Names people domesday book

Now available in one volume, here is the complete, authoritative translation from the original latin, together with an index of places and a glossary of terms used. I have replaced the medial s with a short s to make the lists more readable. The duchy of normandy was formed by the treaty of saintclairsurepte in 911 between king charles iii of the west franks and rollo also. It is the starting point of recorded history for the majority of english villages and towns which are organized by county. Domesday carefully records the owners of each manor estate in 1086, as these were the people liable for tax. In the 11th century, surnames were still in a state of flux and many people still did not have what we would consider a. Domesday book attributes about 29,000 parcels of property to people bearing some 1,200 different personal names. By contemporaries the whole operation was known as the description of england, but the popular name domesdayi. Domesday extracts online service offering high quality prints and pdfs of domesday book for your chosen settlement. The precise purpose of the enterprise is not known but the most likely reason was to determine who legally owned what land, to settle disputes of ownership and to measure.

To further extend his grip on england, william i ordered that a. Domesday book is a detailed survey and valuation of landed property in england at the end of the 11th century. For these three counties the full, unabbreviated return sent in to winchester by the commissioners is preserved in the second volume little domesday, which. All land was ultimately owned by the crown, but held by lords, who provided military resources or tax in return. These were little domesday covering norfolk, suffolk, and essex, and great domesday covering much of the remainder of england and parts of wales. Domesday book simple english wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Handwriting analysis shows the domesday books records were all written down by one man, almost certainly an anglo saxon because place names and people names were spelled correctly normans tended to spell them incorrectly. This is mainly due to logistical difficulties the sheer scale of domesday book, its layout, and the challenge of differentiating people with the same. The domesday book is closely linked with william the conquerors attempt to dominate medieval england. It recorded every piece of property and every particular concerning it. Its name domesday, the book of the day of judgment, attests the awe with which the work has always been regarded. In 1085, king william i of england ordered a complete survey of all the land and property in the country. An index of personal and place names in domesday book woodbridge, 1997 k. The first, domesday people 1999, contains entries for domesday tenants.

The domesday book compiled in 10856 is one of the few historical records whose name is familiar to most people in this country. Remember that domesday book is actually a 12th century name for william the conquerors survey, not what it. This first english census, considered by some as the most remarkable administrative accomplishment of the middle ages, provides a record of english social. Domesday book sources for research in english genealogy. This page simply records all owner names mentioned in domesday book. Domesday book, the original record or summary of william is survey of england. Based on extensive and wideranging research, the two volumes contain over eight thousand entries on persons. Prosopography is the study of pedigree, biography, and genealogy, including the study of family names, and focusing especially on the person, his environment and his social status that is, the individual within the context of family and other social groups, the place or places in which he was active, and the function he performed within his society. The domesday book is the record of the great survey of much of england, and parts of wales, completed in 1086, done for william i of england, or william the conqueror the domesday book also known as domesday, or book of winchester was a record of all taxable land in england, together with such information as would indicate its worth. Known as the domesday book, this survey contained all the details of the names of places, the number of people, goods, and animals, and the use and the owners of the land. Undertenants were people who subletted part of the tenants land.

There are around 2 million words in the domesday book. Surnames mentioned in the domesday book british surnames. The national archives is the home of domesday book, the oldest surviving public record. Its name domesday, the book of the day of judgment, attests the awe with which the work. Sep 24, 2004 domesday book is one of the most famous documents in english historyand arguably in world history. We looked at names from king henry iiis fine rolls th century a couple of weeks ago, so now lets go back a bit further and look at names from the domesday book 11th century what is the domesday book. Domesday book contains some 45,000 personal names, many of them duplications since tenantsinchief held land in several counties. The section concludes with a list with hyperlinks to all the people bearing the name in question who have been identified.

Female names in the domesday book nancys baby names. Domesday book is the earliest, and by far the most famous, english public record. Along with a string of castles throughout england, the domesday book was to give william huge authority in england. The placenames found in the domesday book are township and estate names, and may include other villages and hamlets that receive no specific mention in the text. T he domesday book is the result of a record made at the time of william the conquerors survey of england in 1086.

The domesday book was compiled on the orders of william the conquerer to catalogue the ownership and value of land in the newly conquered territories of england. The main index personarumcontains all references to people. Since the domesday book isnt just about houses, this makes sense. It is interesting to note that the domesday book compiled by the commissioners of william the conqueror in 1086, is named from the old english domes daeg i. Domesday book woodbridge, 1999 a list of corrections to this and the companion volume, compiled by rosie bevan, is available on the foundation for medieval genealogy website. Little domesday covering norfolk, suffolk, and essex, and great domesday covering much of the remainder of england except for lands in the north that later became westmorland, cumberland, northumberland, and the county palatine of durham and parts of wales bordering, and included within. By contemporaries the whole operation was known as the description of england, but the popular name domesday i. Its a land survey, compiled in 1086, that covered much of england and parts of wales. The domesday book online contents of the domesday book. Domesday 1986 now available online, after a long effort to save it from outdated videodiscs, the bbc domesday project aimed to record the state of britain 900 years after the original domesday survey. The domesday book, our earliest public record, is a unique survey of the value and ownership of lands and resources in late 11th century england. A prosopography of persons occurring in english documents, 10661166, k. A few landowners are readily identifiable because the text supplies their titles.

I have transcribed all names exactly as they appear in my sources with one exception. If you also leave out the churches as tenants and the surviving english tenants, fewer than 20,000 names remain, and about 8,000 of those are identified by forename alone. A prosopography of persons occurring in english documents 10661166. Its interest to genealogists, of course, arises because it names the tenants in chief, and. The majority of these still exist in some form today. He also wanted to discover how much tax he was owed and knew a. People didnt like the domesday book as, who in their right mind wants to give away their money to the tax man, that was the point. It does not record names, nor does it give accurate population statistics, but it does give us an indication of the size of badsey, aldington and wickhamford. Domesday book is a manuscript record of the great survey of much of england and parts of. The world of domesday exhibition depicts life in 11th century england. The first volume great domesday contains the final summarized record of all the counties surveyed except essex, norfolk, and suffolk. The survey was executed for william i of england william the conqueror. The domesday book is one of medieval englands greatest treasures.

Occasionally little domesday li sts them individually, and some of these freemen were women. While spending the christmas time of 1085 in gloucester, william had deep speech with his counsellors and sent men all over england. The domesday book records details of a survey of land ownership and. The place names found in the domesday book are township and estate names, and may include other villages and hamlets that receive no specific mention in the text. The survey was ordered by william the conqueror at christmas 1085 and undertaken the following year. Aug 14, 2010 this is mainly due to logistical difficulties the sheer scale of domesday book, its layout, and the challenge of differentiating people with the same names has prevented scholars from working this out. Apr 06, 2012 the domesday book provides extensive records of landholders, their tenants, the amount of land they owned, how many people occupied the land villagers, smallholders, free men, slaves, etc. A prosopography of persons occurring in english documents 10661166 i. Domesday book is one of the most famous documents in english historyand arguably in world history. On july 29th 1711, mary dumsday, an infant, was christened in horsham. Domesday book was a comprehensive survey and record of all the landowners, property, tenants and serfs of medieval norman england which was compiled in 10867 ce under the orders of william the conqueror r. Note that the same name is not necessarily the same person. There are some 418 towns and villages recorded in the domesday book, covering 40 of the old counties of england.

The normans who invaded and settled in normandy, the northwest region of modern france, in the 8th10th century were descendants of vikings from the northern countries of europe danish, norwegian, orkney. Associated with the reign of william the conqueror, the domesday book was created to provide the king with a means of maintaining control over medieval england. The domesday book was commissioned in december 1085 by william the conqueror, who invaded england in 1066. The domesday book is actually not one book but two. Scandinavian elements found in the domesday book english. Thanks to the anglosaxon chronicle it is known that the census was planned in 1085, and it was completed in 1086. Slade the staffordshire domesday an extract of vch vol iv, an extract from j. Prosopography is the study of pedigree, biography, and genealogy, including the study of family names, and focusing especially on the person, his environment and his social status that is, the. The name domesday book, commonly applied from the 12th century ce, may derive from doom, the term for a customary law in anglosaxon england, or be a reference to the day of judgement, referred to in the bibles book of revelation, reminding that the records in domesday book were final and could not be disputed.

Introduction most local historians only paraphrase domesday entries. The name domesday book middle english for doomsday book came into use in the 12th century. The record was compiled in 10861087, a mere twenty years after the norman conquest, at the order of william the conqueror. Either king william himself, or one of around 1,400. Remember that domesday book is actually a 12th century name for william the conquerors survey, not what it was originally called. A book of the names and address of people living in a city.

It records who held the land and how it was used, and also includes information on how this had changed since the norman conquest in. Sawyer, ma assistant in history in the university of edinburgh domesday book is important not only for historians but also for students of english place names. Domesday book the domesday book was a survey designed to record everything that people owned in england. To see full names of counties hold your mouse over the name. The domesday book is the record of the great survey of much of england, and parts of wales, completed in 1086, done for william i of england, or william the conqueror the domesday book also known as domesday, or book of winchester was a record of all taxable land in england, together with such information as would indicate its worth as the scribes went round england, they were protected. A brief guide to using the domesday book and associated documents to. Click on a county name on the map to continue, or use the list of links below it. The earliest names accorded to it the kings book and the great book of winchester, where it was first kept, in the royal treasury, were displaced as early as the twelfth century by a title which recalled the wonder with which the subjugated english had seen their norman. The domesday book was created around 20 years after the battle of hastings, when william i demanded information about the ownership status of the country he was now ruling.

Domesday book volume 1 of domesday people, katharine stephanie benedicta keatsrohan a prosopography of persons occurring in english documents, 1066 1166 k. You can also access the discover domesday exhibition, explaining why domesday. It was ordered by william the conqueror the winner of the recent battle of hastings so that william could determine how much money in taxes he could raise and to give william a better sense of the territory he had just conquered. For each name, there is a distribution map of all the occurrences of the name in domesday book. Domesday book encompasses two independent works in, originally, two physical volumes. Presented here is the first complete, all latin index to the domesday book, comprising two indices personarum and one index locorum. Domesday is now available online, and you can search for your town or village, and download images of domesday along with an english translation of the entry. This is the first of two volumes offering for the first time an authoritative and complete prosopography of postconquest england, 10661166. It is the record of a survey which, according to the anglosaxon chronicle, william the conqueror ordered to be taken at christmas 1085.

The domesday book provides extensive records of landholders, their tenants, the amount of. Domesday book facts, summary, composition, creation. The english people said this name, domesday book, was given to it, because, like the day of doom, it spared no one. Doom, which is the true root of domesday, is an old english word of germanic origin meaning statute, judgement. According to the domesday book, over ten percent of englands population in 1086 were slaves. Oakden the place names of staffordshire, the map of the ancient parishes of staffordshire c. As expected, the domesday book shows us that the areas where there is a greater number of occurrences of scandinavian place names elements are those within the danelaw, and, in general, where scandinavian settlement was the strongest, during the 8th, 9th and 10th century.