I'm looking for some surname info?

Question

Is there a website that I can go to to get some valid information about our family surnames.

My husband is supposedly, somehow related to William Wallace. The last name is Freeman. He has a relative who traced their family genealogy and is making this claim.

Also I'm wondering about the last names Glass, Davis and Deason. I've found out that Davis and Deason are cefts of Davidson, but I'd like more info.

If anyone can tell me or refer me to a website I'd appreciate it very much.

Answer 1

I found this information for you.

Surname: Glass

This uncommon surname, chiefly recorded in the West Midland counties of Shropshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire, is of Anglo-Saxon origin, and is a metonymic occupational name for a glazier or glass blower, deriving from the Olde English pre 7th Century "glaes", glass (akin to "glaed", shining, referring originally to the bright shine of the material). The earliest recorded examples of the surname contain the agent suffix "-er", and include: Thomas le Glasyer (Cornwall, 1297), and Robert le Glasiere (Essex, 1327). In its original sense "a man who had to do with", the "-er" designates persons according to their profession or occupation. One Walterus Glassenwryght, and a Robertus de Spalding, glasenwryght, appear in the 1379 Poll Tax Returns of Yorkshire, their occupations being the making of glass. The metonymic occupational name is variously spelt: Glase, Glass, Glace, Glaze and Glaize in English Church Registers. On March 24th 1689, William, son of Thomas and Elizabeth Glaze, was christened at Cleobury Mortimer, Shropshire. The surname Glass is also recorded from the 16th Century in Scotland, half the lands of Langilculcreich being granted to one Alexander Glass in 1506. The derivation, in this instance, is from the Gaelic "glas", grey, green, blue. A Coat of Arms held by the family depicts on a silver shield, a fleur-de-lis between three mullets within a red bordure, the Crest being a mermaid with mirror and comb proper. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Ricardus Glase, which was dated October 11th 1540, marriage to Margeriam Higgons, at Pontesbury, Shropshire, during the reign of King Henry V111, known as "Bluff King Hal", 1509 - 1547. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.

Surname: Davis

This distinguished surname, with no less than twenty Coats of Arms, and several notable entries in the "Dictionary of National Biography", is a patronymic form of the male given name David, itself coming from the Hebrew "Dodaveha" meaning "Beloved of Jehovah". This name was borne by the greatest of the early kings of Israel, which led to its popularity first among the Jews, and later among Christians throughout Europe in the Middle Ages. In Britain, the popularity of the personal name was increased due to the ame of St. David, 6th Century Bishop of Menevia, who became patron saint of Wales, and also as a result of its having been borne by two kings of Scotland: David 1, who reigned from 1124 to 1153, and David 11 (1329 - 1371). One David clericus, recorded in Documents relating to the Danelaw, Lincolnshire, dated 1150, is one of the earliest recorded bearers of the personal name in England. The patronymic first emerges in the early 14th Century (see below), and in 1402, a Richard Davys was entered in the Register of the Freemen of the City of York. Richard Barrett Davis (1782 - 1852) was animal painter to William 1V, and Sir John Francis Davis, chief superintendent of British trade in China, was made K.C.B. in 1854. The Coat of Arms most associated with the name is a silver shield with a chevron pean, in base a black lion rampant, a chief indented of the last, and a canton ermines. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of John Dauisse, which was dated 1327, in the "Subsidy Rolls of Cambridgeshire", during the reign of King Edward 111, known as "The Father of the Navy", 1327 - 1377. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.

Surname: Deason

Recorded in several spelling forms including Deacon, Deecon, Deaconson, Deason, Deeson, Deasin, Deakin and Deakins, this interesting surname is Anglo-Scottish. It is or rather was at least in England an occupational name for a deacon, or perhaps for his servant. The derivation is from the Old English pre 7th century word "deakne", although ultimately the origin is from the late Latin word "diaconus" or the Ancient Greek "diakonos", meaning a friend or manservant. In the Catholic church a deacon is one ranking below an ordained minister, but in Scotland it very secular, being the president of an incorporated trade or body of craftsmen in a burgh. Early examples of the surname recording include: Richard le Deken, in the Assize Court Rolls of Bedfordshire in 1247, Walter Dekne, a burgess of Perth, being granted safe conduct into England in 1291, John Dekne, in the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex in 1327, and Duncan Deaconson of Lochmaben, Scotland, in 1374. Later recordings include those of William Deakin and Ann Slatt who were married at St. Margarets, Westminster, on January 17th 1677. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Richard le Diakne. This was dated 1212, in the Pipe Rolls of Suffolk, during the reign of King John of England, 1199 - 1216. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.

I hope this helps, all of the above information came from,

http://www.surnamedb.com/

Answer 2

When I'm looking for information that far back I go to google books.

www.google.com  go to the top and in the drop down menu select books.  In the search put the last name you are looking for.  If you get too many you can add to the search criteria by adding a location or wife's maiden name or first name.  

You will see a selection box where you can select those with limited or full view if you don't want to see the books that aren't available to preview.

Answer 3

http://www.freebmd.org.uk/cgi/search.pl

http://www.familysearch.org/eng/default....

http://www.ancestry.co.uk/

http://www.genuki.org.uk/

http://www.uk-genealogy.org.uk/

http://www.ancestorhunt.com/united_kingd...

http://www.oz.net/~markhow/acronym-uk.ht...

http://www.familyhistory.uk.com/

http://www.genesreunited.co.uk/genesreun...

Answer 4

These sites may be able to help

http://www.genebase.com/

http://landing.ancestry.co.uk/offers/uk/...