Collins Dictionary Of Surnames: From Abbey to Mutton, Nabbs to Zouch

Chausersee CHAUCER.

Chaytorsee CATER.

Cheater, Chetter (Eng) Occupational name of an official escheater. He supervised the reversion of estates to the feudal lord when a tenant died without heir. In many cases, surnames accidentally resemble normal words, but in this instance a Cheater really deserved his name, inasmuch as the verbs escheat and cheat were at one time interchangeable. The development of a new meaning for cheat, namely to ‘deprive someone of something by deceit,’ was a reflection on the dishonesty of the medieval officials. However, Weekley thought that in some instance this name might be a variant of CATER.

Cheepersee CHAPMAN.

Cheesewright, Cheesright, Cherrett, Cherritt, Chessman, Chesswright, Cheswright (Eng) Occupational name for a maker/seller of cheese.

Cheever, Cheevers, Chevers, Chivers (Eng) Occupational name of a goat-herd (from French chevre, ‘goat’), or a nickname for someone who was thought to be goat-like in behaviour.

Chegwyn, Chegwidden, Chegwin (Cornish) Descendant of someone who originally came from a place named because of its ‘white house.’

Cherrett, Cherritt, Chessman, Chesswright see Cheesewright.

Chesterton (Eng) Someone who came from a place so-named because it was a ‘settlement near a Roman camp.’

Cheswrightsee CHEESEWRIGHT.

Chettersee CHEATER.

Chevalier, Cavalier, Chevallier (Eng) A ‘knight,’ commenting on the fact that he rode a cheval ‘horse.’ This was probably an occupational name for someone who worked for a knight. The noblemen themselves usually had names linked to estates.

Cheverssee CHEEVER.

Chilton (Eng) Someone who came from a place so-named because it was a ‘settlement with children.’

Chipman, Chippersee CHAPMAN.

Chiverssee CHEEVER.

Cholmondeley, Chambly, Cholmeley, Chumley, Chumbly (Eng) Descendant of someone who originally came from the Cheshire place, so-named because it was ‘Ceolmund’s wood.’

Weekley remarks that it is ‘curious’ that a name of this type (ie a very ordinary transferred place name) should have ‘acquired an aristocratic flavour.’

Lower, in his Patronymica Britannica, pauses to say: ‘I cannot refrain from reprobating the curt and absurd pronunciation of this name – Chulmley or Chumley. Strange that some of our most aristocratic families, who would not willingly concede one jot of their dignity in other respects, should be willing to have their ancient names thus nicked and mutilated. Why should the ST JOHNS submit to be Sinjen’d, the MAJORIBANKS to be Marchbank’d, the FITZ-JOHNS to be Fidgen’d, or the CHOLMONDLEYS to be Chumley’d? Why should the contractions of illiterate “flunkeys” be accepted in the places of fine old chivalrous sounds like those?’ See MARJORIBANKS.

Chopin, Choppen, Choppin, Chopping (Eng, French) Nickname for a heavy drinker. Old French chopiner meant ‘to tipple,’ the verb being derived from a liquid measure called a chopine, ‘the quantity held in a large ladle.’ In France the name also led to Chopine, Chopinel, Chopinnet. Another Old French word chopin ‘heavy blow’ could also have led to this surname, indicating someone who was violently pugnacious.

Chrisp, Chrispinsee CRISP.

Christian, Christ, Christey, Christie, Christin, Christine, Christison, Christy (Eng) Descendant of Christian, a given name of obvious meaning. Christ is a rare form of this name, likely to cause problems for its bearers.

Mr Jay F. Christ, of the University of Chicago, reports that he soon discovered that having a visiting card which simply said “J. Christ,” or signing his name in that way, could cause offence.

Christmas, Chrismas (Eng) Descendant of someone born during the Christmas season.

A Surrey publican of this name is said to have thrown a midsummer ‘Christmas party,’ inviting all those who shared his surname to come along for a free drink.

Christysee CHRISTIAN.

Chubb (Eng) A nickname derived from the fish, which is known to be short, fat (chubby) and sluggish. See BUGG.

Chumley, Chumblysee CHOLMONDLEY.

Churchardsee CHURCHYARD.

Churchill (Eng) Descendant of someone who came from any of the places, especially in the West Country, which bear this name because of a ‘church on a hill.’

Churchyard, Churchard (Eng) Occupational name of a man who worked in a churchyard or indicating an ancestor who lived near one.

Chuzzlewit (Eng) This is a well known name because of Dickens’s Martin Chuzzlewit. Dickens managed to make it look like a corrupt form of a place-name containing the common Old English element ceosol ‘gravel, shingle.’ He had rejected along the way a number of other possibile names, such as Sweezleden, Sweezleback, Sweezlewag, Chuzzletoe, Chuzzleboy, Chubblewig and Chuzzlewig. In the novel occurs the passage: ‘Then Martin is your Christian name?’ said Mr Pinch thoughtfully. ‘Of course it is,’ returned his friend: ‘I wish it was my surname, for my own is not a pretty one, and it takes a long time to sign. Chuzzlewit is my name.’

There is also a discussion in the novel about the family’s history. Toby Chuzzlewit is asked ‘Who was your grandfather?’ to which he replies ‘The Lord No Zoo.’ This is offered as proof that the family is connected to ‘some unknown noble and illustrious House.’

Clapham (Eng) Descendant of someone who originally came from one of the places so-named because it was a ‘homestead on or near a hillock.’

Clark, Clarke, Clarkin, Clarkson, Clarkstone, Clarson, Clerk, Clerke (Eng) Occupational name of a man, usually a member of a minor religious order who had not taken vows of celibacy and was therefore able to marry, who performed secretarial duties. Later the name came to mean any literate man (in a period when most people, at all levels of society, could neither read nor write). Many of the clerics or clerks, as we would now call them, were in fact only semi-literate by modern standards, often employing their own idiosyncratic spelling systems. Nevertheless, the frequency with which the name now occurs shows that it had high status and was borne proudly as a family name. Some compound names contain ‘clerk’ as an element. BEAUCLERK is a Norman name that describes a ‘handsome cleric’ or one who had especially good handwriting. BUNCLARK was a bon clerc ‘good priest.’ MAUCLERC, by contrast, (also recorded as MANCLARK and MOCKLER) was a ‘bad priest or clerk.’

Andrea Newman, in An Evil Streak, writes: ‘Christopher Clark – the very name has a fine solid English ring to it. Lacking the affectation of a final ‘e,’ it suggests the courage of its own convictions. Insert the prefix ‘Dr’ and you have a pillar of society, the dependable middle-class professional man, dedicated to doing good and making money, and seeing no contradiction between the two.’

A curiosity about the name Clark is that it appears in correct sequence in the Periodic Table. Elements 17–19 inclusive are Cl (chlorine) Ar (argon) and K (potassium). See DUCK.

Clay, Claye, Clayer, Clayman (Eng) Occupational name for someone who worked in a claypit.

Claybrook, Claybrooke (Eng) Descendant of someone who originally came from the Leicestershire place, so-named because of its ‘clayey brook.’

Claydon, Clayden (Eng) Descendant of someone who originally came from one of the many places so-named because it was on a ‘clayey hill.’

Claye, Clayer, Claymansee CLAY.

Claypole, Claypool (Eng) Descendant of someone who originally came from the Lincolnshire place, so-named because of its ‘clayey pool.’

Clayton (Eng) Someone who came from one of the several places so-named because it was a ‘settlement on clayey soil.’

John Clayton, Lord Greystoke, is otherwise known as Tarzan in the stories of Edgar Rice Burroughs.

Clement, Clemans, Clemence, Clemens, Clemenson, Clements, Clementson, Clemerson, Cleminson, Clemm, Clemmans, Clemmens, Clemmett, Clemmey, Clemmitt, Clemmow, Clemons, Clemonts, Clempson, Clemson, Climance, Climey, Climpson, Clyma, Clymer (Eng) Descendant of Clement, from a Latin word meaning ‘merciful.’ The name is mentioned only once in the Bible, but it was the name of an early saint and several popes.

Clerke, Clerkesee CLARK.

Clifton (Eng) Someone who came from one of the several places so-named because it was a ‘settlement on a hill slope.’

Climance, Climey, Climpsonsee CLEMENT.

Clocksmithsee SMITH.

Clog (Eng) Occupational name of a clog-maker. Names like PATTEN and PATTIN belong here, pattens being a kind of clog worn especially by ecclesiastics.