. It was after emancipation on that I went back to work for Col. Morrow and where I got the name Lottie, as already explained. In 1800, Frederick Douglass and Harriet Tubman were able to escape their terrible life of enslavement and were able to help other slaves trapped in a world of forced labour and grant them freedom once again due to the Underground Railroads that helped him, his partner Anna Murray Douglas and many other fugitives sneak away from the horrible These require Microsoft Word and a Windows platform. -Kendall Hailey, "If you look deeply into the palm of your hand, you will see your parents and all the generations of your ancestors. Both comments and pings are currently closed. In my own family history, on my Yarborough side, I believe I have uncovered a pattern that my formerly-enslaved great-grandparents, Calvin and Precilla YARBOROUGH may have used in naming their children. No, I don't know to whom she belonged before she was brought from Virginia to Kentucky. Cook Cook has an Old English origin, and it means 'one who cooks' or 'one who sold cooked meat'. A 2nd great grandmother for example was baptised Sarah Charlotte Chase; her mother is recorded as being Ann Lewis Chase. This is true in some cases but not all. Surely the hundreds of black Culbert people living today cannot all be connected to those three cases. Use the form below to get in touch with me and I'll get back to you as soon as possible. Enslaved peoplethemselves sometimes chose names denoting weather conditions at the time of their child's birth or some distinctive feature of his or her appearance. Login Forgot . Tell me the name you were called before you met Phillip Fry? If you can identify your ancestor's master, this source will prove of tremendous value to your research. Hi Susan, Theres always more to learn! The naming of slaves has not been treated in dedicated monographs, but it often figures in general accounts of plantation culture and the practices of enslavement. 3. Gradually, to show contempt for Slaves, the captors used Buck and Wench for naming the genders till they became trade terms, like Filly and Shoat.Contempt for the male was removing his honorific attachment to fatherhood and manhood by being addressed as Boy. Once the vigorous years of his prime were passed, he was allowed to assume the title of Uncle. Females were called Gal, girl, or the name of some animal. Born in Union County, South Carolina, he was sold to his last enslaver in 1858 and then brought to Mississippi. Through a video-based activity, students examine Americas struggle for a stronger democracy during Reconstruction and today. Hi Rodney, This happened mostly on large plantations where several individuals had the same first names and a surname was used to distinguish them from one another. It can be a difficult path, but just might be reachable. Many took the surname of famous or celebrated people; such as 'Lincoln', 'Grant', and 'Washington' was very popular. Names from the Bible were another common practice, for given and surnames. I am a farmer. Thomas Black Cobbs was owned by a small slave owner Catherine Black. I have done quite a bit of genealogy for my own family, and it was difficult enough, but what you are doing, is incredible work. In the early years, especially between the 1860 and 1880s, families even changed a surname several times until they settled on a certain one. This was done more because it was the logical thing to do and the easiest way to be identified than it was through affection for the master. If a surname was needed, the slave owners family name might be used. The Voice of the Black Community in California, Last Updated on October 14, 2010 by Paulette Brown-Hinds. Now, that parent's surname could very well be the surname of the most recent slaveholder or an earlier slaveholder. I love to hear from my readers. Where did you get the maiden name of Smith from? They were Nelson Nunn and George Nunn and they may have changed their names to Crosby too because they were my fathers children.. It is these single names that have been most often studied. This article is from the Encyclopedia of North Carolina edited by William S. Powell. CLICK HERE TO SAVE YOUR SEAT! Introduction. Even that feels like something. You can read the introductory maps for a high-level guided explanation, view the timeline and chronology of . Peneus saved Daphne from Apollos romantic obsessions by transforming her into a laurel tree. Slavery is a social-economic system under which people are enslaved: deprived of personal freedom and forced to perform labor or services without compensation. Dorothy, Doris or Dora: Meaning 'gift of God', this Victorian girl's name was popular in the 19th century. That alone can make if difficult to research an African- American family during those years. I would also recommend Elizabeth Shown Mills various case studies on enslaved people in Louisiana, which you can find at her website at https://www.historicpathways.com/articles.html. My mothers name was Octavia Smith and it was from her that I got it but where the name came from to her I never knew. I just cannot imagine (thankfully) the idea of my name being changed with every new owner, with not having any idea of what my parents surnames were, of having a white father but not being able to have a father/child relationship with himand all the other myriad of circumstances that enslaved people faced. For descendants, I would add the substantial emotional impact of seeing an ancestor's name attached to a dollar value, or being valued in a list with silverware and cattle. Search 31 million family names. Both are excellent researchers and historians. Join my mailing list below to receive my posts and get a free PDF with some of my favorite tips! This financial assistance was available to all Civil War veterans and their families. But the bureau also compiled lists of the fastest-growing surnames in the United States and these include Zhang, Li, Ali, Liu, and Khan - a testament to the wonderful diversity of our nation. How did you ever come by the name of "Mollie"? The following documents are excerpts from government records in which Dick Barnett and Mollie (Smith) Russell explain when and why they changed their names. Smith.). Forenames. ", "Happiness is having a large, loving, caring, close-knit family in another city;)", "Where does the family start? I also see that in 1900 she is listed as widow with 1 child living, so you may have luck trying to find out who her child was. Abel, et al. As a result, many slaves used the surnames of their owners wifes family. You are the continuation of each of these people." Explore the most common surnames in England. One of the largest sources are the Civil War pension records of the almost 200,000 black men who served in the US Army and Navy. And now that it's been chosen by Gwen Stefani and Gavin Rossdale, it could take off as their first son's nameKingstonhas. In freedom, Jean-Louis was known as Louis SEM or Louis FUSELIER until finally using SAM. Col. Joshua John Ward of Georgetown, South Carolina: 1,130 Known as "King of the Rice Planters," Ward had 1,130 enslaved Blacks on the Brookgreen plantation in South Carolina. that lists the slaves along with their surnames. This happened mostly on large plantations where several individuals had the same first names and a surname was used to distinguish them from one another. My great grandfather Wilson Percival was born in South Carolina and I believe he took his surname from last slave owners family. James: (M) (Latin origin) means "heel" or "supplanter". One thing for sure, historians are always expanding our knowledge on this topic.BTW, I am a big fan of your website and your work in the field! Ninety percent of them were African-American, a far higher black percentage than for any other common name. Flora, the name of the Roman goddess of flowers and spring, who enjoyed eternal youth, is one of the gently old-fashioned girls' flower names we think is due for a comebackalongside cousins Cora and Dora. Fernsby, (Old English Origin) Derived from the old English words meaning "fern farmstead". I was called mostly Lewis Smith till after the war, although I was named Dick Lewis Smith After the War, I was wearing the name Lewis Smith, but I found the negroes were taking the names of their fathers, like the white folks. Most Popular African Last Names Or Surnames. . LOTTIE had been the name of the nurse before me and so they just continued that same name. It is certainly possible that Wilsons siblings could have been sold away or owned by others. Robyn N. Smith, [insert post title], Reclaiming Kin (https://reclaimingkin.com: accessed [insert date you read the post]), [insert the date the post was written]. Slaves were generally listed with just one name and thus with little to none of the genealogical information recorded for free whites. Available from https://nmaahc.si.edu/object/nmaahc_2014.174.8?destination=/explore/collection/search%3Fedan_q%3Denslaved%26edan_fq%255B0%255D%3Dobject_type%253A%2522Photographs%2522 (accessed May 6, 2022). Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. Thus, the patronymic surname can be effectively regarded as "keeper of the peace." This phenomenon is not unheard of with African American surnames. common last names in the 1800s Patronymic surnames such as Jansen/Janssen, Hansen, and Petersen are the most common names in the far north (Lower Saxony and Schleswig-Holstein). But once freed most immediately chose surnames, with or without keeping their accustomed name. 1. The given name Athena was derived from the city name Athens, which is of uncertain origins. Eugene D. Genovese, Roll, Jordan, Roll: The World the Slaves Made (1974). Even worse, during this period, many African Americanssome using surnames for the very first timechanged their surnames once or even several times. See footnotes for source information. He identified father, mother and siblings in a Freedmans bank deposit in 1873, when he was already in New York City. 17. Claudia Bautista,Santa Monica, Calif. You must have JavaScript enabled to use this form. See flier for details; cost of this event is $25. By the late 19th century, England was home to about 300 surnames with traceable genealogy. I think mostly about family separationas a mother now myself, the very idea that my dear child could be sold to who knows where, never to be seen again..just reduces me to tears anytime. Another common way of distinguishing people would be 'son of', for example Johnson (son of John), Richardson, Wilson, Harrison etc. I am not able to find any slaveholders in the Versailes area by the name of Ellis. 1754 Excerpts from the Courant for June 22 to 29, 1754 at Jamaican Family Search Genealogy Research Library - contain the names of some "runaway slaves" or indentured servants, and information about them. ", "If you can't get rid of the skeleton in your closet, you might as well make it dance! Copeland This last name comes from Old Norse origin. "Slave revolts in Puerto Rico: conspiracies and uprisings, 17951873"; by: Guillermo A. Baralt; Markus Wiener Publishers; harvnb error: no target: CITEREFAssociation_of_Muslim_Social_ScientistsInternational_Institute_of_Islamic_Thought2008 (, sfnm error: no target: CITEREFSmith2001 (, sfnm error: no target: CITEREFWhite2016 (, sfn error: no target: CITEREFBrands2012 (, sfnm error: no target: CITEREFMcFeely1981 (, Last edited on 22 February 2023, at 03:19, sued her master for her freedom on that ground, United States Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit, Diego Pacheco Tllez-Girn Gmez de Sandoval, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, South Carolina's 5th congressional district, List of the last surviving American slaves, Timeline of abolition of slavery and serfdom, Supplementary Convention on the Abolition of Slavery, National Museum of African American History and Culture, "What is the divine purpose for sending prophets? Can you steer me in the right direction? Proving their identity as former soldiers often revealed some of the most detailed explanations for former slaves choice of surnames. After the war ended and slavery was abolished, they exercised their freedom by changing their names. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website. Another slave named Bill who attended the sheep became Bill Shepherd. In many cases this is ignored and children use their fathers name! Im jealous;) The common names there (Marie, Louise, etc) would test anyones genealogical skills, so I take my hat off to you. Bailey, Word Stories Surrounding African American Slavery. The Genealogy Source Table Collection includes 10 blank, editable source tables for death certificates, city directories, obituaries and funeral programs. There are issues, too, about how to interpret the recorded names, which have been classified in different ways depending on researchers interests. George Duncan Ludlow (1734-1808), colonial lawyer. I especially recommend Mother, Thy Name is Mystery! Private names used in the quarters included Abah, Bilah, Comba, Dibb, Juba, Kauchee, Mima, and Sena. A. Mr. Thomas Jefferson of Louisville, bought me when I was three years of age from Mr. Dearing. . Garcia is the Spanish variation of the word Gerald that means a pointed weapon, like a spear. 5. Of the 972 names of male Slaves recorded between 1619 and 1799 the leading ones were Jack, Tom, Harry, Sam, Will, Caesar, Dick, John, Robin, Frank, Charles, Joe and Prince. Here, our list of notable early African American names. My Vimeo ON Demand video page lists six videos you can choose from to watch for 3 months ($15 each): -Finding the Last Slaveowner: Guidance and Case Studies, -Cluster Research: Using Groups of People to Find Your People, -Using Deed Records to Uncover Your Family, -Putting it All Together: Making Sense of All the Research You've Done and, -More Than Just a Name: Incorporating Social and Community History Into Your Research. "More than half of the surnames are derived from the Christian or fore-name of the father," [1] and based on a total of 3,253,800 people, nearly 18 in every 100 persons was known by one of these fifty surnames. While enslaved almost all had just one Christian name. A. Elijah is derived from the Hebrew name Eliyahu, composed of the elements. Of course my mother wasnt a Bradley fore she married. They did so either to take on a surname for the first time, or to replace a name or surname given to them by a former master. This had a profound impact on the Selfhood of each of the enslaveddisrupting ones presumed Mission in life, as indicated by ones name; shattering the sharing of personal and historical experiences, attitudes, and spirits towards life; and putting in disarray the philosophy of life framework and common sense values by which all Africans lived. In Greek mythology, Daphne was the nymph daughter of Peneus, a river god. An accessible introduction to the field. Surnames like Chantimel have disappeared, while names like Horsford and Ackie, coming from Antigua (where they are common), or Quarless, Dowden, Chandler, and Dottin from Barbados, have enriched Grenada's family history and cultural identity. I make extensive use of tables for organization, analysis and citation in my research, and they have proven very popular with genealogists. But there was also the detective Nero Wolfe, hero of many mystery stories. Several names have been added under the letter representing the person's last name. Lori Wilson Picks Up Baton to Remove Slavery Language From Californias Constitution, New Assembly Bill Would Ban Use of Police Canines for Arrests, Crowd Control, Proudly powered by Newspack by Automattic. They cut it off from OCTAVIA. . Therefore, a few of the most common first names of the time such as Mary (rank 815) and Sarah (1010) will appear in the list and surnames which correspond to personal names (e.g. Nat Turner's Rebellion One of the most famous slave revolts in American history came in 1831 when Nat Turner led a bloody uprising in Southampton County, Virginia. Alfred "Teen" Blackburn (1842-1951), one of the last living survivors of slavery in the United States who had a clear recollection of it. . The Language of Names. I love that your example shows two brothers, who came to different conclusions about their surnames. They cut it off from OCTAVIA. Turner was deeply religious,. Place names that were disproportionately popular among Black Americans in history include Boston, Jamaica, York, and Africa. This is common. Free black slave holders could be found at one time or . Index to "Descriptive Recruitment Lists of Volunteers for the United States Colored Troops for the State of Missouri, 1863-1865" (NARA Microfilm Publication M1894 - 6 rolls) For more information about the records covered in this index, please contact the History and Genealogy Department. Thanks for commenting and continued luck in your research, Picked by several celebrities (a couple of times even for a girl), adding up to an enthusiastically recommended choice. . Farley, (English Origin) Victorian-era last names meaning "fern woodland". Recently, I was looking for more information on Wesley Thompson, who was born about 1835 and who was living in Morgan County, Alabama with his wife, Nellie, and five children in 1880. . Numerous historical sources confirm that enslaved people had surnames that they used among themselves and in many cases were known by their slaveholder. A. I was first called by that name in the family of Col. Morrow in whose service I was in Louisville, Ky., just after the war. I was bornthe child of Phillis Houston, slave of Sol Smith. Students explore the legacies of the Reconstruction era today, reflect on the idea of democracy as a continuous process, and consider how they can best participate in the ongoing work of strengthening our democracy. Abebe: The genesis of this Ethiopian name is Amharic, and it means 'flower' or 'blossom'. Were there any famous slaves? Isaac evolved from the name Yitzchaq, derived from the Hebrew word, Lysander is a distinctive Greek name that could be thought of as a more creative cousin of Alexander. My surname of SAM originated from Sem or Sam FUSELIER, a free man of color who freed my ancestor,Jean-Louis, out of slavery in 1811. Examples include: Francois, Jean, Pierre, and Leon for men; and Manon, Delphine, Marie Louise, Celeste, and Eugenie for women. 41. "The past is not dead. The names that were brought together to form "Geffery" were "Gaufrid" (territory-peace), "Godafrid" (god-peace), and "Galfridus" (song-peace). A small number of creoles in Louisiana also acquired surnames derived from ethnic identities in Senegal. He was a planter with 20,000 acres of land in East Florida and was at the forefront of slavery in The . On Anglican (Church of England) baptisms records the child legally and officially is documented with the surname of the mother if she and the father were not married. Hello I was called by that name all the time I was with the Morrows. Youll often see the word degraded used in the academic references; these were all attempts at degradation. I have found only one very rare example of a slaveholders inventory, that lists the slaves along with their surnames. In the context of The Bahamas, the surname appears to originate with Denys Rolle, an American Loyalist who re-settled on Exuma, one of the so-called Out Islands of The Bahamas, sometime in the mid-1780s. I was called by that name all the time I was with the Morrows. Robyn. The fifty most common Victorian surnames in England and Wales for 1853 are listed in alphabetical order below. . Anouilh. -Unknown, "Happiness is having a large, loving, caring, close-knit family in another city;)" Corbin Corbin has an Old English origin. Harris: A patronymic meaning son of Harry. 13 March 2022, 1-2:30pm [PAST EVENT], Eastern Standard Time: Cant find some of your ancestors in the census? Q. Well, Ive gone off on a tangent again;) But thank you again for writing and thank you for the cemetery work (especially trying to include African-Americans you are doing that will be of benefit to others. Alfred Francis Russell (1817-1884), 10th President of Liberia. And even though slave marriages were not legal, many enslaved people followed the practice of the wife taking her husbands surname: My mother was named Mary Bradley and my father was named Hilliard Bradley. I would appreciate any constructive comments on this question, which can be posted to me via my website address above. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. Unfortunately, I am not knowledgeable enough about African and Caribbean research in the areas you name. David Nicolle, Graham Turner: Poitiers AD 732: Charles Martel Turns the Islamic Tide. Instead a wide variety of surnames came about that would be the family name for future generations. This mini-lesson helps students define the term, learn what forms reparations can take, and consider what reparations should be offered for slavery and other racist policies. On all subsequent census records, he is listed as John Lewis. I was only three years old when she died. Just from the detail in your first comment, I knew there was a good chance you were already familiar with those authors. Wood were recorded as slave. Tags: African American Names, African American Surnames, African Names, Black Surnames, Last Slave Owner, Plantation Owners, plantation slavery, Slave Family, Slave Naming Patterns, slave trade. Enslaved people often transferred such names to later generations in modified form or relied on African naming traditions, such as "day names" or names reflecting the order of birth among siblings. A Wessyngton slave named Bill who was the plantation's blacksmith was known as Billy the Smith during slavery.
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