The Jewish names of German origin which are now so common in England
mostly date from the beginning of the nineteenth century, when laws
were passed in Austria, Prussia and Bavaria to compel all Jewish
families to adopt a fixed surname. Many of them chose personal names,
e.g. Jakobs, Levy, Moses, for this purpose, while others named
themselves from their place of residence, e.g. Cassel, Speyer
(Spires), Hamburg, often with the addition of the syllable -er, e.g.
Darmesteter, Homburger. Some families preferred descriptive names
such as Selig (Chapter XXII), Sonnenschein, Goldmann, or invented
poetic and gorgeous place-names such as Rosenberg, Blumenthal,
Goldberg, Lilienfeld. The oriental fancy also showed itself in such
names as Edelstein, jewel, Glueckstein, luck stone, Rubinstein, ruby,
Goldenkranz, golden wreath, etc. [Footnote: Our Touchstone would seem
also to be a nickname. The obituary of a Mr. Touchstone appeared in
the Manchester Guardian, December 12, 1912.] It is owing to the
existence of the last two groups that our fashionable intelligence is
now often so suggestive of a wine-list. Among animal names adopted
the favourites were Adler, eagle, Hirsch, hart, Loewe, lion, and Wolf,
each of which is used with symbolic significance in the Old Testament.
CHAPTER VI. TOM, DICK AND HARRY
"Watte vocat, cui Thomme venit, neque Symme retardat,
Betteque, Gibbe simul, Hykke venire jubent;
Colle furit, quem Geffe juvat nocumenta parantes,
Cum quibus ad dampnum Wille coire vovet.
Grigge rapit, dum Dawe strepit, comes est quibus Hobbe,
Lorkyn et in medio non minor esse putat:
Hudde ferit, quem Judde terit, dum Tebbe minatur,
Jakke domosque viros vellit et ense necat."
(GOWER, On Wat Tyler's Rebellion.)
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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