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What’s in a name?

Our Welsh ancestors may be down as John, Jane, Elizabeth and David on birth and marriage certificates, but the chances are they never answered to those names!

Native Welsh names grew out of fashion amongst the gentry shortly after the Act of Union with England and the ‘lower classes’ gradually followed suit, so that by the nineteenth century (on official documents at least) popular English first names were dominant.

However, those English forenames quickly adopted a distinctly Welsh flavour...

• Someone officially recorded on their birth certificate as David would quite probably have been known as Dafydd, Dai or Dei.
• An Elizabeth would commonly be known as Leisa or Betsan as well as the English diminutives Lizzie, Bessie or Beti or Betsy.
• A Jane was likely to have been known as Sian, Siani or Jini.
• Thomas would be known as Tomos or Twm.
• The name Jenkin would be pronounced Siencyn by our Welsh speaking ancestors.
• There would also be instances when someone named officially as John would be known by the native Welsh equivalent of Ieuan or Ioan, although it would be very rare to find this acknowledged on official records.

Census enumerators often allowed people to record diminutives on the forms, but Welsh versions would hardly ever be allowed. It would not be unusual to find Bessie on the form, but not Sian. Very much a sign of the times.

During the latter part of the nineteenth century however, native Welsh names began to re-emerge with the rise in Welsh national consciousness, and you will start to see names such as Ceinwen, Blodwen and Maldwyn gaining popularity.

So, remember, it’s always important to consider the social context in which our ancestors lived and that official documents may not always give the complete story - especially in Wales!