Definitions
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun A name added to another name; a surname; specifically, a name in addition to the Christian name and surname of a person, to distinguish him from others of the same name, and usually indicating descent, place of residence, or some personal quality or attribute.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun Scot. A name added, for the sake of distinction, to one's surname, or used instead of it.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun A
name added to another name;surname . - noun A name in addition to the
Christian name and surname of an individual, to distinguish him or her from others of the same name and usually indicating descent, place of residence, or some personal quality or attribute. Such to-names are often employed where the same families continually intermarry, and where consequently the same name is common to many individuals.
Etymologies
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
Support
Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word to-name.
Examples
-
Face-of-god was well-beloved of his kindred and of all the Folk of the Dale, and he had gotten a to-name, and was called Gold-mane because of the abundance and fairness of his hair.
The Roots of the Mountains; Wherein Is Told Somewhat of the Lives of the Men of Burgdale William Morris 1865
-
Her husband's real name was of as little consequence in life as it is in my history, for almost everybody in the fishing villages of that coast was and is known by his to-name, or nickname, a device for distinction rendered absolutely necessary by the paucity of surnames occasioned by the persistent intermarriage of the fisher folk.
Malcolm George MacDonald 1864
-
She was the daughter of Joseph Mair just mentioned -- a fisherman who had been to sea in a man of war (in consequence of which his to-name or nickname was Blue Peter), where having been found capable, he was employed as carpenter's mate, and came to be very handy with his tools: having saved a little money by serving in another man's boat, he was now building one for himself.
Malcolm George MacDonald 1864
-
"Our family names are so common in a Scottish house, that, where there is no land in the case, we always give a to-name [surname]."
Quentin Durward Walter Scott 1801
-
“Our family names are so common in a Scottish house, that, where there is no land in the case, we always give a to-name
Quentin Durward 2008
Comments
Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.