Page:The Granite Monthly Volume 10.djvu/385

 Origin and Meaning of Proper Names.

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��of " Addlehead," Cresar that of "Cheeseman," Napoleon that of " Narravvay," or Pompey that of " Popjay " or "Popinjay," associa- tion woiihl have rendered their names venerable ; but when the same names are given to slaves and dogs, no pre- vious good serrice can save them from contempt and ridicule.

The Persian title, " Cyrus," means a dog. The founder of the dynasty that was honored with that name is said to have been nursed by a bitch ; and as the old Persian belongs to the Indo-Gerraauic family of languages, possibly our word '* cur," a dog, may be allied to Cyrus. The founder of Rome was nursed by a wolf, accord- ing to tradition. Tiiat animal has been famous in heraldry ever since. The Latin " lupus," French '' loup," Saxon " wulf," is thought to have furnished to the present royal house of Great Britain their family name, " Guelph ; " others associate it with'' whelp," the young of the wolf or dog. The stately Romans had such names as Asinus, Scropha, and Aper. Their synonymes in English, " Ass," " Sow," and " Boar," are quite offensive to "ears polite," yet Englishmen have worn these " blush- ing honors " without shame. Many English surnames can be traced to their origin. The most obvious are descriptive of the color, complexion, features, form, or character or na- tionality, of those to whom they were given. Such are Brown, White, Gray, Redd, Blue, Black, Fairchild, Boniface, Broadhead, Greathead, Longbeard (the Langobardi or Lom- bards took their name from their lono- beards), Long, Short, Little, Low, Longfellow, Prettyraan, Lightfoot,

��Speedwell, Longshanks and Cruik- shanks and Sheepshanks. The mean- ing of such names is manifest. So are all national distinctive names, as French, Scolt, Irish, English, Nor- man, Poland, and Wales.

Wedlock sometimes forms strange unions, and even antedates the mill- ennium, causing the Lion and the Lamb to dwell together, and the Wolf and the Kidd, the Bear and the Roe, to feed together ; and a little child doth lead them. Hymen has united " Good" and " Evil," and abolished the distinction between " Deville " and "Saint." Mr. Bean has mar- ried Miss Pease ; Mr. Brass, Miss Mould ; and tiuis the laws of nature have been violated and " species " have been changed by " election." So the Peacock has been changed to the vSparrow, the Hawke to the Dove. Hymen, too, sometimes furnishes a Procustes bed for the happy pair, making the "Long" "Short," and the "Great" "Small."

A facetious editor once applied the following distich to the marriage of a Mr. Little with Miss Long :

" Man wants but Little here below, Kor wants that Little, Long."

The London signs sometimes shovy some singular partnerships, such as "Carpenter and Wood," " Spinage and Lamb," "Pipe and Tabor," "Single and Double," "Foot and Stocking," " Read and Wright," " Byers and Sellers." "Adam and Eve were surgeons in partnership in Paradise Row ! " When we find Mr. Tugwell a dentist ; Mr. Bird an egg- merchant ; Messrs. Potwine and Mix- well innkeepers ; Mr. Paddle navi- gating a steamboat, — we see at once " the fitness of things." Such men

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