Genealogy Chat

I have the name Bray and Im in the process of searching some very early parish records -16th, 17th century. There are no Brays this far back but there is Pre, Pray, Prey, Grey, Gray for the same village. Does anyone know any good websites for old variants on names? Would love to know if these are possible ancestors or just different families. Many thanks, Jackie

Jackie I don't think there is such a thing as a website of variants - any version of a name can be a variant and how you can tell if these alternatives are connected I don't know. It could be down to bad hearing, bad spelling, bad writing or all three. A long time ago hardly anyone wrote fluently -pre 1850ish all my rellies appear to be illiterate - so they would have no concept of how to spell and it would be down to the officials how they were recorded. My great-great grandmother is Meling in the parish baptisms, Maling on her wedding cert and Mealing in the census. Who is to say which is the "correct" version? You will have to work backwards making connections with parents and children. Its entirely possible your Brays moved into the village later. When did the Bray name first appear? Is it in the baptism records and if so, are the parents listed earlier as Pray etc.

I'm lucky, so far I've only gone back to the mid 1800's but it seems that the further back we go the more skills we need, psycology, sociology geography and history. Latin and French would seem to be essential for earlier records. How about Brayton as a variant on Bretton? Sorry I cannot help more but good luck Dave

Thanks for your thoughts folks. Wouln't mind, but it's in Devon. Today's dialect is often hard to understand - let alone in 1580 and the only people able to read or write were the clergy and landowners!!! Will try FFHS to see what variants they come up with. Could be interesting. Jackie

My name is Shattock, its a Somerset name and in that county can be pronounced shattuck. Not far away in Devon the name (same spelling) tends to be pronounced shaddock, and is also often spelt how it is pronounced. I've had one family who had several children, each with a separate spelling of the same name in the parish records. There was a Shattock Shatoc Shaddock Shatuck and even a Shadox. So ..... Bray Prey Pray and Pre could all be variations of the same name. Grey would perhaps need more imagination or a hard of hearing vicar! John

I've now found a Sprey!!! Speech impediment too!!! Only consolatation is that the Preys finshed when the Brays started. Robert Pray is in the mariage register. Three years later Robert Bray buried son William. Mother unfortunately at that time not important enough to be named in the register, so no help there. Jackie