I have never heard of this story before, and would be interested if anyone else has: Lepas anatifera (goose barnacles) are responsible for "one of Britian's strangest animal beliefs", to quote the Christchurch Press of 7 June 2007 (this Christchurch being in New Zealand). The barnacle shell is supposed to resemble the head of the barnacle goose. As people rarely, if ever, witnessed geese nesting in Britain, apparently, they came up with the idea that geese emerged, fully fledges, from ships' planking and flew away. Margaret

Dear Maragaret, that story is related in most books on British Birds. The geese nest in the Arctic, well away from British eyes, and their heads resemble the barnacle which comes ashore attached to driftwood. Older tales about this goose were that it grew as the gourd of some sea-shore tree by the Irish Sea, attached by its beak until fledged (hence 'Tree Goose') or was the result of a mushroom growing on rotting driftwood. These were useful legends because the geese could be eaten on fasting days as they were fruit or fungus and not flesh! Alas the stories were debunked in the 18th century when their nesting-sites were discovered in Spitzbergen and East Finland. Regards, David

Hello everybody, I have just discovered that one of my female ancestors, a 2 x g.g.mother, who lived in Hampshire from about 1830 till her death in 1864 had the maiden name of Ajoubeat. The spelling is the same on birth certificate entries for children born in 1839 and 1844 and is easily deciphered. The Registrar for the area has suggested it might be of French origin but I have been unable to find it on the websites where it might be expected to occur. I am hoping somebody on the list might be able to throw me a clue please. In census returns the birthplace is shown as Lambeth but despite searching for many years I have failed to find a marriage for her and her 'husband'. Regards, Rod in Andover.

Hi Rod, if no-one can come up with a more believable guess, then I offer the possibility that the name Ajoubeat might come from Adjubeat which was an old misreading of Latin MS 'ut jubeat' of Plautus. Not being a latin scholar I can only guess that this might mean 'how decreed'. Regards, David ----- Original Message ----- From: "Rodney Whale" <clargo@tinyworld.co.uk> To: <hampshire-life@rootsweb.com> Sent: Friday, June 15, 2007 9:50 PM Subject: [HAMPSHIRE-LIFE] Seeking a subscriber with knowledge of Frenchsurnames. > Hello everybody, > > I have just discovered that one of my female ancestors, a 2 x g.g.mother, > who lived in Hampshire from about 1830 till her death in 1864 had the maiden > name of Ajoubeat. The spelling is the same on birth certificate entries for > children born in 1839 and 1844 and is easily deciphered. > > The Registrar for the area has suggested it might be of French origin but I > have been unable to find it on the websites where it might be expected to > occur. > > I am hoping somebody on the list might be able to throw me a clue please. In > census returns the birthplace is shown as Lambeth but despite searching for > many years I have failed to find a marriage for her and her 'husband'. > > Regards, Rod in Andover. > > > *************************************** > > When replying to this message, please spare a thought for your fellow list members, and anyone searching the archives in the future. SNIP everything which is not essential for comprehension or continuity (including the footers which will be put back anyway!) > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to HAMPSHIRE-LIFE-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message > > > -- > No virus found in this incoming message. > Checked by AVG Free Edition. > Version: 7.5.472 / Virus Database: 269.8.16/849 - Release Date: 14/06/2007 12:44 > >