Some surnames are at risk in 21st century Britain, including the Deputy Prime Minister's and the Shadow Chancellor's, writes Dick Skellington.
The family history website ancestry.co.uk reports that appendages such as Sutcliffe, Cohen, Kershaw, Butterworth and Greenwood, are among those at risk. They compared surnames from the 1901 census with contemporary records and found that many had simply disappeared. Intriguingly, among the disappearing surnames in Britain, Clegg is one of those facing extinction.
Some of the surnames which have already vanished were, like mine, anglicised by their owners, often immigrants who changed their name to avoid complications with foreign spellings. My forefather originally settled in England from Scandanavia at the end of the 18th century.
Among the 200,000 surnames which have disappeared in the past century are Hatman, Chips, Woodbead, Funk and Arrendale. Some surnames, including those of famous actors, are increasingly rare. There are now fewer than 50 individuals named Mirren, Nighy or Bonneville, for example.
The research backs up previous studies. Census returns from 1881 to 2001 concluded that a reason some surnames declined was that their owners were too embarrassed to be called a Cock, Shufflebottom or Gotobed, so changed them. In 1881, the census identified 3,211 Cocks. But even this study still found 785 Cocks, 360 Dafts, and 322 Shufflebottoms still residing in Britain in 2001, along with, I gather, 121 Skellingtons.
And while we mention the decline in the number of Cleggs, which some might argue the Deputy Prime Minister has further imperilled, it is worth pointing out that the number of Balls is down too, though Shadow Chancellor Ed does not seem to care.
I must say that being targeted at school as 'bones' made me think about changing my surname when I grew up, but I thought it would be more distinctive to go through life with a surname not shared by too many others. Perhaps I simply should have added a hyphenated name. This certainly is far more popular than it was 100 years ago. In 1901, one in 50,000 people had a hyphenated name, now the number is one in 50, probably down to the increase in divorce rates, as well as perhaps an increase in the snobbery factor.
Ancestry.co.uk reveals that innocuous sounding surnames are in decline too, surnames like Jelly and Cockcroft. On the other hand some surnames are increasing for no apparent season. Among them Wanklyn, Bluck and Feek, along with Murphy, Black and Johnston.
Of course while anyone can change their surname by deed poll there are of course some people who have been given embarrassing Christian names, which means that when they go with their surname they have to carry them like a millstone around their necks for the rest of their lives.
I went to school with someone called Roland Butter. It seems Roland's parents shared a sense of humour with the parents of Paige Turner, Nary Christmas, and Stan Still (see Unfortunate Names).
But if you are reading this with a surname of Chips, Hatman, Rummage, Nithercott, Raynott, Temples, Southwark, or Woodbead, ancestry.co.uk reports you shouldn't be. You don't exist.
If there is a Mr Chips out there who hasn't said 'Goodbye' yet, please let me know! And if there are any Skellingtons, do get in touch. We need to put the wagons in a circle.
Dick Skellington 14 August 2013.
The views expressed in this post, as in all posts on Society Matters, are the views of the author, not The Open University.
Cartoon by Gary Edwards