That's very interesting, Craig. I'm rather doubtful of the first explanation - that the name means a maker of crumpets or crompled cakes. I suppose it's plausible that such cakes might be made by a crumpler, but neither the OED nor the Middle English Dictionary suggests that such a usage actually existed. I wonder where Richard Pickett got it from. Reaney's explanation is also plausible etymologically (Cromwell certainly used originally to be Crombwell), and perhaps a little more convincing, but he only suggested it tentatively, by analogy with other -er surnames, and it may be significant that he left it out of the Dictionary of English Surnames. Further, my CD of surname distribution in the 1881 census shows that the name was then confined pretty much to Dorset and Hampshire (mainly to south-east and central Dorset and south-west Hampshire), where 122 Crumplers lived (another 43, most of the remainder, lived in London and nearby, with a further 10 sprinkled across other counties in ones and twos). This doesn't completely rule out an origin in Nottinghamshire, but it does make it rather unlikely. However I think the early form of the surname, as Crumplehere, must be fatal to both theories. It would be interesting to find other early occurrences, especially from the medieval period, and especially in Dorset, to see if they also take that form. Matt From: Craig Walsh [mailto:craig@hmdp.com] Sent: 05 March 2009 09:26 To: old-english@rootsweb.com Cc: mllt1@leicester.ac.uk; Marjorie Walsh; Cathy Bushby; Ann Heward Subject: Crumplehere the surname Hi, Matt --- My wife --- the Crumpler descendant --- will love the theory of "crumpled hair." The only information I have on the origin of the surname came from the old www.crumpler.org website (now long gone). According to the archival copy of that website: "Crumpler is an occupational name for the Old English cromphet - a flat, thin cake which was often fried on a griddle. In Medieval England, the Cromplers or Crumplers made and sold these "crompled cakes". They were favorite items at county fairs, market days, and festivals, similar to our doughnuts today. Tea and crumpets are a favorite afternoon snack in England and Scotland even today. This information provided by: Richard Pickett" Or: "A version by one of the well respected authorities in the UK on surnames - P.H. REANY "His theory is based on the start position of a man from 'Cromwell' in the county of Nottinghamshire. Two alternatives are given based on surnames found to be in use. "Alternative 1 - Cromwell - to - Crumwell - to - Crumbwell - to - Crumbweller - to - Crumbler - to - CRUMPLER "Alternative 2 - Cromweller pronounced Crumler - to - CRUMPLER "(Ref: 6. The origins of the English Surnames by P.H.Reaney. page 202. Published by Routledge & Kegen Paul 1967)" I seem to recall seeing a website somewhere that showed geographic distribution of surnames within England. Need to find it to see if any Crumplers came from Nottinghamshire. So far, at least on Marjorie's branch of the Crumpler family, I can't recall any lived in Nottinghamshire. Google came up with the "House of Names" and their Crumpler coat of arms, and brief history of the surname: http://www.houseofnames.com/xq/asp.c/qx/crumpler-coat-arms.htm They talk about Berkshire --- and offer to sell me (among other things) a Crumpler coat of arms baseball cap. Kind regards, Craig Craig W. Walsh Lucies Farm Ltd. * Colletts Green * Worcester * WR2 4RY ******************************************************* 01905-830-380 (In USA 888-880-1531) 07833 433 871 ******************************************************* Sent from my MacBook = = = = = = = = Date: Thu, 5 Mar 2009 07:15:58 +0000 From: "Tompkins, M.L.L." <mllt1@leicester.ac.uk> Subject: [OEL] Crumplehere the surname To: "old-english@rootsweb.com" <old-english@rootsweb.com> Message-ID: <1C8727550676DA45BF09CA2E80B4326A3AAD219E73@EXC-MBX2.cfs.le.ac.uk> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Craig, have you ever come across an explanation of the surname Crumpler, originally Crumplehere. Does anyone have an explanation for it? Reaney and Wilson's Dictionary of English Surnames doesn't include it. The surname seems to have two elements, though I'm unsure whether the first element is 'crump' or 'crumple'. Either way my guess is that it is either the OE and ME word cromb, cromp, meaning 'hook', 'crook', or 'bent', 'crooked', 'twisted', or 'cromple', a word derived from it. If the second part were 'hair', then the whole would mean something like 'crumpled hair' or 'tangled hair'. Matt ________________________________ Privacy and Confidentiality Notice This is strictly confidential and intended solely for the person or organisation to whom it is addressed. It may contain privileged and confidential information and if you are not an intended recipient, you must not copy, distribute or take any action in reliance on it. If you have received this message in error, please notify us as soon as possible and delete it and any attached files from your system.