NORFOLK SURNAMES: N

NELSON:
One well-known name in Norfolk which might appear to have a a metrynomic link (originally named for a mother) is that of our favourite seafarer, Admiral Horatio Nelson..
This would appear to be a direct naming of the son of Nell as Nell’s son, but in fact this is a patrynomic with Irish origins.
It has its base in Neil or Neal, an Irish name, and simply means the son of Niel or Neal, from the Irish name of Niall.
Although Nell was not used as a male name there are names we think of as female which were once definitely male.
Shirley was a masculine name until 1849 when Charlotte Bronte used it for the eponymous heroine of her novel “Shirley”.
She states that it was a masculine name and that the parents had hoped for a son but used the name anyway for their daughter. Since then, however, it has become specifically female.
Then again John Wayne was born Marion Morrison.

SURNAME DIRECTORY: A B C D E F G H I J K N P R S T

Click the letter to see some examples of surnames, their meanings and distribution in Norfolk.