Dear Betsy Was this inland Devon or near the coast? St. Barbara is the patron saint of sailors. Audrey ----- Original Message ----- From: "Betsy" <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Tuesday, July 25, 2006 5:37 PM Subject: [OEL] Wives names >I was trying to decide if Thomas & Barbara Gorvett having children in >Frithelstock, Devon could be the same as Thomas & Barbara GORVIN having >children in Monkleigh with in the same 15 year time frame, with Barbara >being on the more "uncommon name" side of things. I did my own little name >study in 5 neighboring towns in Devon for the time of early parish records >(late 1500s) through roughly 1750. I used names in the baptismal records >and it really isn't very scientific but interesting. I found that the >names Mary, Ann and Elizabeth accounted for almost 50% of the female >baptisms and the names Joan/Joanne and Grace or Jane accounted for the next >almost 15 percent. So those female name accounted for roughly 65 to 70 >percent of all women! Margaret and Susan/Susannah and Rebecca taking up the >next big chunks. But the names tended to be more popular in certain towns >(i.ei Rebecca being in 4.3% place in Petersmarland but only little more >than 1% in other towns). > > The men's side of things was even more drastic! John & William alone > accounted for almost 45% of all men. Thomas was third in most towns, > usually around 8-10% although Samuel was third in one town. > > I had looked at some research done using towns that were elsewhere in > England (sorry cannot find it now) and they had Barbara as a more common > woman's name. I found this not to be true in the little section of Devon > where I looked. Barbara was not even on the radar! > > > Like I said, very unscientific, but the chances of a man remarrying a > "Mary" would be much more likely than remarrying another "Frances" . > > Betsy > > > ==== OLD-ENGLISH Mailing List ==== > Going away for a while? > Don't forget to UNSUBSCRIBE! > [email protected] > > > > -- > No virus found in this incoming message. > Checked by AVG Free Edition. > Version: 7.1.394 / Virus Database: 268.10.3/395 - Release Date: 21/07/2006 > >

Dear Audrey, Frithelstock and the others are about 10 miles inland, near Gt Torrington. For me, here in the midst of the cornfields of Illinois, it's coastal! But probably not considered so in Devon : ) Guess inland can be a relative term.... Betsy ----- Original Message ----- From: "Norman Lee" <[email protected]> To: "Betsy" <[email protected]>; <[email protected]> Sent: Tuesday, July 25, 2006 1:39 PM Subject: Re: [OEL] Wives names > Dear Betsy > > Was this inland Devon or near the coast? St. Barbara is the patron saint > of sailors. > > Audrey >