Chrysti the Wordsmith > Radio Scripts > Dictionary of Surnames II

In 1988, the linguists Patrick Hanks and Flavia Hodges published a remarkable compendium called A Dictionary of Surnames, from Oxford University Press. This dictionary represents years of meticulous research into the origins, meanings and distribution of thousands of surnames arising on the European continent and the British Isles.

Now, dictionaries don't exactly have a reputation for their page-turning contents, but this one could be the exception. The histories behind such familiar surnames as Rockefeller, Booth, Dunlap and Rourke are extraordinary.

My favorite concept in A Dictionary of Surnames is the category of occupational surnames, monikers given out according to a person's craft.

Of course, the dictionary traces the familiar Taylor, Miller, Smith, and Baker, but more fascinating are the unexpected occupational surnames. For example, the British Naismiths were named for their knife-making skills. Fletcher was the name bestowed upon an arrow maker, while Hupfer, the German name meaning "hopper," was originally the surname of a professional tumbler or acrobat at a fair!

If yours is a European surname, you might want to look it up in the Dictionary of Surnames by Patrick Hanks and Patricia Hodges. What you find out about your last name might surprise you!

Radio Script > Dictionary of Surnames II