Evening,
Just wondering if anyone has much expirience with documenting the origin of alias surnames.
I've come across a family that for at least four generations took the name 'Ward alias Howell', also rendered 'Howell alias Ward', in Waters Upton & High Ercall. The earliest being: Thomas Ward alias Howell (d. 1578) @ Waters Upton. Neither appear to been in these parishes in the mid-early 1500s.
What would be people's guess as to the origin of this name?
Hello David. My surmise would be of a family of originally Welsh origin (ie ap Hywel) that took an English surname from the settler's occupation, in this case, say, a manorial ward, such as hay (=park) ward.
The Shrewsbury Burgess Rolls provide examples. One such was the later prominent family of Hosier.
Further, in Montgomeryshire I suspect that the frequent surname of Fletcher may stem from Welshmen of that trade rather than from English settlers. I have noted an example (not to hand) of a Welshman of late 16th cent near Welshpool who had Fletcher as his alias.
Thanks, the ref. to Preston upon the Weald Moors is useful.
I hadn't thought that the name could be derivied from an occupation. Interestingly:
http://www.surnamedb.com/Surname/ward
gives the name as having a possible origin of someone living on marsh-land, this area being on the Weald Moors.
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There was a Roger Howle in Preston upon the Weald Moors in 1525 but you are correct that there were no Wards or Howells paying the Lay Subsidy in the places you mention in 1524/7.