William

William
Recorded in over two hundred spellings and found throughout Europe, this is a surname of Germanic origins. These spellings include: Wilhelm Wilham, Wilharm (German), William, Williams, Welliam, Gilliam, Gwilliam (English, Scottish, Irish, and Welsh), Guilaume, Willaume, Willeme (French), Guillermo, Guillen (Spanish), Vielmi, Vigietti, Biglietti, Lemmo (Italian), and many others. It was introduced into England and Scotland around the time of the Norman Conquest of 1066, and was carried by four English kings. The derivation is from the pre 7th century personal name "Wilhelm" composed of the elements "wil", meaning "of strong mind", and "helm", translating literally as helmet, but in this context meaning "protection". As a patronymic the short form of "s", meaning "son of", is often added. Political correctness is not a new phenomena, and after the accession of King William 1st in 1066, the name became the most popular British personal name, and with the creation of surnames from the 12th century, an equally popular surname. The list of prominent holders of the surname is almost endless, but one of the more unusual could be said to be the famous republican Oliver Cromwell, who "reigned" in England from 1650 to 1658, and whose family were formerly called Williams. They held extensive estates in Wales, but under instructions from King Henry V111 (1510 - 1547), the family name was changed to Cromwell. The first recorded spelling of the family name anywhere in the world is believed to be that of Richard William. This was dated 1279, in the "Hundred Rolls" of the county of Oxfordshire, England.

Surnames reference. 2013.

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  • William — may refer to:*William (name), a masculine given nameRoyaltyBritish*William I of England (1027 1087), a.k.a. William the Conqueror, William the Bastard *William II of England (1056 1100), a.k.a. William Rufus *William I of Scotland (c. 1142 1214) …   Wikipedia

  • William — ist normannischen Ursprungs und die englische Form des männlichen Vornamens Wilhelm. Inhaltsverzeichnis 1 William als Vorname 1.1 Namensträger 1.2 Künstlername 1.3 …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • William — puede referirse a: Contenido 1 Nombre 1.1 Personajes 1.2 Desambiguaciones de nombre y apellido 2 Véase también …   Wikipedia Español

  • William I — may refer to:Kings* William I of England (c. 1028–1087) known as William the Conqueror * William I of Sicily (died 1166) * William I of Scotland (died 1214) * William I of the Netherlands (1772–1843) * William I, German Emperor (1797–1888) *… …   Wikipedia

  • William II — may refer to:* William II of Aquitaine (died 926) * William II of Montferrat (died c. 961). * William II Sánchez of Gascony (died after 996). * William II of Provence (c. 987–1019). * William II of Besalú (died 1066). * William I of England (c.… …   Wikipedia

  • William IV — may refer to:* William IV of Aquitaine (937–994). * William IV of Provence (died 1030). * William, Margrave of Meissen (died 1062), also William IV of Weimar. * William IV of Toulouse (c. 1040–1094). * William IV of Montferrat (1030–1100). *… …   Wikipedia

  • William — William1 [wil′yəm] n. [NormFr Willaume < OHG Willehelm < willeo, WILL1 + helm, protection: see HELM1] a masculine name: dim. Bill, Billie, Billy, Liam, Will, Willie, Willy; equiv. Du. Willem, Fr. Guillaume, Ger. Wilhelm, It. Guglielmo, Sp.… …   English World dictionary

  • William VI — may refer to:* William VI of Aquitaine (1004–1038) * William VI of Auvergne (1096–1136) * William VI of Montpellier (before 1120–after 1161) * William VI of Montferrat (c. 1173–1226) * William II, Duke of Bavaria Straubing (died 1417), also… …   Wikipedia

  • William V — may refer to:* William V of Aquitaine (969–1030) * William V of Montpellier (1075–1121) * William V, Marquess of Montferrat (c. 1115–1191) * William I, Duke of Bavaria (1330–1389), also William V of Holland * Wilhelm, Duke of Jülich Cleves Berg… …   Wikipedia

  • William F. Wu — (born 1951 in Kansas City, Missouri) is a Chinese American science fiction author. He published his first story in 1977. Since then, Wu has written several novels using the Three Laws of Robotics invented by Isaac Asimov, including the entire… …   Wikipedia

  • William — • For a time he was Archdeacon of Nantes, but renounced this dignity and became a monk at the Benedictine monastery of Marmoutiers (d. 1124) • Abbot of Saint Bénigne on Dijon (962 1031) Catholic Encyclopedia. Kevin Knight. 2006. William …   Catholic encyclopedia

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