----- Original Message -----
From: "John Stewart" <jastewart(a)sprintmail.com>
To: "Landmann/Cameron" <landmanncameron(a)sympatico.ca>
Sent: Friday, May 11, 2001 12:48 AM
Subject: Re: Og
Hi,
Feel free to post the Og message.
In Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, and in Glengarry County, Ontario, most of
the settlers were Gaelic speaking Scottish highlanders. There were a
lot of people with the same or similar names so people tended to be
identified by nicknames, some of them quite colorful. In a few cases
the nicknames have made their way into written records. They are not
part of the person's birth name but have been tacked on as a useful way
to identify the person.
In addition to Og, some other common nicknames you may encounter are Mor
which means 'big' and Bheag which means 'little' (Big John, Little
John), Ban which means 'white' (used for fair-haired or light
complexioned persons) and Dubh which means 'black' (used for dark-haired
or dark complexioned persons).
Gaelic was predominately a spoken language whereas all the written
records are in English. This can create interesting problems for the
genealogist because the person writing the record usually took it upon
himself to translate the Highland name into an English equivalent. You
may be puzzled to find different names for what should be the same
person, or fail to find the person you are looking for until you start
to catch on to all the variations.
Contrary to what one respondant said, names always have meanings;
although sometimes the meaning has been forgotten.
-- John Stewart