Family Names
Most Welsh surnames are based on forenames, the name of an ancestor. Cottle (1967:11) refers to “the wonderfully rich and proud patronymic system”, which was dying in the 17th century. Early Welsh registers go “back by leaps of ap (son) ap- ap- ap- or verch (daughter) -ap –ap –ap to half a dozen generations before.” However, very few modern Welsh surnames begin with ap- , one exception being Apsimon with only one boy in Wales bearing this name in the 1881 Census. Echoes of the ap (or ab) prefix survive in such anglicized Welsh surnames as Bevan (ab Ifan), Bowen (ab Owain), Parry (ap Harri), Penry (ap Henry), Powell (ap Hywel), Price (ap Rhys), Pritchard (ap Rhisiart), Probert (ap Robert), Prosser (ap Rosser), and Pugh (ap Huw).
A
Anwyl means ‘loved one’ and 115 persons in North Wales bore this name in the 1881 British Census. Paul Anwyl died in Wentworth, NSW, in 1945 and Harold in 1942. Anwyl Evans-Jones appears in the 1906 NSW register of deaths. There is also mention of Megan Anwyl, a political lobbyist, in Who’s Who of Australian Women (Melbourne: Crown Content, 2006:50).
B
As mentioned under letter A, many Welsh patronymic are generally based on ‘ap’ or ‘ab’ - ‘son of’, and may present a few surprises.
Barry. The Welsh version derives from ap Harry but this name can also be English, French or Gaelic. There were 170 deaths of persons with this surname in NSW 1788-1979.
Baugh or Baughan, from the Welsh bach, little. In 2012 the residential White Pages showed 29 entries.
Bebb. 36 deaths, one of whom was the son of Llewellyn Bebb.
Beddow, Beddis, Beddoes, are familiar forms of Meredydd. Jason Beddow, born in Newcastle NSW, became CEO of Argo Investments, in 2010. Koporaal, Glenda, 2010. ‘New Argo chief from the old school’. Australian, 1/11/10:23.
Bedward (ap Edward) is quite rare, with only 6 entries in the White Pages in 2012.
Bellis, Bliss, ‘son of Ellis’ is quite common in NSW with 65 deaths between 1978 and 1980 but can also be English or Jewish.
Bemand (ap Edmond) is a Welsh border name with only 3 matches in NSW.
Bennion or Benyon (ab Enion) have 41 and 117 White Pages entries.
Bevan, ap Evan, can also be written Bevin or Bevans, has 820 entries in the White Pages.
Bewes can mean ap Hugh or can be Norman English habitation name (Hanks and Hodges 1988:49). Bew with 20 entries in the White Pages is more popular in Australia.
Bithell, Bissell, Bessell (ab Ithell) respectively have 24, 190, and 69 entries in the White Pages.
Blood can be English but the Welsh version is possibly from ab Lloyd. However only 10 people with that surname were counted in Wales in the 1881 Census.
Bowen (ap Owen). However for some of the 820 cases in the White Pages this may be a variant of the Irish name Bow (Hanks and Hodges 1988:68-69) while a 1826-1837 Passenger List shows an Irish couple named Bowen with the alternative name of Bohane. Lower (1860:36) claimed that ‘Pembrokeshire is the greatest habitat of this name.’ but the 1881 Census shows otherwise. Of the 5,000 persons counted with this name, 909 were there, but 1322 were in Carmarthenshire.
Brace derives either from Old French, meaning a maker of armour, or Old English, meaning a maker of breeches. However, it there were 399 persons with that surname in Wales in 1881, of whom 130 were in Monmouthshire. One speculation is that some holders of this surname are descended from the Norman lord William de Braose, known as ‘the Ogre of Abergavenny’ after he lured Welsh leaders to a Christmas feast in 1175and massacred them.
Breeze (ab Rhys) was concentrated in Montgomeryshire in 1881, There were 128 persons with this surname in the 2012 White Pages.
In addition to the patronymics, Hanks and Hodges (1988:56) describe Blayney as‘Irish (of Welsh origin)’ from the Welsh blaenau, meaning uplands. One line died out in Wales yet there were 127 people with the surname Blaney, Blainey, Blainy or Blayney inWales in the 1881 Census, mostly in Montgomeryshire. According to Lower (1860:30), the first Lord Blayney, who settled in Monaghan in Ireland in 1598, was the son of Thomas ap Evan Lloyd Blayney.
Builth. Builth Wells (in Welsh Llanfair ym Muallt) is in the county of Powys. Dr Heather Builth wrote from Adelaide, “Yes, my family name is derived from the place, Builth in Wales. There are very few of us in the world. My immediate family in Australia and in Yorkshire. There are a few others also in Yorkshire. We apparently came over from the Welsh coal fields to the Yorkshire coalfields in my great grandad’s generation. To my knowledge there are none left in Wales itself.”
C
There are many Celtic surnames beginning with ‘C’ but few of these are Welsh.
Cadwallader (cad = battle, gwaladr = leader). In 1896 The Bulletin contained a cartoon which showed a swagman Cadwallader who, on being asked to spell his name by a squatter, replies, ‘Oh, put down “Brown”.’ There were 45 persons with this surname in the residential White Pages in 2012. Of the dimintutives, Cadwgan is only found once whereas Cadogan, which has a branch that moved to Ireland in the 17th century, has 42.
Cadwallen, Cadwallender appear to be variants of Cadwallader but are rarer.
Carew (caer = fort, rhiw = hill). A branch of the family is established in Ireland and Carey can either be a Welsh or Cornish variant of Carew or an English or Irish surname.
Caswallawn. In Welsh legend, Caswallawn overthrows Caradog ap Bran.
Cecil is from the Old Welsh Seisyllt ‘apparently a mutilated form of the Latin name meaning “sixth”.’ (Hanks and Hodges 1988:100)
Cogan can be Irish (of Welsh origin), Irish or Jewish. The Welsh version is from Cogan, near Cardiff, meaning a depression or bowl.
Craddock, Cradduck, Cradick, Cradock (car = love) is from the Old Welsh, giving the modern Welsh Caradog. The Wikipedia entry for Caratacus (the Latin version of this name) describes his exploits against the Roman invaders in the 1st century, There is also a legendary figure, Caradog ap Bran.