To

The Castle de Garmonsway Motte

PRESENTING

THE ORIGINS AND HISTORY

OF THE GARMONSWAY NAME

Surname Links

LITERARY EXCURSIONS

In search of

"GARMONSWAY"

An interim note of research

by

Allan Edward Garmonsway

October 2000

Last updated

Monday, May 2, 2005 13:57

Origins of the name The study of surnames, their origins, variations, meaning and distribution, is an established academic pursuit.

The selection of extracts following shows the scope of the research, and also shows how the name Garmonsway is linked with Garmundus and the County of Durham.

Ekwall (1960), in The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Place-Names, gives succinct information, viz., Garmondsway Du [via Garmundi 1104-8 SD, Garmundeswai 12 FPD]. ÔGarmundÕs road.Õ The references and abbreviations for EkwallÕs work are: Du County of Durham FPD FEODARIUM PRIORATUS DUNELMENSIS, Surtees Society, 58. SD Symeon of Durham "Historia Ecclesiae Dunelmensis" Chronicles and Memoirs 75, Surtees Society, 51

In his Dictionary of British Surnames, Reaney (1961) gives the following analysis of a name that is probably a primitive of "Garmonsway": Garman, Garmons, Garment: Gormundus 1208 Cur (So); Alanus Garmundus 1177 P (Nf); William Gormund 1255 RH (W). OE Garmund "spear-protector". v. GORMAN.

The references and abbreviations for Reaney’s work are:

Cur CURIA REGIS ROLL (in progress; Pipe Roll Society. 14, 24) Nf County of Norfolk OE Old English P Pipe Rolls {Rec.Comm. 3 vols; 1833-44; Pipe Roll Society, (in progress); GREAT ROLL of the Pipe 26 Hy III, Cannon, H.L., (Ed.) 1918} RH ROTULI HUNDREDORUM, 2 vols., 1812-18 So County of Somerset v variant W County of Wiltshire Cottle (1967) gives another version in The Penguin Dictionary of Surnames, viz., Garmon(d)sway L ‘Spear Protector’s road’ OE; place (-d-) in Co. Durham. where L means "locality" style name; and OE means Old English).

( Note that the bibliography for this work includes the book by Reaney (see above).

Congratulations!

You Were Visitor Number!