Gaunt

Gaunt
This unusual surname has three possible origin, the first being a locational name from the town of Thent in Flanders, from which many wool workers and other skilled craftsmen migrated to England in the early Middle Ages. The first recorded spelling as below refers to a man from (de) Ghent. The second source is from the Middle English word "gaunt" or "gant", meaning slim or slender, and sometimes "lassard-looking", in the sense of thin or wasted. The third possible source is from the Old French "gant", glove, and forms a metonymic occupational name for a maker and seller of gloves. Job-descriptive surnames originally denoted the actual occupation of the namebearer, and later became hereditary. An interesting namebearer, recorded in the "Dictionary of National Biography", was Maurice de Gaunt (1184 - 1230), Baron of Leeds; he joined insurgent barons in 1216, and paid "Scutage" for lands in eight counties in 1223. A Coat of Arms was granted to a family of the name who resided at Highfield and Leek in Staffordshire who were descended from John Gaunt, Esq., of Rowley, Stafford, a descendant of the ancient Earls of Lincoln. This depicts a barry of six gold and blue and a red bend. Elizabeth Gaunt (died 1685), was the last woman executed for a political offence; she was burnt at Tyburn for treason in Sheltering Monmouth adherents. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Gilbert de Gant which was dated 1086, in the Domesday Book, during the reign of King William 1, known as "The Conqueror", 1066 - 1086. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.

Surnames reference. 2013.

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  • Gaunt — is a adjective that describes a living thing as being bony, thin and/or sickly. It may be used to describe a barren deserted place. Gaunt may also refer to:People with the name Gaunt* Dan Gaunt, a young Welsh darts prodigy tipped as the new Phil… …   Wikipedia

  • Gaunt — ist der Name der folgenden Personen: Maurice de Gaunt (13. Jahrhundert), englischer Adliger und Erbauer von Beverston Castle John of Gaunt, 1. Duke of Lancaster (1340–1399), englischer Prinz Mary Gaunt (1861 1942), australische Schriftstellerin… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • gaunt — gaunt·let·ed; gaunt·ly; gaunt·ness; gaunt; gaunt·let; gaunt·let·ted; …   English syllables

  • gaunt´ly — gaunt «gnt, gahnt», adjective verb. –adj. 1. very thin and bony; with hollow eyes and a starved look: »Hunger and suffering had made the lost hikers gaunt. SYNONYM(S): lean, spare, lank. See syn. under thin. (Cf. ↑thin) 2. such as to cause… …   Useful english dictionary

  • Gaunt — Gaunt, a. [Cf. Norw. gand a thin pointed stick, a tall and thin man, and W. gwan weak.] Attenuated, as with fasting or suffering; lean; meager; pinched and grim. The gaunt mastiff. Pope. [1913 Webster] A mysterious but visible pestilence,… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • gaunt — [go:nt US go:nt] adj [Date: 1400 1500; Origin: Perhaps from a Scandinavian language] 1.) very thin and pale, especially because of illness or continued worry = ↑drawn ▪ the old man s gaunt face 2.) literary a building, mountain etc that is gaunt… …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • gaunt — [ gɔnt ] adjective very thin, usually because you are sick, tired, or worried: His face was pale and gaunt. ╾ gaunt|ness noun uncount …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • gaunt — [gônt, gänt] adj. [ME gawnte, earlier gant, slender, thin, gaunt < ?] 1. thin and bony; hollow eyed and haggard, as from great hunger or age; emaciated 2. looking grim, forbidding, or desolate gauntly adv. gauntness n …   English World dictionary

  • Gaunt — Gaunt, veralteter englischer Name für Gent …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • gaunt — mid 15c. (as a surname from mid 13c.), from M.Fr. gant, of uncertain origin; perhaps from a Scandinavian source (Cf. O.N. gand a thin stick, also a tall thin man ) and somehow connected with the root of gander. Connection also has been suggested… …   Etymology dictionary

  • gaunt — rawboned, angular, lank, lanky, *lean, spare, scrawny, skinny Analogous words: cadaverous, wasted, *haggard, worn: *thin, slim, slender, slight Contrasted words: portly, plump, *fleshy, fat, stout, corpulent, obese, rotund, chubby …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

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