De-Anglicisation of Names

[davedove]

How about the surname "Chard". I know that there is a Town in SW England named Chard. so am sure its quite English.

Thank you

The town name of Chard in Somerset (SW England) isn't quite as 'English' (i.e. Anglo-Saxon) as one might suspect. In 1065AD it was recorded as 'Cerdren', which is thought to be derived from the Brythonic Celtic word 'cerdin', meaning rowans or mountain ash.

The element 'chard' also crops up in Devon (SW England) in the town/village names 'Morchard Bishop' and 'Cruwys Morchard', where the 'morchard' part is definitely the Brythonic 'mor + ced', meaning large wood.

I hope this helps with the possible interpretation of the surname Chard.

I concur. Being so close to Cornwall gives credence to a Brythonic Celtic (probably really a Cornish name, by that point in time) origin.

And here I thought it might be from a town that grew a lot of chard.

[Kilted Rogue]

so did i come from the veggie or the area with a lot of "...chard..."
the world will never know

thank you for the new info, now i need to do some more digging

[McELT]

This has been a fascinating thread.

How would you de-Anglicize McGovern?

I learned to spell it as in my signature line, but saw it differently when I was in Ireland.

[slohairt]

This has been a fascinating thread.

How would you de-Anglicize McGovern?

I learned to spell it as in my signature line, but saw it differently when I was in Ireland.

MCGOVERN Mag Shamhradhain (pronounced MAC OW-RAY-AN) is the oldest Irish language spelling. Later versions would be Mac Shamhradhain (MAC OW-RAY-AN) and Mac Shamhrain (MAC OW-RAN). The name means 'son of Samhradhan (summer)'.

[Tommy Hunt]

I'd be curious to hear a bit about the names 'Maginnis' and 'Hunt'.

[tlabbydon]

See what you can come up with for Abdon, very small family in USA let alone the world,

[sharpdressedscot]

McManus

Looks like Mac Hand if you took it from Latin. LOL

[slohairt]

See what you can come up with for Abdon, very small family in USA let alone the world,

ABDON Not really sure on this one. I would guess it to be an English topographical name. There is an Abdon in Shropshire.

[slohairt]

I'd be curious to hear a bit about the names 'Maginnis' and 'Hunt'.

MAGINNIS This is Anglicised from Mac Aonghuis (older spelling Mag Aonghusa) meaning 'son of Aonghus.' Aonghus (the personal name) itself is usually Anglicised as Angus. It means 'one choice.'

Mac Aonghuis (pronounced as MAC AIN-GWISH or MAC AIN-WISH, depending on dialect)

Mag Aonghusa (pronounced as MAC AIN-GUS-A or MAC AIN-US-A)

HUNT Etymologically, I would guess this to mean what it says. (A hunter). Being of Anglic origin, it could be placed in England (most likely) or Lowland Scotland.