂😂😂😂

[Tyrannosaurus regina · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's always a bit of a struggle to use the star system for non-fiction books. I ask myself these questions: Did it do what it said it was going to do? Was it interesting? Was it informative? In this case, yes yes and yes. I might be a bit dubious about some of his conclusions, wrapped up in prejudicial language as they were, but the research and presentation was fascinating. I can only imagine what this poor man would make of twentieth and twenty-first century nomenclature, though. (He who wondered if Dolly might make a late-twentieth-century resurgence, and who understandably could not have foreseen the independent rise of Tiffany from its origins as a relatively uncommon English form of Theophania.)

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating book written in 1888 on the study of 17th century Puritan names. Discusses the origins of Puritanical names such as Faith, Charity, Constance, Silence, Desire, Reason, Makepeace, etc. Some names were even more strange, like Humiliation, Abstinence, Lament, and Repentance. There are certain hyphenated names that go as far as Judas-not-Iscariot, More-fruit, and Sorry-for-sin. Real people, real names!

[Elizabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have serious doubts about the accuracy of some of the facts the author presents, but it's an interesting and often amusing look at names and at the way someone over a century ago thought about them. An easy read, readily available online, and filled with a variety of interesting tidbits, which may or may not qualify as facts.

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you have an interest in names and/or history, this is a fun resource.

[Sem · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unbelievably splendiferous.

[Emmeline]

http://publicdomainreview.org/2012/09...

[Hawthorn Mineart · Rating 5 out of 5]

An entertaining read.