This ‘ap,’ the Welsh equivalent of our English ‘son,’ when it has come before a name beginning with a vowel, has in many instances become incorporated with it. Thus ‘Ap-Hugh’ has given us ‘Pugh,’ ‘Ap-Rice,’ just mentioned, ‘Price,’ or as ‘Reece,’ ‘Preece;’ ‘Ap-Owen,’ ‘Bowen;’ ‘Ap-Evan,’ ‘Bevan;’ ‘Ap-Robert,’ ‘Probert;’ ‘Ap-Roger,’ ‘Prodger;’ ‘Ap-Richard,’ ‘Pritchard;’ ‘Ap-Humphrey,’ ‘Pumphrey;’ ‘Ap-Ithell,’ ‘Bethell;’[4] or ‘Ap-Howell,’ ‘Powell.’[5] ‘Prosser’ has generally been thought a corruption of ‘proser,’ one who was garrulously inclined; but this is a mistake, it is simply ‘Ap-Rosser.’ The Norman patronymic was formed similarly as the Welsh, by a prefix, that of ‘fitz,’ the modern French ‘fils.’ Surnames of this class were at first common. Thus we find such names as ‘Fitz-Gibbon,’ ‘Fitz-Gerald,’ ‘Fitz-Patrick,’ ‘Fitz-Waryn,’ ‘Fitz-Rauf,’ ‘Fitz-Payn,’ ‘Fitz-Richard,’ or ‘Fitz-Neele.’ But though this obtained for awhile among some of the nobler families of our country, it has made in general no sensible impression upon our surnames. The Saxon added ‘son,’ as a desinence, as ‘Williamson,’ that is, ‘William’s son,’ or ‘Bolderson,’ that is, ‘Baldwin’s son,’ or merely the genitive suffix, as ‘Williams,’ or ‘Richards.’ This class has been wonderfully enlarged by the custom then in vogue, as now, of reducing every baptismal name to some curt and familiar monosyllable. It agreed with the rough-and-ready humour of the Anglo-Norman character so to do. How common this was we may see from Gower’s description of the insurrection of Wat Tyler: ‘Watte’ vocat, cui ‘Thoma’ venit, neque ‘Symme’ retardat, ‘Bat’-que ‘Gibbe’ simul, ‘Hykke’ venire jubent: ‘Colle’ furit, quem ‘Bobbe’ juvat nocumenta parantes, Cum quibus, ad damnum ‘Wille’ coire volat— ‘Grigge’ rapit, dum ‘Davie’ strepit, comes est quibus ‘Hobbe,’ ‘Larkin’ et in medio non minor esse putat: ‘Hudde’ ferit, quem ‘Judde’ terit, dum ‘Tibbe’ juvatur ‘Jacke’ domosque viros vellit, en ense necat— Or let the author of ‘Piers Plowman’ speak. ‘Glutton’ having been seduced to the alehouse door, we are told— Then goeth ‘Glutton’ in and grete other after, ‘Cesse’ the souteresse sat on the bench: ‘Watte’ the warner and his wife bothe: ‘Tymme’ the tynkere and twayne of his ’prentices. ‘Hikke’ the hackney man and ‘Hugh’ the nedlere, ‘Clarice’ of Cokkeslane, and the clerke of the churche; ‘Dawe’ the dykere, and a dozen othere.