Double-barrelled Surnames

In Britain, double-barrelled surnames have a long history in naming traditions, possibly indicating social status, heritage, or the merging of family lines. The formation of these surnames by combining two surnames with a hyphen, may suggest a union of noble or influential families, the inheritance of property, or the desire to preserve both paternal and maternal legacies. Double-barrelled surnames have come to reflect a variety of personal and societal choices, from marriage customs to the protection of family names, but how have they been used throughout history?

In the Beginning

The use of surnames in England increased following the Norman conquest of 1066. However, not many that were used were double-barrelled.

Double-barrelled surnames were once rare and primarily associated with the aristocracy. Because of this, people fashioned their own double-barrelled surnames in an attempt to associate themselves with aristocratic society. The Tudor gentry and Victorian professionals are some of the people who adopted the practice throughout the centuries.

Having brought land that once belonged to the monasteries, the Tudor gentry created double-barrelled surnames in an attempt to align themselves with land owning aristocrats. Victorian professionals, such as doctors and lawyers, used double-barrelled surnames as a declaration of where they wanted to be in society.

Creating double-barrelled names was also helpful for families without any male heirs. The practice helped avoid the risk of the family losing their fortune, estate and any coat of arms.

The Victorians

It wasn’t until the Victorian era that the term “double-barrelled” became popular. By the mid-nineteenth century, the practice was more common, adopted by people of all social classes. During this time, people created double-barrelled surnames for various reasons and used different methods to do so.

One reason related to inheritance and allowed the family name associated with wealth to survive. For example, when the heiress to landed estates or property married, she hyphenated her surname with that of her husbands. This new double-barrelled surname ensured the bride’s family name of the wealthy estate remained in society. Similarly, a male relative inheriting from a wealthy maiden aunt, for example, would, as a condition of the inheritance, hyphenate his name to hers so that the family name associated with the estate also survived.

A parent remarrying may have also led to the creation of a double-barrelled name. For example, the new husband of a widowed mother may have adopted her child to have a formal legal relationship. The adopted father’s surname would then be hyphenated with that of the child’s to create a new double-barrelled surname.

There are some sources that contest the accuracy of this because they maintain that double-barrelled surnames were rare in the Victorian period and not as popular as other sources suggest.