Dear Anna,
There seems to be several people searching for their Salisbury family links
on this mailing list. I have discovered in my search of these limited
records which were filmed by the Mormons that both JONES and PARRY family
members from the Holywell area have married into the Salisbury family. Now
to prove the links!!!
To answer the question about the meaning of the Salisbury name, I should
first start with the name of the town. Salisbury in Wiltshire is famous for
its magnificent Cathedral which was built between 1220 and 1258, with its
monumental spire erected over the next 20 years. My best guess is that the
name comes from the proximity to Stonehenge and is derived from two old
Roman words
saliens which means a projecting beyond a line or surface and
bury which means town
Others on the list may correct me if I am wrong.
During the time of Geoffrey Chaucer(1340 to 1400), English family names
began to appear. From the book "The Story of English" by Robert McCrum,
William Cran and Robert MacNeil published in 1987 in conjunction with the 15
part TV series of the same name, is some insight on the phenomenon:
" In Anglo-Saxon peasant society it was enough for a man to be
identified as Egbert or Heorogar. Later, a second stage would produce the
"son of" prefix or suffix - Johnson, Thomson, Jobson. As English society
became more sophisticated, Christian or first names were not enough. People
began to be identified by where they lived, hence Brooks, Rivers, Hill and
Dale. Or more specifically: Washington, Lincoln or Cleveland. The next
most common form of identification was occupation: Driver, Butcher, Hunter,
Glover, Sadler, Miller, Cooper, Weaver, Porter, Carpenter, Mason, Thatcher,
Salter, Waxman, Barber, Bowman, Priest, Abbot, Piper, Harper, Constable.
Then there were continental names of people from abroad: Fleming, French,
Holland. The Welsh contributed Evans ( a version of Johns), Owens and Rhys
(Reece)."
The name variants are normally a result of the evolution of the
pronunciation of the name, therefore we find Saulsbury, Salusbury, Sulsbury
as variants of Salisbury.
I trust this has answered your question.
If you want out find more about the name, do a search at
http://www.google.com and search for "Salisbury family name" and you will
be surprised to discover how much information is available on the name as
well as the number of people with family trees on-line who are seeking other
SALISBURY reseachers.
Kindest regards,
Anne Clark-Stewart
Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
From: Annathamble(a)aol.com
Date: Mon, 11 Jun 2001 11:50:24 EDT
To: leisurelodge(a)sympatico.ca
Subject: Salisbury
I remember my grandfather saying that one of the DAVIES family of FLINT,
married a Salisbury. When the DAVIES s migrated to the NE ENgland apparently
the connected SALISBURYs went too. I am having great difficulty
distinguishing between alll of the DAVIES s in and around FLint, and I
thought it just possible that you have found a DAVIES married into the
SALISBURY family. Incidentally, I have often pondered on the origins of
this name - do you know where it came from? Ann Lavery in Warwickshire,
England. Researching also, GRIFFTHS in FLInt, Meliden, Holywell, etc.