Where in Wales Does Your SURNAME Come From?

Do you know where your Welsh surname came from? Can a surname help you pinpoint the exact community in Wales where your ancestors were from? Find out with professional genealogist, Dai Davies.
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#Genealogy
#FamilyHistory
Public Domain Images For the images 100+ years old and in the public domain, a special thanks to the following institutions for their dedication to digitizing these historical records:
The National Library of Wales
The Yale Center for British Art
The Internet Archive
The Digital Commonwealth
Timestamps
00:00 Surnames & Our Roots
00:35 Types of Welsh Surnames
00:48 Topographic Surnames
02:13 Noble Surnames
03:03 Occupational Surnames
03:25 Characteristic Surnames
03:49 The Most Common Surnames
04:42 Looking at the Numbers
05:59 Popular Misconceptions
06:09 Welsh vs. English Surnames
07:35 Beyond Surnames

[@GenealCymru]

If you’re wondering where I got the 1881 surname data, it comes from The Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain and Ireland. It's a really interesting book. Unfortunately, it’s only accessible with a subscription (boo), but you may be able to access it for free through your local library if you're interested. There’s also a partial preview through Google Books although that copy is missing all the surname distribution maps which are the coolest part.

[@limmoblack]

Your Bellew relation probably came over from north Cornwall on the coal boats,(and 'fell' for one of Swansea's 'beauties'), as Swansea coal was used for tin smelting.

[@GenealCymru]

Thanks. It's interesting cause Arthur Bellew's father, Enoch, actually went to Swansea decades earlier with his sister and brother-in-law, then he returned to Devon where Arthur was born, then Arthur went back to Swansea as a young adult. Really interesting bunch they were.

[@Drake56242]

​@@GenealCymru could do a video on the differences between Cornish and Welsh surnames because there are some very similar that are assumed to be Welsh, but when researched turn out to be Cornish.

[@MRCAGR1]

@@Drake56242are there similarities between Breton, Cornish, Welsh and Manx names?

[@lucylovic]

​@@MRCAGR1sometimes.

[@gordondahle7844]

I descended from nobility. All that means is that my rich ancestors spent all their money and didn’t leave any for me.😢

[@dirtyoffroader2093]

😂 same here.

[@pd4165]

Pretty much everybody is related to royalty, if you go back far enough. What else was there to do before TV?

[@philldavies7940]

@@pd4165 listen to the radio.

[@tonyalewis9053]

My Mother tried researching my Father’s family genealogy. She found no record of legal immigration. Most likely, I am told, my Lewis ancestors migrated to Canada and eventually crossed the US border without bothering with documentation. I visited Wales in 2018; it’s a wonderful country and I felt at home there.

[@GenealCymru]

Very interesting!I have some ancestors that took that path too, from Wales to Canada, to the US. I don't think I was able to find any documentation either since it was very early on.

[@peterlewis6820]

im in Cardiff,glad you came

[@debbiependleton8507]

My Great Grand Father, on my father's mother's side, were Lewis. They all migrated to Fort Lauderdale Florida and then spread out through the South of USA. When I was 13 I was told by my Grand mother that their name Lewis derived from the name Llywelyn. I often wonder if I am related to Gruffud ap Llywelyn.

[@llew8563]

Impeccable pronunciation of Cymraeg (Welsh) - much respect 🙏

[@GenealCymru]

Thanks! I appreciate the encouragement :)

[@linpeters5196]

Howard Luther Davis is my late grandfathers name. I knew that he was a ptotestant. Could his middle name reflect that?

[@Nehauon]

It looks like Cumrag 😂 No disrespect, I am part Welsh, and learning welsh, Nos da!

[@dbrh72]

Very interesting video. Our grandmother emigrated to the USA when she was 9. Thankfully we know the town she was born in. Her mother was born a Williams, and married a Jones. Gramma later married a Roberts. Through some genealogy group my sister was out in touch with someone who lives in the town she came from. He was able to find out for us the very house she was born in!

[@GenealCymru]

Very cool! Thanks for sharing your Gramma's story!

[@victoriaburkhardt9974]

Thank you. My Mother’s maiden name was Griffith. She was convinced that the Welsh are the best singers in the whole wide world.

[@ErgonBill]

Listen to your mother. Best advice ever. 😉

[@lizroberts1569]

So are all the Welsh, they do seem to produce very good tenors and choral singers

[@paulaprosser7045]

We are the best singers.. ❤🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

[@barryleach4038]

The Irish are better singers than the Welsh

[@fghjjjk]

I hear the zulus have a better bass section...but no top tenors mind

[@stephanieknowles7586]

My paternal grandmother was Welsh. Rees, as in “Rees jacks save backs.” From Pennsylvania 1880’s. Some research points to Resolven, a little north of Swansea. Spent a month in Wales ten years ago. My soul is there.

[@GenealCymru]

Nice!

[@barnowl.]

The Rees surname is in my family tree too, on both sides, mainly from South Wales.

[@robertk2194]

Im from wales, and still live there to this day, my parents and grandparents are also from wales. Cymru am byth

[@GenealCymru]

Nice!

[@10madcap]

Whats your name? Mine is prosser Red n black kilt

[@2malachi]

Didn't they teach you to use apostrophes, full stops, and capital letters in Wales?

[@pd4165]

@@2malachi In the language of the oppressor?

[@2malachi]

@@pd4165 Serious question, who do you think your oppressors are?

[@markwilson7788]

Your comment is so true. If I hadn't obtained a few vague pieces of info when there was still time, I would have not even have found my grandfather. Those snippets were enough to identify the area.

[@GenealCymru]

That's awesome you were able to figure out where he was from!

[@OTseven]

Extremely interesting. Thank you for putting this together so nicely with so much Information.

[@GenealCymru]

Glad you enjoyed :) and thanks for the kind feedback

[@springcougar1]

Great video. Very informative. My great grandmother was a Thomas. She was the eldest of fifteen children. Born, raised and died in the garw valley in South Wales. Where I have also lived my entire life. Your welsh is superb too. Bendigedig! Greetings from Wales. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

[@GenealCymru]

Glad you enjoyed and found it helpful!

[@DonaldoJTrumpet]

Hi, my dad's from Blaengarw, I haven't been back for years. We had relatives in Bettws and Maesteg, and I remember going over the Bwlch to visit family in Cwm Parc. Long time ago mind. It was all slag heaps, cooling towers, and diesel trains back then, early seventies.

[@jonathanjenkins9583]

Fascinating and informative, as usual!

[@GenealCymru]

Thanks! Glad you enjoyed!

[@martinhumphreys2578]

That was a fascinating clip, I was born in Machynlleth - and I have often wondered at the origin of my Humphreys name.

[@markwilliams5606]

Have successfully investigated my families heritage to Wales and London. Got as far as 1345. We came here in 1620.

[@cindylawrence1200]

That’s marvelous!😊

[@mattblomquist6991]

Went where in 1620?

[@j.mahoney1178]

I'm 100% Celtic born & bred in Wales, genetically I'm 57 percent Irish and 43 percent Welsh, my surname is Pugh, but if you research this it was probably at one time Ap Hugh. Which translates to Son of Hugh.

[@martinpugh1008]

My surname is also Pugh

[@benjaminj4535]

The kingdom of Dyfed was an Irish kingdom in wales. That’s probably where all the Irish came to, and is why you have plenty of Irish

[@j.mahoney1178]

@@benjaminj4535 Plenty of Irish all over the world, never ever heard of Dyfed being an Irish Kingdom, sounds a bit of a fairytale to me, what next Munster was a Welsh Kingdom, maybe I did once visit Killarney.

[@benjaminj4535]

@@j.mahoney1178 Theres a medieval Irish story called the expulsion of the deisi. Where it’s claimed that dyfed was founded by Eochaid, son of Artchorp, after he was forced across the Irish Sea. It’s claimed that his descendants were the kings of Dyfed down to Tualdor mac Rigin, or Tudor map Regin in Welsh.

[@benjaminj4535]

@@j.mahoney1178 considering the close history of the Irish and the Britons it’s not a fairytale at all

[@davinadavies8901]

I really liked this video! Thanks for the information! Very useful!!

[@GenealCymru]

Glad you enjoyed :D

[@reenieager4243]

Excellent explanation and clearly set out. Interesting and informative. Enjoyed listening to you.

[@GenealCymru]

Glad you enjoyed. Thanks for the kind feedback :)

[@reenieager4243]

Well deserved! Enjoying your other posts. Thank you for your insights.

[@robertevans6596]

Fascinating and excellent pronunciation too for a Canadian

[@tonilove8245]

I loved this video and came across it by chance. I am a Hughes by birth and I know somewhere down the line my ancestors are welsh, and i have a strange longing in Wales. I live in southern England but my dad and uncle live in Wales so I go up there when I can. This has made me want to look further into my family tree as i can only go so far back at the moment. Once again thank you.

[@GenealCymru]

Glad you found the video :) Hopefully you do find your Welsh ancestors. I've got plenty more Welsh genealogy-focussed videos on the channel that may help :)

[@zworm2]

Enjoyed that. My Uncle was an Edward. Always enjoyed my visits to Wales to play rugby!

[@GenealCymru]

Glad you enjoyed! What a nice memory

[@rjwintl]

through research my Edwards heritage hails from the Northwest region around Denbighshire !

[@zworm2]

@@rjwintl Thanks! He was a fine man.

[@issimondias]

That was fascinating. I’m from Swansea, and I learnt a lot from this one video. Thanks for this.

[@GenealCymru]

Glad you enjoyed! My family's from Swansea so we have a real love for it.

[@johnowenjones6440]

Thank you for this very informative video that's very interesting & easy to follow

[@GenealCymru]

I'm glad that you enjoyed the video! Thanks for watching :)

[@carolynellis387]

When i studied Welsh at school, for centuries the Welsh didn't have surnames this was from Anglo Saxon/ Norman origins. The old Welsh where there were sons, it was always "ap Grufydd." Ap means "son of" So surnames are actually an English invention for us. So on my father's side, Morris from Machynlleth, mother's side, Owen from Pembroke

[@GenealCymru]

Yes! Thanks for adding this :) One of my other Welsh surname videos goes more in depth into this historical change.

[@carolynellis387]

@GenealCymru Ahh! I only saw your video for first time today. I'll look out for the others. Cheers

[@davidprosser7278]

Yes, or "ap Rosser". -;)

[@edeledeledel5490]

I should stop using them at all, if I were you. What makes you think contemporary Anglo-Saxons used surnames? In those days, hardly anyone moved about much, so they weren't really required. Use of surnames is more to do with increasing and more mobile populations. Consistent spelling of surnames within a family only became more prevalent in the late 19th century. My ancestors in the 1840s spelled themselves in several different ways.

[@MelissaThompson432]

@@davidprosser7278 Cousin! 😉 Are you an American Prosser?

[@Kikatebn639]

My gran was a Sellick from Wales she also would say the Welsh are the best singers, she would be singing all the time while Gramp would whistle.Miss that..❤

[@GenealCymru]

What a lovely memory. Thanks for sharing!

[@stephenbradshaw9126]

An excellent video, well presented and researched - thank you!

[@GenealCymru]

Glad you enjoyed!

[@rocketmonty9916]

Great video, ardderchog! Half my school had these names, great times

[@GenealCymru]

Glad you enjoyed!

[@DocJ58-OCB]

Thanks Dai, this was a great video...and it follows what my aunt found when she was doing up our family tree (rough and barky, with tangled roots and twisted branches...lol)... The one thing she found though, was the "Anglicization" of Jons to Jones on SOME of my Mom's side of the family (from HER Mom's side of the family) whereas all of my Dad's family were ORIGINALLY Jonses ( as far back as she went anyway). Although she knew going in where my Grampa "Dai" (Daffyd from what she found) was from, and by that where both his parents were from, she couldn't ever pin down WHY they were from there, or where THEIR families were from...and being Jones, it just wasn't an easy hunt...but anyway, thanks for the great content, stay safe, and keep digging...maybe the Jonses in your family crossed somewhere with the Jonses in MY family...

[@GenealCymru]

Glad you enjoyed! :) Yeah Jones can be tricky. I've been researching some recently. John and Rachel Jones of Cwmere, Ystrad, in Cardiganshire. I'm very lucky that they both left wills in the 1840s & 1850s, so there's a good foundation to work from. Today I learned one of their great grandsons ended up being a Member in Parliament in the early 1900s. They're not even my relatives (yet), but I've basically adopted Rachel's family as my family at this point haha. The work never really ends aha

[@kathleenhughes5476]

Enjoyed your video. My husband's family - John Hughes and Mary Morris of which there are at least 3 couples with these names in the 1830 time period. A written note in family records states that he and Mary Morris are from up near the English border. In another note John said he said he was from "Sevancy." His occupation had to do with smelting and the metal industry, which probably puts him in southern Wales. Now to find his rumored brother, David, who went on to New Orleans from Indiana, United States and all of his daughters somewhere in Indiana or Illinois. His youngest son, Lafayette, was an alcoholic and became a "famous" temperance lecturer in the late 1800's and early 1900's. I have found accounts of Lafayette in the county history, newspapers from all over, and a book - telling about his father and family, and Lafayette's adventures from Indiana to Ohio to Michigan to Missouri to Oregon to California where he died and is buried.

[@GenealCymru]

Glad you enjoyed :D That's a lot of really interesting leads! As frustrating as the common names must be, it must also be a lot of fun!

[@Dee-B82]

Hi Kathleen, I have a John Hughes in my family tree born around 1820 in the Old Colwyn area, in a place called Llysfaen, but he married a Jane Evans they were my Great great great, great grandparents, hope I've got that right lol, I'm still fairly new at tracing my Welsh family. I know my comment is fairly random 🤣xx

[@julieorourke9897]

I am also a Morris, my dad, granddad and g grandad were all John Morris

[@rymoe6299]

Morris from Glyn ceiriog 1800 moving to Cefn mawr and Oswestry

[@rymoe6299]

@@julieorourke9897 I have 2 John morris ancestors late 1800s

[@randyfloyd560]

❤ Facinating. Thanks for sharing.

[@GenealCymru]

Glad you enjoyed!

[@charleneford2851]

Thank you for this video very informative

[@GenealCymru]

Glad you enjoyed :)

[@Dee-B82]

You're so right about needing more than just a name 😂 Researching mine is a nightmare there are literally thousands with the same name and birthday that lived in the same area 😮 Nice to see my ancestors last names there Roberts, Hughes, Williams on my mom's side now I've discovered Irish travellers that married into the family on my dad's side, coupled with the Jamaican/African heritage this is one big melting pot and I'm loving it ❤ Thank you for the information on the lastnames your content really helps ❤xx

[@GenealCymru]

I know right, it takes a lot to really pin down our ancestors, but it's definitely possible! :D I'm glad you're enjoying your research journey and thanks for sharing about your Irish traveller find. That's so exciting! :D I may have told you this before, but the Jamaican Genealogy Resources group on Facebook has a massive collection of resources under their Guides and Files tabs which you might find helpful. They're super nice over there too.

[@Dee-B82]

@GenealCymru You did mention it , thank you but I'm not on fb anymore....... saying that I may have to make a sneaky one just to have a look 😉x I'm really finding your channel helpful xx

[@GenealCymru]

Oops sorry, I have a bad memory :D. Glad you're finding my videos helpful-that's the goal :D

[@Dee-B82]

@GenealCymru please don't apologise I'm sure you mentioned it on my comment on a previous video where i talked about my DNA ancestry test results, nether the less it's really helpful that you recommended it to me, thank you 😊x

[@mike-williams]

It's frustrating how common some names were. I was tracing one ancestor in a village in Wales in the 19th century and there were multiple girls with the same first+last name born each quarter.

[@henrygingercat]

Many thanks for this. The patronymic tradition probably explains why I had an uncle called William Owen Owen.

[@GenealCymru]

No problem. And yeah that's definitely part of it. The patronymic naming system and then on top of it is the traditional naming pattern where children are named after their older relatives. Owen was probably an important name in a number of ways among your ancestors. Very cool

[@alanwatson7560]

My maternal grandfather was Robert Owen Owen, born in Llandderfel.

[@lindickison3055]

Maybe we're cousins! Anc was Samuel Owen, wife Hannah. Came to US 1830 (my newest ancestors). Have paper he signed relinquishing alleg. to Q Victoria!!!

[@klewis2048]

Morriston connection. My Lewis line is from here, at least from mid 1850s, and I grew up and went to school here too. The industrial connection was with metal smelting and chemical processing, and the males in my line work at the blast furnaces. Lovely to see your family photo.

[@GenealCymru]

Awesome! Love it when people from Morriston find my videos :D. My family lived at Chemical Road for many years, so that industrial connection is there down to the street names.

[@sassybob9137]

Great video!… My non-Welsh Dad used to call my Welsh Grandpap [Thomas John(s)] and say, “Halo, Tom, this is William Williams… in his best Welsh accent. They would chat for 30 minutes until my Dad would bust out laughing… a fun memory. My Mum was a maternal Lloyd so looking up John and Lloyd brought despair. Hopefully in the afterlife I will find out who was whom?

[@GenealCymru]

Glad you enjoyed! If you ever feel like researching your Lloyds and Johns again, definitely check out some of my genealogy-focussed videos. All I do is research people with common names, so I try to reassure people that it's not as impossible as it might feel at first. Also thanks for sharing that nice memory of your dad and grandpap!

[@joyfullone3968]

My mother was from Wales and her maiden name was Vickery, her mother’s maiden name was Tasca. She was born in Newport in 1920.

[@GenealCymru]

Nice!

[@maryminty5876]

Try the spelling TASKER common surname in industrial south Wales

[@joyfullone3968]

@@maryminty5876 Interesting, thanks!

[@Flooride1]

Thanks for the video very informative. My family name is Rees which appaarently is from Camarthenshire where my fathers' family were from a few generations back before they moved to Birmingham , England at the beginning of WW2. My cousin has traced back the Rees line to the late 1700s Camarthenshire.

[@GenealCymru]

Glad you enjoyed. Very cool. Carmarthenshire is where a bunch of my ancestors are from too. One of my brick walls there is actually a Rees so a funny coincidence

[@retributionpics]

My last name is Reece. As I am sure you already know that it is another variant of your surname. Derives from the Welsh name Rhys who were royalty. Can be spelled Rees, Reece, Reese, and apparently Rice. Sometimes fathers and sons even spelled it differently from each other. Also, I love your profile picture of our coat of arms/ family crest!

[@Senshikaji]

Another Rees here; my father came from Brithdir in the South Wales valleys, either his father or grandfather changed the spelling from Rhys (so the English could spell it....)

[@RotGoblin]

Knew a Rees family growing up in a small town in Carms, so they are still about.

[@jillybe1873]

We're Rees from Black Mountain so yes, makes sense.

[@TS-bn7zt]

Fantastic!! Best Wishes from Swansea ( Abertawe) 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

[@GenealCymru]

Thanks! Glad you enjoyed. Love Swansea, that's where a bunch of my family still lives. :)

[@davidpowell6098]

I live near Mostyn, a beautiful estate. Interesting vid, thanks for posting.

[@GenealCymru]

Very cool. Glad you enjoyed!

[@vaughnj4398]

My family kept records thankfully. I’m 4th generation American, descended from the Vaughans of Kidwelly. Im planning on going there soon, it looks like a charming town. Great video!

[@GenealCymru]

Very cool! I have some ancestors from Kidwelly too. I don't know much about that branch though

[@lizdavies3867]

Small pretty town kidwelly.

[@user-vm8vw9fg5l]

My mother's surname is kidwell

[@joachimjustinmorgan4851]

I love my name. Morgan has a mixture of noble and nefarious characters tied to it, but they are at no loss for interesting stories.

[@GenealCymru]

Nice!

[@karencourt5684]

That is a nice name❤

[@joachimjustinmorgan4851]

@@karencourt5684 thanks!

[@karencourt5684]

@@joachimjustinmorgan4851 btw your pic is really nice you have a kind face

[@joachimjustinmorgan4851]

@@karencourt5684 aww, thank you. That’s very kind of you to say.

[@willow3885]

Your pronunciation of Welsh is perfect! 🥰

[@BionicRusty]

2:10 your map shows where I live and, only a few miles away, where I was born and raised. The village named on the map as Llanasaph was shortened to Llanasa after the map was produced. Llan means ‘church of’ and so Llanasaph, meaning ‘Church of St.Asaph’ was a diocese of St.Asaph. I was christened and married in Llanasa church. Great video 👍

[@GenealCymru]

Very cool! Thanks for sharing and glad you enjoyed :)

[@user-ni9gr1qn5t]

I know Llanasa it's about 2.5 mile from Prestatyn

[@MadMonk_]

Just to throw confusion into the mix on Welsh names, my mothers family had a tradition of all the male children were named Griffith xxxxx Hughes, and were known by their middle names. Secondly, there are lots of links between the Swansea area and Devon/Cornwall due to the amount of copper works in and around Swansea. My family are from the Gower and we have ancestors who moved to Wales from Devon. Thank you for a great insight

[@GenealCymru]

Very interesting!I haven't seen a family with repeated first names like that. I talk more about the connections between Devon and South Wales in this video if you're interested: kzbin.info/www/bejne/rYm6e6Jqf6qZfLs

[@karensims6376]

My grandmother was a Hughes.

[@lexdavies3656]

My brother was named after my grandfather but he was called by his middle name, there’s a lot of that in my family. Friends call them by their first name, family call them by their middle name

[@WildwoodTV]

Our family are all known by our middle names, my brothers also had an extra name too (mum's surname). Confusion continues...

[@allenjenkins7947]

In my family, the eldest son is William, the second Thomas, the third David, but we are all known familiarly by our middle names. There is a similar tradition with girls, but not as strongly adhered to.

[@sarahyates6055]

My paternal grandmother was a Woosnam. I’ve traced the line back to 1562 to a Woosnam marriage in Llandinam Montgomeryshire. Sometime between then and 1600 the family seems to split into what’s been considered as 2 factions of the Woosnam “clan”. Most of the clan stayed in Llandiam or surrounding villages and towns until about 1950 ish when David Davies (later Lord Davies) opened up coal mines in Glamorgan and many families like so many across GB moved from being farmers or Agricultural workers to becoming Miners or workers in the Industrial factories. My own family did this and my Grandmother was born at Bridgend. There are still some Woosnams living in the Llandinam area though sadly not as many as before 1850. As for the origin of the Surname, this is an interesting one and I’ve been told several theories. When I first started researching I was told by a supposedly fairly reputable pair of genealogists that unequivocally Woosnam was really Wolstenholme but the Welsh speaking people couldn’t pronounce it properly and so it became Woosnam. When I asked what their evidence was I was told “there’s plenty if you look for it ….” Not very helpful or encouraging for a newby researcher. There seems to be different pronunciations too, some say “Wusnam”, or “woooosnam “ and I’ve even been told “uusnam” the w being silent. So doing my research I compiled a tree of nearly 2000 Woosnams from present day back to 1562! They were a prolific lot even back in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries it wasn’t uncommon for each couple to have 10 children who survived to adulthood married then had 10 children who survived, married etc. Then when you get to the 1850’s forward where families were living in mining villages/towns they we’re still having large families but children were dying as babies or young children, the quality of life had gone down. They might have been earning slightly higher wages but their living conditions were terrible many had no gardens or anywhere to grow fresh food , there was no proper fresh air nor sanitation. I saw it in my own family my Great Grandfather married in 1885 he and his wife had 8 children within 10 years, the eldest daughter died aged 8 of diarrhoea and gastrointestinal disease, then five babies died under the age of 1 years old. In the end his wife couldn’t take anymore and the family decided to go to America in 1895. The wife who was pregnant took the surviving two children and sailed to America but my Gt Grandfather never went, we don’t know why. Then in 1910 each having declared the other deceased he married my Gt Grandmother and my Granny was born then her 5 siblings. Sadly I didn’t know anything about this first family until about 6months after my last Gt Uncle had died so we don’t know if they knew about this first family. I did manage to contact some of the descendants of the family who are in America and they were thrilled to finally know a bit about their Grandfather, who he was and where he’d come from. In 2004 I organised a Woosnam gathering of around 100 Woosnams in Llandinum. Whilst there I was told that one of them had recently been at a conference in Amsterdam and in conversation was told that “Usnam” was a Dutch surname! Interestingly my Granny always said she’d been told the Woosnams originated from Huguenot refugees. Amsterdam had a large Huguenot community in the 15 th century onwards. Further research following the so called Wolstenholme theory showed that in the late 1500’s early 1600’s there were Wolstenholmes in Wales but not in The Powis/Montgomeryshire area. The name Wolstenholme originated from the 11/12th century and was from the Norse Wulfstan holm …..wolfs home. Furthermore I found a marriage record in the 1580’s in Lancashire at the same church, same year so presumably the same clergyman for a Woosnam and later a Wolstenholme, clearly two different surnames. Having tested out the theory on welsh speaking people ok they’re modern day people but they said Wolstenholme as an English speaker would and Woosnam as is. They all felt the surnames were of two different origins and didn’t know of Wolstenholme as a “Welsh “ surname. So it’s all very intriguing.

[@GenealCymru]

Very cool! Thank you for sharing!

[@Gynra]

Thank you Sarah, that's so interesting! When I was small, I used to visit my paternal grandmother in Beaufort (now in Gwent), and she often spoke of Mrs "Wosnim" who lived across the road. Had I come across the name Woosnam then, I'd have thought that that was what she meant. It wasn't until I was an adult, and long after she passed away, that I realised she couldn't remember names, and "Wosnim" was a contraction of "What's her name".

[@mjp8648]

Must not forget Ian Woosnam, originally from Llanymynech. Also over 40 years ago, the last delivery on my paper round in Builth Wells was to "Woosnam and Tyler".

[@sarahyates6055]

@@mjp8648 Ian is related to me! Via his and my Dad’s x3 Great Grandfather who was either called William or Edward Woosnam , I forget which right now!! Going back through the centuries they were all called either William, Edward, Thomas or John! There were a few other names but mostly those, which makes for interesting and confusing research when looking for a William Woosnam who had a wife Ann /Anne and you get half a dozen of them all the same generation, of similar age and living within 5miles of each other……oh the joys!! I should also mention Phil Woosnam former West Ham?! Footballer and then went to Atlanta USA born in Caersws.

[@jasonleedham5678]

I live about 7 miles from Llandinam, and have a good mate called Woosnam , his family have been in the Caersws area for generations!

[@scytale6]

Fascinating!

[@GenealCymru]

Glad you enjoyed!

[@dirtyoffroader2093]

Great video. I've pretty much chased my surname back to the early 14th century in Wales, I found out that they were noble/gentry, had castles and mansions (some that still stand) and that large parts of the family were 1st Welsh settlers in parts of the US and Canada (and still live there).. all through a simple DNA test. It's been mind blowing.

[@robertpearson8798]

My great grandfather was a Williams (Thomas George) from somewhere in eastern Wales. Finding information about him wasn’t too hard because we knew a bit about his history. Going further back was like looking for a needle in a stack of needles. The biggest breakthrough came when I was messaged on Ancestry by a relation who still lived in England near the Welsh border and was much closer to the sources of information and had a great deal more first hand family information. Don’t underestimate the power of making personal connections.

[@robertpearson8798]

I’m in Canada BTW.

[@GenealCymru]

Very cool and good advice too. I met someone on Ancestry who ended up sending me her notes and a photocopy of an old pedigree that she got while visiting the National Library of Wales. It was great to get to see those things.

[@robertpearson8798]

@@GenealCymru Some of the best things to get are family pictures. I’ve gotten some great ones over the years.

[@johnwynne2179]

I found with my search, the Welsh like to travel. I have a cousin, she lives over in York, not far with today's roads, but 200 years ago, it was a journey and a half

[@barnowl.]

Ancestry is wonderful for finding DNA cousins and checking out their public trees to aid research.

[@kellynelson4775]

After doing genealogy for about 5 years I knew about occupation, and different naming traditions...the others not as much. One of my mothers lines has french (Normandy possibly) Scottish (Ayrshire) and Ireland (Donegal/Castlefinn). The spellings have changed which is usual...been trying to track down any clan involvement. The line came to the states in the 1600's .

[@GenealCymru]

Interesting. I have mixed feelings about US genealogy. On the one hand, I'm jealous that it goes so far back, but then on the other, it's really challenging to get back to the 1600s in the Welsh records even when your ancestors were in Wales the whole time. Best of luck to you!

[@lisachaput2952]

​@@GenealCymruYes, I'm hoping in the future as the records start to match up, that it becomes easier to figure out. Extensive work needs to be done to make it easier and accurate.

[@1234j]

Very interesting. Thank you.

[@GenealCymru]

Glad you enjoyed :)

[@dawnrowlands2408]

This was really interesting. My dads side are from the area around Adfa and Berriew. Several Rowlands' in the churchyard there. They were tenant farmers and farm labourers. Still live not too far from there now.

[@GenealCymru]

Very cool. Thanks for sharing. Churchyards are so fun to look through. Where my ancestors are they tended to be buried in big clusters, so even if they had different surnames, the people around them would be relatives. I need to get on my video about graveyards

[@MoosefromCanada]

Very interesting! Thanks for the info. My Great Gramma was an Evans. I have our Family tree on Ancestry. Planning on visiting my many many cousins 🫡🇨🇦

[@GenealCymru]

Very cool! Glad you enjoyed :)

[@faystokes8020]

My Nan also Evans

[@mystrength5640]

Sooo interesting., thank you so much! 🙏🏻🇿🇦🐘🦒🦏

[@GenealCymru]

Glad you enjoyed :)

[@Jamestele1]

My pre-adoption surname was Jones. My direct ancestor came from near Flint. My Williams, Watkins lines if from Llangollen in Denbigh. I love Cymru and the culture. Diolch for such a cool video, and heddwch fyddo gyda chwi (Peace be with you).

[@GenealCymru]

Very cool. Glad you enjoyed!

[@sickboisadventures]

So hard to do your family tree in Wales when your surname is Jones! Everyone has the misconception that we're all related when we're not as it is one of the most common surname in Wales

[@GenealCymru]

You may be interested in my other video which talks about one of the ways to navigate having ancestors with really common names. I promise it's possible! I have more videos coming on this topic because most of my ancestors have super common names so it's all I ever do. Confusing, Common names in your Family Tree? Do This: kzbin.info/www/bejne/rYm6e6Jqf6qZfLs

[@rodjones117]

It certainly is!

[@arthurreeder8451]

Jones can't be Welsh as there is no J in the Welsh language surely?

[@jamesjones3599]

​@@arthurreeder8451I'm pretty sure it's a surname for many Welsh people .

[@jillybe1873]

​@arthurreeder8451 it's from ap sian son of John

[@missharry5727]

My father's surname was Harry, which is very uncommon in England. From what we have been able to ascertain it is a name from the Cardiff area, and is clearly related to the patronymic Parry (Welsh ap Harri) and is also related to the French pronunciation of Henry.

[@GenealCymru]

I've found that in some places in Wales during the 18th and 19th Centuries that Harry and Henry were used interchangeably. And you're absolutely right, sons of Harry would be called ap harry/Harri depending on how they chose t ospell it.

[@bordersw1239]

Interesting, some of my family were Harry’s from the Cardiff area.

[@missharry5727]

@@bordersw1239 Thanks for that - nice to know!

[@judithbooth3165]

​@@GenealCymruwould the surname Harries be related to the surname Harry? I understood they originally came from French speaking Belgium in the 16th century - protestant refugees who engaged in the textile industry.

[@bordersw1239]

My Great Grandmother was a Harry, the family lived in the same Farmhouse for 500 years , supposedly related to Prince Llewelyn. The farm was just west of Cardiff near Peterson Super Ely. I’ve got the newspaper cutting (1953) from when they left the farm.

[@ezioauditore3128]

Fun fact - I live in Swansea and my surname is David - so the first name switch is definitely a thing. Good video.

[@stuartdando8512]

Very informative. You are very dedicated to reply to so many comments. My Welsh surname is Dando and apparently it translates to " roof over head " but I've never met anyone who could confirm this. Our family originated from a town with one of the longest Welsh names, so I've been told.👍

[@GenealCymru]

Thanks. I hope to make this a place where people know they can come to share and have at least one person see what they've said and say something encouraging :) Dando isn't a name I've come across before. Here's a page that talks a bit about it: www.surnamedb.com/Surname/Dando

[@stuartdando8512]

@@GenealCymru thanks very much👍

[@Sir_Squegg]

Check out the Mabinogion if you haven’t already. It’s a collection of Welsh myths and legends. Like the legend of Gelert. It happened in Beddgelert not far from me, you can visit the grave and the ruins of the house. There’s nothing like it to connect you with the land and the people.

[@GenealCymru]

Thanks. I read it many years ago now. My favourites are the stories about Arianrhod and Blodeuwedd.

[@jjohns941]

I've a common name. I do know when my grandfather was born in Cardiff from the few papers we have. He had a family in Wales but they divorced when he decided to move to the USA and his wife didn't want to. His second wife, my grandmother, sailed to Wales several times before WWII and visited his first family but never left any letters or papers. It's very frustrating when you can't find anything more than what little bit your parents told you. Thank you for this video, it does explain why we've had no luck thus far.

[@GenealCymru]

What an interesting story! Thanks for sharing. It is definitely tricky, but don't give up. Also, doing family history research in the 1900s is very, very difficult, because a lot of the records are protected for privacy purposes and there's much less that's been put online. The sweet spot really is getting back to the 1880s or so.

[@lynnettejohns4733]

I live in Cape Town, South Africa. My surname, Johns, is very rare here.

[@pauldurkee4764]

Have you managed to find his birth certificate? Being born before the second world war, he would have been most likely born at home, and this is often recorded on the certificate. One you have the address it gives you something to go on.

[@barnowl.]

I got my DNA done through Ancestry and subscribe to their Family Tree channel. I have found MANY close, medium and distant DNA cousins with family trees that I have researched to help me work out my family tree. The DNA connection ensures that I am on the right path. Some will even correspond with you on the 'message' line and give more information, photos , documents etc. via the site.

[@jjohns941]

Thank you,@@barnowl. I tried Ancestry a few years ago without the great results you have had. I am currently using MyHeritage to see if I can find any other information.

[@Moondoggy1941]

It is very difficult for me to get a verbal family tree, I heard once that maybe Wales, so I see one of the names from my Mom's side of the family in this list. It is nice to see maybe that is where some of my family came from.

[@GenealCymru]

Hopefully the elder members of your family get to a place where they open up a bit more about the family history. Sometimes though ti really does take asking, for example, that relative that no one really talks to anymore, someone a bit more distant who will talk about stuff or had a different experience of family. Glad my video helped and glad you enjoyed it.

[@southernsunshine6154]

According to wills and deeds, it appears that all branches of my family was in the US sometime in the 1600's. When Ancestry DNA refined their ethnicity estimate to make it more specific, mine indicated I was 24% Welsh, 19% Scottish, 42% English and Northwestern Europe. I was a bit surprised at the specificity of the Welsh designation. I do have a number of the surnames you mentioned in my family: Smith, Jones, Lewis, Davis. I was very surprised I had so much Welsh. I have Viking Disease (dupuytren's contracture) significant enough that I have had to have hand surgery so I know I must have Scandinavian ancestors. I do have 2% Norway, 6% Sweden & Denmark. Based on history I know the Vikings raided, traded and settled in Scotland and other parts of northern England. I don't know if they ever got to Wales. I do know that one of my ancestors was an indentured servant when he came to the colonies. Anyway, it is all very interesting.

[@GenealCymru]

Very cool. Yeah I haven't looked much into that period of Welsh history. I'm more interested in the 1700s-1900s. Getting back to the 1600s in the Welsh records is very tricky. I've managed a couple of my lines, but it's cause they owned properties. My poor factory worker ancestors are stuck in the 1st half of the 1800s still.

[@spacebeam6480]

I don't know about the rest of Wales, but apparently Swansea, South Wales, was named after the Viking Sweyn Forkbeard who supposedly discovered an islet in the area. This area was then known as Sweyn's Eye, and eventually Swansea. Don't quote me on this though!

[@mike-williams]

Take the ethnicity percentages with a grain of salt as it's based on the sample of people doing genetic research with that company. I also have Dupuytren's with a clear line of sufferers in my family going back to Sweden, but it's also very common in the NE of England where the Viking presence and legacy was strong.

[@Waterplanening]

It's fascinating! I hope and pray you had a really good surgeon! I worked in surgery for 35 years! Many disinterested surgeons think that operation is beneath them! It requries very delicacy! One of the surgeon's residents cut the palmer nerve! The poor patient never recovered properly! He sued for a million bucks and won!

[@stephenvanwoert2447]

The Norwegian Vikings came over the top (Scotland) and down along the west coast to Wales and Ireland, while the Danes settled in northeast England.

[@mike-williams]

I first visited Dolgelley in North Wales in 2005, trying to track down by great-grandfather Williams (whose mother was a Jones). Walking around some of the many local cemeteries I started taking photos of all the Williams and Jones burial plots. It didn't take an hour to realise that at least half the plots had these names and I was wasting my time. Good news is that I did stumble on the dual burial plot of my great-great grandparents. That was a bit of luck as so many headstones had been stacked along the wall of the cemetery, probably due to repeated flooding. I'm still trying to track my WIlliams line further back but am stuck with some unknown Williams father in the early 19th century. DNA doesn't really help as the closest genetic antecedents I have are descendants of those who migrated to the US a century earlier. The people who stayed are far far less likely to do genetic testing for ancestral purposes.

[@GenealCymru]

Oh no aha. Yeah I really need to do a video on cemeteries. The thing I've found is that it's good to ignore the names and just get information on the people who are buried anywhere near your ancestors. I've got some monumental inscription booklets and using the map it's clear that there's specific areas where only my ancestors were buried.

[@lizroberts1569]

Probably difficult because good records weren’t kept in Wales other than Parish & Chapel with a lot of oral history

[@patriciajrs46]

Thank you for this video. Seems my Rogers surname is quite associated with that country.

[@GenealCymru]

Glad you enjoyed!

[@johnmorris7815]

That was fascinating, don’t quite know how I came across this but definitely an interesting and informative video, I live a stone’s throw from Monmouthshire in west Gloucestershire but my father was from Robinsons Newfoundland, we often wondered where the “Morris’s” came from originally and to this day it’s still a mystery.

[@GenealCymru]

Well glad you enjoyed :) I'd bet on the Morris' being Welsh, but it'd take doing the genealogy research to figure it out.

[@karencourt5684]

Hi john.same here just came across this channel.very facinating

[@GenealCymru]

Glad you're enjoying!

[@barnowl.]

Gloucester was once part of Wales. Some of my ancestors came from there and have Welsh DNA.

[@helzapoppin9810]

Very useful info. Was there a certain point in time when the surname convention changed? Or was it a gradual thing? I'm not affected by this quite yet as I can only trace my Evans ancestry back to 1777 Virginia (which of course could mean anywhere in a huge swath of territory including WV and parts of TN). That's my wall. Been stuck there for 30 years. There are family "legends" but nothing that has led to anything substantive.

[@GenealCymru]

The naming convention changed at different times in different places. My old video called Welsh Surnames Explained goes into that a bit more. It's an old video, but the information is still good. I generally consider it happening between the 1500s and late 1800s. Where I research a lot in Cardiganshire/Carmarthenshire most people are using hereditary surnames by the end of the 1700s.

[@mike-williams]

I think it varies across Wales. I have ancestors from the north and south: the latter didn't seem to change to fixed surnames until a generation or two later.

[@keithlloyd4254]

I always understood that the name Havard comes from word hafod, the person that took the grazing animals up to the high pastures in summertime & dwelt in the hafod.

[@GenealCymru]

I'm sure that very much so is a possibility. I didn't see that origin in the source I was looking at, but I can see it happening for sure. Thanks for sharing I'm sure others will find your comment useful too!

[@jonathanpowell668]

@@GenealCymru Yeh i'm pretty sure it is the anglicized spelling of Hafod, the English liked flipping the F's for V's...like Caernaveon / Caernarfon

[@danielcobbins8861]

@@GenealCymru One branch of my family was named Prescott, which comes from the Welsh Pryscwt, meaning Priests cottage, but the earliest I got was that John Prescott was from Sowerby Bridge, in West Yorkshire, before he moved to Massachusetts, in 1640.

[@jinxvrs]

@@GenealCymru It's probably a corruption of "Hafod" and could be considered an estate type name - there is a Hafod Estate a few miles from Devil's Bridge, just west of Cwmystwyth.

[@Morgan2XL]

Havard is apparently a currently existing use Norwegian name, they came over with the Norman conquest and spread very prolificly across Wales. See Havards of Brecon going back to 1066.

[@davidflint9661]

I have traced my ancestors to around 1400 in Derbyshire. My name is David Burton Flint all three are very old names. In 1648 Thomas Flint settled in Concord, Mass. from there into upstate New York around 1742. My first book, The Life and Times of Robert Flint the Pioner tells of his life.

[@CoolTaxiDriver]

Thank you so much! My husband’s family is a bit convoluted. We know that his great (great?) grandfather came from Swansea. We do know that some time (probably prior to that time), there was a Welsh settlement in Heerlan, Netherlands. We are not able to trace that portion…however, my husband has an immune disease with a particular mutation. That founder mutation came from the Netherlands..specifically..Heerlan. Thank you so much for the clear details on names. We have both Evans, and Morgan. A funny coincidence with the name Morgan - The great grandfather married a girl named Sarah Morgan. She had 3 children, but died with the last child during childbirth. He remarried..to another Sarah Morgan and had more children. Because of a relative working so diligently on all the names, we were able to meet that other branch of the family. This distant cousin looked more like my husband than his own siblings! I really appreciate understanding how some of these patronymic names worked, and will enjoy telling my husband. I was also interested in hearing the occupational name of Saer…and wonder if a version of this name was used for the name Cyrus (because it sounds somewhat similar), and there were indeed carpenters in the family!

[@GenealCymru]

Glad you found the video so helpful! And thanks for sharing your story! I've had the same thing as the Sarah Morgan thing happen quite a bit in my family too. It's definitely tricky.

[@stephrichards4611]

Diddorol iawn, waw mae dy sgiliau ymchwil di yn rhagorol! Your research skills are exquisite! diolch o galon o abertawe. 🙃

[@GenealCymru]

Diolch :) Glad you enjoyed!

[@tammywilliams-ankcorn9533]

This was interesting. My last name is Williams which is quite common in the US.

[@GenealCymru]

Nice! Glad you enjoyed. Yeah Williams is a really common one in Wales too.

[@drewwilliams6888]

Hello Tammy, best wishes from Wales.

[@Knappa22]

There are loads of Prices, Watkins and Havards in Breconshire.

[@Waterplanening]

I agree! All these people were wonderful singers, including myself, Mother, Daddy and my sisters!

[@margaretwicks544]

My dear old Dadwas born in Merthyr Tydfyll named Watkins He couldn't sing !!!!!!

[@user-ni9gr1qn5t]

As a Welshman I can trace my family name over century's,were from the NorthEast it's were we are now,covering from,Bala ,Llanfor,Capelcelyn in Gwynedd ,Cynwyd in Denbighshire and Coedpoeth,Fron(Tan-y-fron) in Wrexham but my family name is not Welsh the name I think is from near Manchester area in Cheshire in England the family name is Millington

[@GenealCymru]

Very cool! That's a part of Wales I don't get to research very often. Only a few of my ancestors ever made it up that way.

[@user-ni9gr1qn5t]

Thanks for the reply

[@danielcobbins8861]

There is a town, near Philadelphia, PA called Bala Cynwyd, and another Welsh name town, called Bryn Mawr, also near Philly.

[@user-ni9gr1qn5t]

@@danielcobbins8861 I think it's in the West of Wales a Village of Strata Florida

[@sundaymorningritual5837]

coedy 🔥🔥🔥🔥

[@KPP365]

Thank you, Very informative, I recently received my DNA results, I was born in Liverpool, England .I am 35% Welsh 33% Irish 26% English and 6% Swedish. I have started tracing my family tree . Your video was extremely helpful.

[@GenealCymru]

Nice! Glad you enjoyed! :)

[@Inquisitor_Vex]

When it says your “X% Welsh” that doesn’t necessarily mean your family were from Wales, that’s just the % of native Brythonic in you. Every English person will have a % “Welsh” in them because the Anglo-Saxons mixed with native Britons. I’m just saying, anyone who’s 100% English won’t genetically be 100% English.

[@barnowl.]

@@Inquisitor_Vex From what I've read on genealogy the Welsh kept to themselves. Offa's Dyke, a divide made by the English, on the eastern side of Wales, helped enable this. So there was not much mixing of ethnicities. In the book, 'The Celts - A Sceptical History', by Simon Jenkins, it debunks the theory of much race intermingling in the distant past between the Welsh and the Angles, Saxon and Jutes.. (And I know that the Welsh were also not Celts.) Also, once Wales was larger than it is now, with more country to the east and south but this was eventually acquired by the English My DNA is 72% Welsh and 18% English and N-W Europe ethnicity ( The Saxons, Angles and Jutes) and my Family Tree supports this.

[@Inquisitor_Vex]

@@barnowl. not sure I’m understanding what you’re getting at there, buddy.

[@barnowl.]

@@Inquisitor_Vex I was questioning your idea oF not being 100% English or Welsh. What do you mean ?

[@charleneevans5848]

my maternal grandfather's great grandmother was a Thomas & he had a cousin who was a well known singer back in the day.

[@GenealCymru]

Very cool!

[@kenrogers107]

Interesting video, I happened across this not expecting to see my family last name Rogers in this, my ancestry shows Wales as where my family may have come from, so I was surprised to see this.

[@GenealCymru]

Very cool!

[@kenrogers107]

@GenealCymru yes it is, I did the ancestry test and the results didn't shock me much, we knew our family was from western Europe, many in my family believed it to be Ireland or England but our family didn't do a very good job tracing it's history, my great grandmother on my moms side is 100% German but obviously my name comes from my father so my fathers side of the family has no true idea where they originally come from, so this certainly helps narrow it down to an area.

[@pincermovement72]

My grandfather was named Rhodes which I believe is Welsh , would be nice to know where his family are from

[@SS501Fan101]

Rhodes is an English surname, my uncle came from England and that's his last name

[@impalaman9707]

Between Davis, Lewis, and Jones---all I can say is the Welsh sure pumped out a lotta babies!🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@GenealCymru]

I think the birth rate was about the same as in other places, just there really weren't many more names than David Lewis and Jones that people used! aha

[@Simon-rm7pi]

No TV 😂

[@LZaila]

This is helpful. I am researching out Wiles... as i am trying to find that portion. Not only because of the name but from the DNA

[@GenealCymru]

Glad you found it helpful! Good luck with your Wiles research!

[@bevanderson6245]

The patronymic surnames likely came with the ancient Vikings who settled in Wales (and England, Scotland, Ireland, Normandy, etc.). The patronymic names morphed into single surnames like they did in America, but were at one time patronymic names. For people doing genealogy research in Norway, Sweden, and Denmark, how the patronymic naming system works, when or where it stopped, is vital to finding ancestors. The patronymic system is still used today in Iceland and the Faroe Islands.

[@GenealCymru]

Do you have any sources that say that the patronymic system came from the Vikings? The only source I've been able to find says it was formalised through the Welsh Law of Hywel Dda. But there's also poetry written in the 500s (the poems of Taliesin) that uses the patronymic system and the Vikings weren't in Wales 'til centuries after that. From what little I know about Vikings in Wales, it doesn't seem like they had that kind of impact on Welsh culture.

[@MelissaThompson432]

Many cultures have used patronymics for millenia; Jewish and Greek, right offhand.

[@MelissaThompson432]

@@lwmaynard5180 It seems far more likely that a Germanic surname would be Johannes, since the Germanic form of John is Johann.

[@barnowl.]

Very few Vikings were in Wales.

[@MrDaiJohn]

Thanks for this. I live in Swansea and have John from my Fathers Side and Owen and Kellaway from my My Mothers side in Devon. Hard tracing the John side as so many where named John John. 👍🏻

[@GenealCymru]

Glad you enjoyed! Yeah John can be a tricky one, but don't give up. I promise it's possible!

[@ServingMyJesus]

Thank you for that. My surname is "Griffith." It comes from my Great Grandfather who was Welsh but moved to Barbados. In Barbados "Griffith" is a quite common surname. I would love to trace my Welsh ancestry. But with such a common nam it is difficult. My father said that when he came to the UK he had a diary with relatives details, but he lost it. I no longer have my parents, so I find it quite difficult tracing my family tree. Once again, thank you for your video.

[@GenealCymru]

Glad you enjoyed. Wow, it's a real shame about the diary being lost. Have you looked for any other old family papers or photos? There might be something left that could help. Hopefully some of the other more genealogy-focussed videos that I've made will be helpful for you

[@porterhodges727]

Last name Hodges. Found some genealogical records going back to the mid 1700s of my ancestors in Monmouthshire Wales, specifically Llondogo along the river Wye. Turns out Hodge was a short/nick name for Roger. So, at some point somebody took Hodges as their surname. Hodges being the possessive of Hodge. Hodge being a nick name for Roger. Also have connections to Davies and Jones. Thank you for the video!

[@GenealCymru]

Very interesting! Thanks for sharing. Hodges is a name I haven't worked with yet.

[@reggy_h]

The origin of names is a fascinating subject. My surname is Hopkins. Back in the middle ages where it seems nearly everybody was called Robert but usually had the nickname "Hob" not Rob because nobody liked the letter "R" because a lot of people couldn't say it, myself included. If the father and son were both called Hob the the son would be refered to as Hobkin, kin being the diminitive. It stuck as a name init's own right and eventually became Hopkin. Richard changed in the same way. Richard became Rick, Hick, Hick kin for the son and eventually Higgins. Hodge could morph into Hodgkins. I find it interesting anyway. I bought a really interesting book on the subject from my local library for the princely sum of 10p.😁

[@phdspencer9852]

My ancestor was Abraham James, he was a convict sent to Western Australia in 1851 for stealing a loaf of bread. He settled in a place called Toodyay, which resembles the beautiful rolling hills of Wales.

[@annejones8716]

Your video just popped up for me and it's fascinating. My mother was adopted, so we know very little about her ancestry, but my father's name was David Lloyd George Jones - second generation American, born in 1919. His grandfather came from Dolanog, Wales. I believe his mother's people came from Ireland - County Meath. Back to my Mother - given up for adoption at about age two - her mother was unwed (scandal!) with the last name of Hawley. Seems to be lots of English-Irish-Welsh in my background. My late husband and I brought my folks to Europe in 1987 for a once-in-a-lifetime trip for them. We were able to visit the village of Dolanog for a couple of days. Found some family still there - thought I'd be back long before so much time had passed.....

[@GenealCymru]

Glad you enjoyed the video! And thanks for sharing such a beautiful memory for your time with your parents! :D

[@simonagree4070]

My grandmother was a Harris, who married a Scot, named Stevenson. When I look at these places, I feel a calling.

[@GenealCymru]

That's lovely!

[@Morgan2XL]

Havards in Cymru are mostly descended from "Happy" Havard from Orkney, one of his decendants came over with William "the bastard" and the Norman conquest, their coat of arm is a red bulls head and a star. This is also the symbol of drovers and butchers in the Harvard family in stratford on Avon. Possible relatives. There are also significant populations of Havards remaining in Normandy where they have famous production line of kitchen ware. The family seat of the Havards is Brecon. Their wing of the Brecon cathedral is the Havard chapel where the floor of the chapel wing is covered with their grave stones. The male line of the Havards lived and farmed in Cray. The head of the family line passed in 2022. There are however many branches off the family in Canada, and Australia as well as enough close relatives to overflow the Castle hotel in Nedd. They are quite literally related to everyon in Wales, several times.

[@GenealCymru]

Very cool. Yeah Havard is one of those tricky names that has multiple different theories on its origins.

[@Morgan2XL]

Note the Brecon Cathedral floor is also littered with the grave stones of Vaughans another land owning family.

[@edgarjohns6559]

Hello New to this site as I came upon it by chance. I consider myself one of the fortunate ones as I have my Johns/ John surnames back to 1729 . As regards the two conflicting surnames an ancestor added letter "S" to the John surname around 1780. All my John ancestors are found in one Church in Pembroke, Pembrokeshire and that is St. Marys and dates from 1729 to 1798

[@GenealCymru]

1729 is a really great achievement. Very few of my lines go back that far. Glad you found the channel and enjoy the videos!

[@1967PONTIACGTO]

My maternal grandmother's name was Bellis, and I was told the family came from Newtown Montgomeryshire

[@theuniverseinstereo3453]

My family is Pring, from Newport, Cymru Am Bith!

[@kerryendon7514]

Thank you for this interesting information 👍 My great x2 paternal grandmother was a Parry, from Cairwys in northern Wales. Also my great Grand father, maternal, was a Griffin from Cornwall. I believe that name is possibly also Welsh. Do you know about these 2 surnames? Any info would help me with my family tree studies. Kerry, Australia 🇦🇺

[@GenealCymru]

Glad you enjoyed! Yep Griffin is one of the variations of Griffith which is a pretty common Welsh name. Parry is from "ap Harry" or "son of Harry," so it's one of the patronymic surnames. I talk about more about what general knowledge there is in Welsh patronymic surnames in my video called The Truth about Welsh surname origins: kzbin.info/www/bejne/ZpKZlqKdo7OcY68

[@kerryendon7514]

@@GenealCymru Thanks 😊 I will take a look!

[@GlenJones-zj7pv]

Can’t quite believe the photo at 6:20, I had to double take .. I’m from morriston in Swansea! Born here and lived here all my life, absolutely awesome!

[@GlenJones-zj7pv]

If you need any history or have any questions about morriston.. please don’t hesitate

[@GenealCymru]

That's so cool. I was just last night working on my research for my great great grandparents who lived on Chemical Road. Idk how old you are, but have you ever heard of Lynn Davies from Morriston? He grew up there in the 40s

[@GenealCymru]

And I keep using that photo hoping that someone from Morriston will be able to recognize some of the other people in it. At one point there was a copy of the photo in the Red Lion on a photo wall or something.

[@GlenJones-zj7pv]

@@GenealCymru I live literally 10 minutes away (walking time) from chemical road I’m 27 but il ask my dad if he knows him Also I cannot quite believe the red lion comment as That is where I go to have food and drinks, I will certainly have a look the next time I go there, mate you have made my day! Diolch yn fawr

[@GenealCymru]

Nice! Glad to have made your day and glad you found the channel!

[@tomj4262]

My mother’s mother’s maiden name was Wall. The Walls were from Pontypool in the southeast corner of Wales. They dug salt mines near Windsor, Canada, and possibly for oil.

[@GenealCymru]

Interesting!

[@deineadam2240]

My family Reseigh immigrated from Cornwall. They were in Glamorgan where a few more of the children were born before emigrating to Pennsylvania

[@GenealCymru]

Very interesting! Cornwall/Devon to Wales and then Wales to Pennsylvania are very common migration paths.

[@robertcollins1501]

My wife's ancestor came to what was called the 'Welsh Tract' in Pennsylvania, from a place called llanstristaint, Wales in the 1600s. At the time his surname was Ap Evan. At some point in time in Pennsylvania they changed it to Bevan, which I guess is how it sounds when saying it.

[@GenealCymru]

Cool. I was just looking at an article last night about the Welsh Tract and some of the early ministers who went there. Yeah son of Evan would be ab Evan, which as you say sounds like Bevan when you say it :)

[@carolynclitheroe3588]

My surname is Apter which is son of Ter

[@lizdavies3867]

Same here brought minors from Wales to show them in Pennsylvania the tricks of the trade. When this was accomplices they sacked the Welsh minors. Not much has changed.

[@reggy_h]

It sounds like you are talking about John Bevan. He was a quaker and he and his wife Barbara left their home at Treveyrig near Llantrisant for Pennsylvania in the 1600s. He owned 2000 acres of land at a place called Haverford. He came back to Wales in his later years and is buried in Llantrisant. If he is the right one, I've got quite a bit of info about him and his family but I've no idea how to get it to you. He was descended from Welsh royalty, one Iestyn ap Gwrgant. Also your wife will be related to me.

[@bigunone]

Great grand parents on my dad's side were Metcalf , we have always told people how to spell it was Hello, I just "Met" you and Baby Cow "calf". It was interesting when I got on the internet to find out all the different tales from the blacksmith that killed a bull, to the poacher caught which led to the clan Metcalf. While interesting I figure they left there for a reason.

[@GenealCymru]

Interesting!

[@RyanEmmett]

Interesting video, thanks. I was born and grew up in Wales, but I assume from my surname that at some point in history my ancestors probably did not!

[@GenealCymru]

Glad you enjoyed! I always say, you never know until you research it! But yeah there's always interesting stories of travel and migration among our ancestors :)

[@richardjamesclemo6235]

A non-emmett Emmett

[@barnowl.]

If you get your DNA done on a site like Ancestry it will give you your paternal and maternal ethnic breakdown.

[@stevenlangdon-griffiths293]

A very interesting video.

[@GenealCymru]

Glad you enjoyed :)

[@approachingtarget.4503]

Its great to have a specific last name that still only exits in one town and one one street.

[@GenealCymru]

Lucky! All my ancestors had names that existed on every street in every town in Wales! hehe

[@STOKEOZ1967]

My grandmother's maiden name was Rowlands, i also have found cousins in North wales through Ancestry dna. The names, evans, and jones and Rowlands amongst other surnames. Also the talbot/ mansels of margam abbey i have links too on my mums side. Port Talbot Ancestry links as well. All my family moved to Staffordshire eventually 😊

[@GenealCymru]

Very cool!

[@allenjenkins7947]

There are so many surnames starting with P or B found right across the English-speaking (and Welsh--speaking of course) world which have their origin in Welsh patronymics, Parry, Price, Preece, Bryce, Bowen, Pritchard, to list just a few. If you're trying to trace the ancestry of someone whose surname starts with one of these letters, the first thing to check is whether it is a variation on ap (xxxxx).

[@GenealCymru]

Good tip. I think I have a short video on the B and P surnames.