Domesday book sources for research in english genealogy. Summary the publishers will make available a 5 volume series of books on the domesday book families in may 2014. The majority of these still exist in some form today. Domesday book simple english wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
The domesday book is the record of the great survey of much of england, and parts of wales, completed in 1086, done for william i of england, or william the conqueror the domesday book also known as domesday, or book of winchester was a record of all taxable land in england, together with such information as would indicate its worth. Galbraith, the making of domesday book oxford, 1961 e. Domesday extracts online service offering high quality prints and pdfs of domesday book for your chosen settlement. Women in domesday pauline stafford, huddersfield polytechnic r. Department of humanities english language and literature. Surnames mentioned in the domesday book british surnames. I am honored to be here looking at the newest issue. The use of family names is common in most cultures around the world, with each culture having its own rules as to how these names are formed, passed and used. In the 11th century, surnames were still in a state of flux and many people still did not have what we would consider a surname. There are some 418 towns and villages recorded in the domesday book, covering 40 of the old counties of england. It is the starting point of recorded history for the majority of english villages and towns which are organized by county. By contemporaries the whole operation was known as the description of england, but the popular name domesday i.
Domesday book is not a census and does not contain the names of everyone living in late 11th century england. The domesday book also known as domesday, or book of winchester was a record of all taxable land in england, together with such information as would indicate its worth. The name domesday book was not adopted until the late 12th century. I can assure you that the intent of all behind domesday was not for this span of time to pass between issues. Domesday book contains some 45,000 personal names, many of them duplications since tenantsinchief held land in several counties. Hallam, domesday book through nine centuries london, 1986 a survey of how the domesday book has been used since its composition, and how antiquarians and historians have viewed the record. The fact is, no one will work for less than a subsistence wage. Sawyer, ma assistant in history in the university of edinburgh domesday book is important not only for historians but also for students of english place names. The domesday book has also provided valuable information on both the geography and the demographics of britain at the time. The first volume great domesday contains the final summarized record of all the counties surveyed except essex, norfolk, and suffolk. This is necessary because domesday book often supplies variant spelling of the same name.
Depending on the culture, all members of a family unit may have identical surnames or there may be. To see full names of counties hold your mouse over the name. Domesday book is a detailed survey and valuation of landed property in england at the end of the 11th century. This collection of materials gives the possibility for individual families to trace their ancestry back to domesday book time 1086 ad and earlier. The name domesday book middle english for doomsday book came into use in the 12th century. Lennard once wrote that using domesday to study society was like exploring the darkness with a searchlight. The domesday book or, colloquially, domesday is the expression used since the late twelfth century to refer to the record of the great inquisition or survey of the lands of england, their extent, value, ownership, and liabilities, made by order of william the conqueror in 1086. If you also leave out the churches as tenants and the surviving english tenants, fewer than 20,000 names remain, and about 8,000 of those are identified by forename alone. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of reginald. It is principally, therefore, a research tool, but it has been published online in the belief that it will also prove useful to. If you would like to create a wiki subpage for a particular family name, with historical information and also other shared information about that particular family, please do so and link it to the name on this page. Women in domesday 79 example, had a huge estate in. Domesday book is one of the most famous documents in english historyand arguably in world history.
Sep 24, 2004 domesday book is one of the most famous documents in english historyand arguably in world history. Personal names in the domesday book by constanza of thamesreach genny grim. The king and his family held about 17 per cent of the land, bishops and abbots about 26 per cent and around 190. Domesday book is a manuscript record of the great survey of much of england and parts of. Its a land survey, compiled in 1086, that covered much of england and parts of wales. Please note that modern place names may cover land that belonged to more. Collection of domesday lectures by david roffe historian david roffes contemporary views on domesday, its content and purpose the conqueror and his companions extensive information on many of those who arrived in england with william in 1066, and became the most powerful landowners in the domesday book.
Most genealogies in england cannot reach back much before 1550 ad when king. By contemporaries the whole operation was known as the description of england, but the popular name domesdayi. The domesday book is the record of the great survey of much of england, and parts of wales, completed in 1086, done for william i of england, or william the conqueror. Domesday book is the earliest, and by far the most famous, english public record. Bates, a bibliography of domesday book woodbridge, 1986 v. Local historians have been able to use the domesday book to reveal the history of local settlements, whilst for genealogists have been able to use the domesday book for tracing back the family tree for many individuals.
T he domesday book is the result of a record made at the time of william the conquerors survey of england in 1086. The existing literature on this remarkable memorial is so extensive, that it has not appeared advisable to quote largely from it. The assessors reckoning of a mans holdings and their values, as recorded in domesday book, was dispositive and without appeal. Scandinavian elements found in the domesday book english. Surnames became necessary when governments began demanding personal taxes from its citizens. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of reginald domesday, which was dated 1297, in the pipe rolls of norfolk, during the reign of king edward 1, known as the hammer of the scots, 1272 7. Scandinavian elements found in the domesday book english language essay. There are some surnames listed in the domesday book such as robertus willelmi. Detailed though the domesday records are, it must be said that it is very difficult, in most cases, to trace a descent from a domesday tenant. Domesday book was preserved from the late 11th to the beginning of the th centuries in the royal treasury at winchester the norman kings capital. I have replaced the medial s with a short s to make the lists more readable.
All of the products sold by were researched and created by swyrich corp. Depicts domesday book as the written evidence of a potentially insecure conquest successfully transforming itself, by a combination of administrative insight and military might, into a permanent establishment. Im working on the several ancestral families, which keeps expanding as they intermarried. Conceived by william i, but probably to some extent based on preconquest administrative records, it was the most comprehensive assessment of property and land ever undertaken in medieval europe. It records who held the land and how it was used, and also includes information on how this had changed since the norman conquest in. You discover many individual things in great detail but when you try to focus the beam on a specific question or sweep it to gain a wide perspective it jams. If you would like to create a wiki subpage for a particular family name, with. Domesday was compiled in a matter of months in at the end of william the conquerors life. The name domesday book, commonly applied from the 12th century ce, may derive from doom, the term for a customary law in anglosaxon england, or be a reference to the day of judgement, referred to in the bibles book of revelation, reminding that the records in domesday book were final and could not be disputed.
For a while, it seemed that domesday was dead and had passed into history. Domesday book is a frustrating source whose limitations must be. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. We looked at names from king henry iiis fine rolls th century a couple of weeks ago, so now lets go back a bit further and look at names from the domesday book 11th century. Places domesday book into its wider historical, social, and economic contexts.
The domesday book was compiled on the orders of william the conquerer to catalogue the ownership and value of land in the newly. It does not record names, nor does it give accurate population statistics, but it does give us an indication of the size of badsey, aldington and wickhamford. Click on a county name on the map to continue, or use the list of links below it. Im working on norman families of normandy france, england and ireland, connected to the welsh and walsh surnames, including breathnach. Domesday book 1086 the middle ages encompass one of the most exciting periods in english history. The conqueror and his companions extensive information on many of those who arrived in england with william in 1066, and became the most powerful landowners in the domesday book. Hence, conjecturally, the surname is descended from the tenant of lands within chester, held by raoul le veneur, baron of chester and warrington, from hugh lupus, who was recorded in the domesday book census of 1086. In both indexes the exact latin forms given in domesday book and all variant spellings have been retained. They were listed in the domesday book, the great survey of land and material. This web page shows only a small excerpt of our venner research. It is the record of a survey which, according to the anglosaxon chronicle, william the conqueror ordered to be taken at christmas 1085. The domesday book online contents of the domesday book.
Domesday book was a comprehensive survey and record of all the landowners, property, tenants and serfs of. The domesday book is actually not one book but two. The total reaches about 2000 families which are covered in these volumes. The original 11th century ce name seems to have been more. This page simply records all owner names mentioned in domesday book. Female names in the domesday book nancys baby names. By far the greatest achievement of the work is the three indexes which comprise alphabetical lists of the names of all landowners and tenants, instancing the counties wherein they held land, the location of the original citation in domesday book, and details of their properties, marriages, and heirs. One of the most important historical events of the medieval era is the domesday book. This is precisely where, as we know from other evidence, there was a substantial settlement of scandinavian immigrants. I have transcribed all names exactly as they appear in my sources with one exception. Surnames and their origins medieval names archive collection of articles on english and foreign surnames and. Sawyer, ma assistant in history in the university of edinburgh domesday book is important not only for historians but also for students of english placenames. The domesday book was commissioned in december 1085 by william the conqueror, who invaded england in 1066. Domesday book is one of the most famous documents in english history.
In the 11th century, surnames were still in a state of flux and many people still did not have what we would consider a. Pase domesday forms part of a longterm research initiative which aims in due course to identify all the landholders named in domesday book and to produce a major study of landed society in england in 1066 and 1086. The domesday book was compiled on the orders of william the conquerer to catalogue the ownership and value of land in the newly conquered territories of england. This first english census, considered by some as the most remarkable administrative accomplishment of the middle ages, provides a record of english social. Norman families of normandy france and england geni. Although domesday contains many thousands of names very few families can, with any certainty, trace their lineage back in the male line to an anglosaxon forebear mentioned in domesday. A surname, family name, or last name is the portion in some cultures of a personal name that indicates a persons family or tribe or community, depending on the culture. Its purpose was to maximize the revenues from the land tax and it caused resentment and even riots. However, the style of having both a family name surname and a given name forename is far from universal. Most of the names that appear are those of landowners. Tr introduction the first approach to a modern assessment roll or cataster is the well known.
Now available in one volume, here is the complete, authoritative translation from the original latin, together with an index of places and a glossary of terms used. Note that the same name is not necessarily the same person. With wages as depressed as this, it is a wonder he does not abscond with your pack and join the nearest bandit gang. Domesday chest, the germanstyle ironbound chest of c. These are often noted in the book by only their christian first names hugh, gerard, richard etc. Domesday book is a detailed survey and valuation of landed property in england. Apr 06, 2012 these names are most numerous in the eastern half of the country, particularly yorkshire and lincolnshire.
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