indicate the level to which a name has been verified.
Type Surname (from occupation)
Usage Medieval English
Meaning & History
Likely from Old French jor de main meaning "day labourer". This was borne by Margery Jourdemayne, an English woman known as the "Witch of Eye" who was burned at the stake in 1441 for conspiring to kill the king with witchcraft. She was executed along with three priests attached to the Duchess of Gloucester, and appears (as Margery Jourdayn) in Shakespeare's history play 'Henry VI, Part 2' (written ca. 1591).