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Here is a list of names I found in my family tree that I cannot find etymologies for:
Female:
Anstis - Born 1720 in Rhode Island. EDIT: Her name may have been Austus instead.
Erla - Born 1916 in Texas. I assume this is the feminine of Earl...
Freidel - She was a Polish Jew born in 1830's and immegrated to New York in 1880's. I assume this is related to the german for "peace"...
Galynn - Born 1945 in Colorado, southern mom. As far as my mom knows, her mom just made this up. But someone may know better?
Licetta - Born 1876 in Wisconsin, German parents.
Pickney - Born 1860 in Mississippi.
Anchney - Born 1860 in Mississippi.
Sabra - Born 1674 in Rhode Island.
Saphrona - Born 1850 in Mississippi.
Male:
Aorum - Uncertain spelling, Ukranian Jew born early 1800's.
Barthlin - Born 1630 in Germany. I assume this is a variation of Bartholomew...
Olen - Born 1883 in Maine.
Stukely - Born 1587 in England, immigrated to Rhode Island about 1650. This was his mother's maiden name. Perhaps from "stig" (house) + "leah" (meadow)?
Veltin - Born 1640 in Saxony, Germany.
Female:
Anstis - Born 1720 in Rhode Island. EDIT: Her name may have been Austus instead.
Erla - Born 1916 in Texas. I assume this is the feminine of Earl...
Freidel - She was a Polish Jew born in 1830's and immegrated to New York in 1880's. I assume this is related to the german for "peace"...
Galynn - Born 1945 in Colorado, southern mom. As far as my mom knows, her mom just made this up. But someone may know better?
Licetta - Born 1876 in Wisconsin, German parents.
Pickney - Born 1860 in Mississippi.
Anchney - Born 1860 in Mississippi.
Sabra - Born 1674 in Rhode Island.
Saphrona - Born 1850 in Mississippi.
Male:
Aorum - Uncertain spelling, Ukranian Jew born early 1800's.
Barthlin - Born 1630 in Germany. I assume this is a variation of Bartholomew...
Olen - Born 1883 in Maine.
Stukely - Born 1587 in England, immigrated to Rhode Island about 1650. This was his mother's maiden name. Perhaps from "stig" (house) + "leah" (meadow)?
Veltin - Born 1640 in Saxony, Germany.
This message was edited 1/18/2007, 7:39 PM
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Replies
Anstis is probably an alternative spelling of Anstice, which was indeed a form of Anastasia used in England in the 16th and 17th centuries, according to The Oxford Dictionary of English Christian Names.
Freidel is probably a pet form of Freyde, a Yiddish name meaning "joy".
I would assume that Galynn was invented by the parents in 1945, either by blending Gay and Lynn or as a feminine form of Galen.
Lisetta is a German form of Lisa, which is itself of course from Elizabeth.
Pickney is probably a misprint for Pinckney, which is a surname prominent in the South which has been used as a given name there. It originally was a Norman French surname indicating one's ancestor came from a place called Picquigny in France, according to Reaney & Wilson's A Dictionary of English Surnames.
Saphrona is undoubtedly just a variation of Sophronia.
Could Aorum merely be the result of bad handwriting trying to reproduce Aaron?
Barthlin is indeed probably a pet form of Bartholomew. Hanks & Hodges' A Dictionary of Surnames gives Barthel as a German form of Bartholomew and Bartolijn as a Flemish form of Bartholomew.
Olen is probably a respelling of Olin, which is a surname which has been turned into a given name in the USA many times. I can't find an origin for Olin on short notice, but here are links to websites for the Olin family. One of them claims the original Olin was from Wales:
http://olinfamilysociety.org/
http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/River/7560/olin.html
A Dictionary of English Place-Names by A. D. Mills says that Stukeley in Cambridgeshire goes back to Old English words meaning "woodland clearing with tree stumps."
Veltin is probably a respelling of Velten, which is a form of Valentine used in Germany.
Freidel is probably a pet form of Freyde, a Yiddish name meaning "joy".
I would assume that Galynn was invented by the parents in 1945, either by blending Gay and Lynn or as a feminine form of Galen.
Lisetta is a German form of Lisa, which is itself of course from Elizabeth.
Pickney is probably a misprint for Pinckney, which is a surname prominent in the South which has been used as a given name there. It originally was a Norman French surname indicating one's ancestor came from a place called Picquigny in France, according to Reaney & Wilson's A Dictionary of English Surnames.
Saphrona is undoubtedly just a variation of Sophronia.
Could Aorum merely be the result of bad handwriting trying to reproduce Aaron?
Barthlin is indeed probably a pet form of Bartholomew. Hanks & Hodges' A Dictionary of Surnames gives Barthel as a German form of Bartholomew and Bartolijn as a Flemish form of Bartholomew.
Olen is probably a respelling of Olin, which is a surname which has been turned into a given name in the USA many times. I can't find an origin for Olin on short notice, but here are links to websites for the Olin family. One of them claims the original Olin was from Wales:
http://olinfamilysociety.org/
http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/River/7560/olin.html
A Dictionary of English Place-Names by A. D. Mills says that Stukeley in Cambridgeshire goes back to Old English words meaning "woodland clearing with tree stumps."
Veltin is probably a respelling of Velten, which is a form of Valentine used in Germany.
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Wow you're amazing!
The Olin link you gave turned out to be related to Anstis, which through a series of links led me to an 1887 book about the Aylsworth family, the maiden name of Anstis. According to that book, her name was not Anstis, but Austus.
The Olin link you gave turned out to be related to Anstis, which through a series of links led me to an 1887 book about the Aylsworth family, the maiden name of Anstis. According to that book, her name was not Anstis, but Austus.
This message was edited 1/18/2007, 7:34 PM
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Possibly some of these names might have been written down incorrectly - especially if spoken in a German or Polish accent. Handwriting can be tricky to decipher as well.
Might Anstis be a form of Anastasia, do you think? Freidel might well be Friedel (in German an -ei- makes a sound rhyming with my or eye; an -ie- rhymes with me and see; if so, then yes, it would be a diminutive of Peace. Galynn = Gay + Lynn, probably. Licetta might be a form of Lucetta, or Lizette, as the -e would be sounded in German. Anchney could be a transcription error for An(n)chen = Annie. Pickney looks oddly like Pinky with a couple of errors. Sabra in today's world means a Jew born in Israel, or a prickly pear! In 1674, who knows? Saphrona looks like Sophronia.
Aorum could be Aaron. I agree with you on Barthlin; probably a German diminutive. Olen I've seen before - don't recall where, but I'll look.
Interesting questions!
Might Anstis be a form of Anastasia, do you think? Freidel might well be Friedel (in German an -ei- makes a sound rhyming with my or eye; an -ie- rhymes with me and see; if so, then yes, it would be a diminutive of Peace. Galynn = Gay + Lynn, probably. Licetta might be a form of Lucetta, or Lizette, as the -e would be sounded in German. Anchney could be a transcription error for An(n)chen = Annie. Pickney looks oddly like Pinky with a couple of errors. Sabra in today's world means a Jew born in Israel, or a prickly pear! In 1674, who knows? Saphrona looks like Sophronia.
Aorum could be Aaron. I agree with you on Barthlin; probably a German diminutive. Olen I've seen before - don't recall where, but I'll look.
Interesting questions!
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