Raffan

Raffan
This unusual and interesting name is one of the variant forms of the surname 'Ralph', which derives from a personal name of Old Scandinavian, Norse, origin. The personal name was introduced into England by Scandinavian settlers in the Old Norse form 'Rathulfr', adapted from the originally Germanic elements 'rad', counsel, advice, and 'wolf', wolf, and was later reinforced by the Norman forms 'Raulf' or 'Radulf', introduced after the Conquest of 1066; it is recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 as 'Radulf' and 'Radolf', and in 1095 as 'Raulf'. One of the popular short forms of the given name was 'Raff' or 'Rafe', and the modern surname Raffin, Raffan and Raffon are diminutive forms of these. The development of the surname includes: John Raplin (1576, Leicestershire), Joan Raphan (1609, Lincolnshire), Cristen Rafen (1641, Norfolk) and Thomas Raffon (1655, Cheshire). The christening of Primys, son of Thomas Raffan, was recorded at St. Edmund's, Exeter, in Devon, on January 26th 1611. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Agnes Rafyn (christening), which was dated June 15th 1562, at Manuden, Essex, during the reign of Queen Elizabeth 1, known as 'Good Queen Bess', 1558-1603. 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.

Игры ⚽ Нужен реферат?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • raffan — variant of raffing. Sc …   Useful english dictionary

  • Keith Raffan — Keith William Twort Raffan, (born 21 June 1949) in Aberdeen, is a former Conservative Member of Parliament and Scottish Liberal Democrat Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP). Originally a Conservative, he was in the 1970s a chairman of… …   Wikipedia

  • Peter Wilson Raffan — (1863 June 23, 1940) was a British Liberal politician. Raffan came from Newbridge, Monmouthshire, and in 1910 was chairman of the Monmouthshire County Council. [ Candidates and Constituencies , The Times, January 1, 1910, p.6] When a general… …   Wikipedia

  • Members of the 2nd Scottish Parliament — 1st Parliament (1999) 2nd Parliament (2003) 3rd Parliament (2007) 4th Parliament (2011) This is a list of Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs) or, in Gaelic, Buill Pàrlamaid na h Alba (BPnA) elected to the second …   Wikipedia

  • Mid Scotland and Fife (Scottish Parliament electoral region) — Mid Scotland and Fife Scottish Parliament electoral region The Mid Scotland and Fife region shown within Scotland Created 1999 …   Wikipedia

  • David Hanson (politician) — The Right Honourable David George Hanson MP Shadow Minister of State for Police and Criminal Justice Incumbent …   Wikipedia

  • Saint John's School of Ontario — (SJSO) was the third of three private Anglican boys boarding school in Toronto founded on conservative Anglican ideas and the notion that children were not challenged by present day society. The others are Saint John s Cathedral Boys School… …   Wikipedia

  • Lathe — A lathe (pronEng|ˈleɪð) is a machine tool which spins a block of material to perform various operations such as cutting, sanding, knurling, drilling, or deformation with tools that are applied to the workpiece to create an object which has… …   Wikipedia

  • Members of the 1st Scottish Parliament — 1st Parliament (1999) 2nd Parliament (2003) 3rd Parliament (2007) 4th Parliament (2011) This is a list of Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs) or, in Gaelic, Buill Pàrlamaid na h Alba (BPnA) elected to the first …   Wikipedia

  • Bill Mason — Infobox Actor name = Bill Mason birthname = William Clifford Mason birthdate = 1929 birthplace = Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada deathdate = death date|1988|10|29 deathplace = Meech Lake, Canada baftaawards = Best Specialised Film 1970 The Rise and… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”