Gammon
- Gammon
Recorded in the spellings of
Game, Gaman, Gamman, Gammon, the patronymics Games, Gammans, Gammons and Gammonds, this is an English surname. It can be described as one of those quite rare occurences, a surname which does mean precisely what it says. The derivation is from the Olde English pre
7th century word
"gamen" and translates as
"one who is good at games". As such it was a medieval descriptive nickname. In its earliest forms the surname was also found as Goodgame, with John Goodgame being recorded in the county of Huntingdonshire in
1549. A quotation of the year
1380 which appears in the New Oxford Dictionary of
1888, states
"and he that cometh first to his ende shall have the gamen, and the sett", which probably refers to a game of what is now known as
"Real Tennis", being distinct from the much later Lawn Tennis. Early examples of the surname recording include Roger Game, in the register of the Somerset Assize Court in
1268, and John Garmene of Hampshire in the Hundred Rolls of
1273. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was sometimes 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.
:
Look at other dictionaries:
Gammon — can mean:* A particular cut of bacon or ham (from an Old Northern French word Gambe for hind leg of the pig or ham) processed pork product * A synonym for Shelta, the language of the Irish Travellers * A victory in backgammon reached before the… … Wikipedia
gammon — ‘bacon’ [15] is not related to the gammon [18] of backgammon. It comes from Old Northern French gambon (source also of modern French jambon ‘ham’), which was a derivative of gambe ‘leg’ – hence etymologically ‘leg meat’. This seems to go back… … The Hutchinson dictionary of word origins
gammon — ‘bacon’ [15] is not related to the gammon [18] of backgammon. It comes from Old Northern French gambon (source also of modern French jambon ‘ham’), which was a derivative of gambe ‘leg’ – hence etymologically ‘leg meat’. This seems to go back… … Word origins
gammon — gammon1 [gam′ən] n. [ME gambon < NormFr < dial. Fr gambe: see GAMB] 1. the bottom end of a side of bacon 2. a smoked or cured ham or side of bacon gammon2 [gam′ən] n. [ME gammen, var. of game, gamen: see GAME1 … English World dictionary
Gammon — Gam mon, v. t. 1. To beat in the game of backgammon, before an antagonist has been able to get his men or counters home and withdraw any of them from the board; as, to gammon a person. In certain variants of the game one who gammons an opponent… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Gammon — steht für: eine Mischsprache (auch als Shelta, Sheldru oder Cant bezeichnet) den doppelten Sieg einer Partie Backgammon den Familiennamen von: James Gammon (1940–2010), US amerikanischer Schauspieler … Deutsch Wikipedia
Gammon — Gam mon (g[a^]m m[u^]n), n. [See 2d {Game}.] 1. Backgammon. [1913 Webster] 2. A victory in the game of backgammon in which one player gammons another, i. e., the winner bears off all of his pieces before his opponent bears off any pieces; as, he… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Gammon — Gam mon, v. t. [Etymol. unknown.] (Naut.) To fasten (a bowsprit) to the stem of a vessel by lashings of rope or chain, or by a band of iron. Totten. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Gammon — Gam mon (g[a^]m m[u^]n), n. [OF. gambon, F. jambon, fr. OF. gambe leg, F. jambe. See {Gambol}, n., and cf. {Ham}.] The buttock or thigh of a hog, salted and smoked or dried; the lower end of a flitch. Goldsmith. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Gammon — Gam mon (g[a^]m m[u^]n), v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Gammoned} (g[a^]m m[u^]nd); p. pr. & vb. n. {Gammoning}.] To make bacon of; to salt and dry in smoke. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Gammon — (Back G.), ein dem Puff verwandtes Brettspiel mit Steinen und Würfeln, ist in England nach sehr beliebt … Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon
