Downer

Downer
This is a good example of a type of toponymic surname found particularly in the southern English counties of Surrey, Hampshire, Kent, Essex and Sussex, where the suffix 'er' was added to some topographical feature, in this instance a 'down' or 'low hill'. The meaning as a surname is 'one who dwells by the down(s)'. The derivation is from the Old English pre 7th century word 'dun', which is of Celtic origin. The marriage is recorded in Canterbury of one William Downer and Barbara Greene in 1683. In the modern idiom the name can be found in other variants, such as 'Downe', 'Downman' and 'Dunman'. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Stephen le Downar. which was dated 1327 Sussex Subsidy Rolls. during the reign of King Edward II 'Edward of Caernafon' 1307-1327. 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.

Surnames reference. 2013.

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  • Downer — may refer to: Downer (surname), various persons of that name Downer, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb of Canberra, Australia Downer Glacier, Alaska Downer, Minnesota, an unincorporated community Downer (soil), the New Jersey state soil… …   Wikipedia

  • Downer — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda «Downer» Canción de Nirvana Álbum Bleach Publicación 15 de junio de 1989 …   Wikipedia Español

  • downer — n. a drug that reduces excitability and calms a person. [Colloq.] Syn: sedative, depressant. [WordNet 1.5] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • downer — 1966 in sense of barbiturate; 1970 in sense of depressing person; agent noun from DOWN (Cf. down) (adv.) …   Etymology dictionary

  • downer — [n] depressing experience bad deal*, bad scene*, bad trip*, bummer*, drag*, misfortune, raw deal, rotten hand; concepts 674,679 …   New thesaurus

  • downer — ► NOUN informal 1) a depressant or tranquillizing drug. 2) something dispiriting or depressing …   English terms dictionary

  • downer — [dou′nər] n. Slang 1. any depressant drug, as a tranquilizer or barbiturate ☆ 2. a depressing experience, person, etc …   English World dictionary

  • downer — [[t]da͟ʊnə(r)[/t]] downers 1) N COUNT Downers are drugs that make you feel sleepy or very calm. [INFORMAL] She was taking uppers and downers at the time. Ant: upper 2) N COUNT: usu sing, a N If you describe a situation as a downer, you think that …   English dictionary

  • downer — down|er [ˈdaunə US ər] n informal 1.) a drug that makes you feel very relaxed or sleepy →↑upper 2.) [singular] a person or situation that stops you feeling happy ▪ The weather was a bit of a downer. 3.) be on a downer BrE to be sad or… …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • downer — noun informal 1 (C) a drug that makes you feel very relaxed or sleepy compare upper 2 (2) 2 (singular) a person or situation that stops you feeling cheerful or happy: “Nick can t come.” “What a downer.” 3 be on a downer BrE to be sad or… …   Longman dictionary of contemporary English

  • downer — UK [ˈdaʊnə(r)] / US [ˈdaʊnər] noun Word forms downer : singular downer plural downers informal 1) [singular] something that makes you feel sad or disappointed 2) [countable] a drug that makes you feel relaxed or helps you sleep • on a downer …   English dictionary

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