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During the early middle ages, people were referred to by a single given name. But gradually the custom of adding another name as a way to distinguish individuals gained popularity. Distinct traits became part of this practice. For instance, the place of birth: St. Francis of Assisi; a descriptive characteristic: Lambert Le Tort, an old French poet whose name means "Lambert the Twisted;" the person's occupation: Piers Plowman; or the use of the fathers name: Leif Ericson. At first these names were not handed down the line. When they transferred to offspring of the individual is hard to pinpoint in history. Now that we have established some of the classifications of surnames, can you fit yours into a class? Well you can read very interesting information about classifications if you follow the link. Or, you can look up the meaning and / or origin of some common and rare surnames below.
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