The Spelling of Surnames in 17th and 18th Century Tables

Because sorting is a key feature of the tables on this site I had to be sure that all variant spellings of a surname were kept together in the sorting process. This was not really a problem with nineteenth and twentieth century sources. The greater number of variant spellings in seventeenth and eighteenth-century sources did cause problems. To overcome them, I have adopted the following system.

In each table there is a column which lists the actual spelling of the surnames recorded in the original document. There is another column with a modern-day or more common spelling of the surname, selected by me. There is no significance in the spelling that I have chosen -  I am not suggesting that this is how a particular name should be spelt. It is simply a method of grouping together surnames in the original source which, I think, are variant spellings of the same surname.

This meant that when sorted the variant spellings of a surname were not scattered throughout the database. In some cases I may have got it wrong, but the fact that you can see the actual spelling used in the original document allows you to make up your own mind. I even have a column in the tables where a  ?  appears against a particular surname. This means that I am not sure that I have got this one right. There is also a column where I have put an  *  against surnames that I do not recognise.

In the case of many Irish names I have dropped the O' at the beginning of the surname. There is no genealogical or political significance to this decision - it is simply to help in the sorting process.

A further problem is that some early surnames are completely different from their modern equivalents.

• My own surname Macafee or McAfee, appears in the 1669 Hearth Money Rolls as McDuffee (in a variety of spellings) or McPhee or M'Fee. I have grouped all of these names under the surname McAfee.

• Another example is the surname Alexander which appears as McCalsenor, McElsinor,  etc. The name Alexander is used to group these names.

• Another name is Pollock which can appear as Poake or Polke.

• Another one is Connor which can appear as Knocker, O'Knocker and Nogher. I know that the name Knocker or McKnocker can be a different surname and still exists today, but I have chosen to group them all under the surname Connor.

• I have done the same with the name Kane. I have used the surname Kane as an umbrella name for a group of surnames which are not the same. Kane in the databases covers Kane, O'Kane, O'Cahan (and its variant spellings). McKane, McKeane, and Keane. Have a look at the McCain - McKane - O'Kane DNA Testing Project web site for some interesting information on these surnames.