Genealogy Chat

Does anyone have any ideas on how to find meanings/research history around unusual first names. I have an ancestor called Otter! Look forward to hearing from you all.

Hi Nicola I'm jealous of so unusual a forename! Is he - I'm assuming it's a male ancestor - baptised, married and buried as Otter? It might be Otto, misheard. Alternatively, it might be a surname used as a Christian name. Have a look at the familysearch website and search for the surname in the county your ancestor lived in to see whether it is common or not. People are often given mother's maiden names, but sometimes the link is more obscure, like godparents. There was a Bishop Otter. Happy hunting Brenda

I totally agree Brenda. I wondered straight away if it was a variation on the name Otto? There are some websites that have meaning for first names you can check them out too. http://www.behindthename(.)com/ http://www.babynamesearch(.)com/meaning-of-first-names(.)htm http://www.zelo(.)com/firstnames/index(.)asp Please remember to remove brackets. Good Luck Pat x

Thanks for those pointers Brenda & Pat. Yes Otter was a male and it seems that the name was passed down through the generations, although the name seems to stop being used in my branch from early 19th Century.

Olomas????? What origins does it have? is that a real name or have i read it wrong?

I do astrology and have a book on interpretations of names. When I am sober! tomorrow, I will have a look for you and e-mail what I find. Regards, Heidi