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ArchivesRe: Cunningham - Multi Choice.... Any others?
in reply to a message by Paul
Quoting Basil Cottle's "Penguin Dictionary of Surnames" -
"Johnston's derivation as ?'milk pails' sounds impossible; form c. 1150 was Cunegan, and the modern spelling, especially the -ham suffix, is the work of an anglicised scribe ..."
However, Nicolaisen, "Scottish Place-Names", discusses this, and mentions a reference to a Cunningham in Bede's History. But his opinion is that Bede refers to a lost Durham place name, and that the original of Cunningham was Celtic.
Also Cunningham has been adopted as an English version by several Irish families with original names such as Ó Cuinnegáin, Ó Connagáin, Ó Connacháin, et al., all based in Northern Ireland and doubtless indistinguishable from Cunninghams of Ulster Scots descent.
"Johnston's derivation as ?'milk pails' sounds impossible; form c. 1150 was Cunegan, and the modern spelling, especially the -ham suffix, is the work of an anglicised scribe ..."
However, Nicolaisen, "Scottish Place-Names", discusses this, and mentions a reference to a Cunningham in Bede's History. But his opinion is that Bede refers to a lost Durham place name, and that the original of Cunningham was Celtic.
Also Cunningham has been adopted as an English version by several Irish families with original names such as Ó Cuinnegáin, Ó Connagáin, Ó Connacháin, et al., all based in Northern Ireland and doubtless indistinguishable from Cunninghams of Ulster Scots descent.
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