![]() It’s possible Alwine either had a cold personality or simply had white hair, giving him a frosty appearance. “Frost” had the same definition as today. Upper-class men used the name Barn, possibly meaning “a young man of a prominent family.” Or it simply could indicate that Eskil worked or lived near a barn. The first comes from the Old Norse word for child. “Barn” could have several possible meanings. Holdfæst appears to be another way to spell “holdfast.” ![]() “Grim” in Old English meant “fierce, severe, terrible, savage, cruel, angry.” I couldn’t find any detailed information about Eadric Grim as a person, but based on his last name I don’t think he was a person you wanted to be around! I find it interesting that the people around Beorhtmær wanted to specify that he was English. In Old English, “sot” means soot.Įven in Old English and Middle English “rot” meant “decay/putrefy.” I wonder what Azur did to earn this last name! “Sot” either comes from the Middle English word for a foolish or a dishonest person. Hereweard was probably known for being a vigilant person or perhaps even an excellent guard. The Old English word for “wake” means the same thing in modern English. “Bolt” means “bolt, bar.” Frambolt may indicate that Godwine was very strong or perhaps he made very strong bolts/bars. “Fram” means “bold, active, strong” in Old English. “Cave” could potentially come from the Latin word “calvus,” meaning bald. It definitely makes me wonder what Eadmær did to get that nickname!Ĭlearly Eadric behaved in absurd ways to get this nickname. Some are tamer than others, but hopefully, you find this list just as interesting as I do.Īpparently “ator” is Old English for poison or venom. My list includes early medieval nicknames I found interesting, funny, unusual, or hilariously specific. This gave me some context of their potential backstory.īecause so much has been lost to time, any comments of mine about how each individual earned their nickname is purely speculation.ĭue to the size of the Prosopography of Anglo-Saxon England’s database, I will gradually add more names to this list. However, if I could not find any concrete information about the person, I researched the nickname. Unfortunately, the origins of many of the nicknames are lost to time. A good portion of early medieval nicknames are quite funny, unusual, or have some sort of story behind them. When I looked through the Prosopography of Anglo-Saxon England to create my lists of early medieval names, I stumbled upon quite a few nicknames. Shepherd returning with a lost sheep while a lady greets him | Ms. ![]() For example, the Domesday Book referred to people by the place they lived, their profession, who their parents were, their relation to the king, their title, or a nickname of some kind. It was only after the Norman Conquest in 1066 did people start to use last names.īecause last names were uncommon, people had to use other ways to distinguish them from others in their area that shared their name. At least, surnames did not exist in the same capacity as they do today. In England, last names did not really exist in the early Middle Ages.
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