Wedgwood

Wedgwood
This interesting and long-established surname is of Anglo-Saxon origin, and is a locational name from a minor, unrecorded or now "lost" place called Wedgwood, believed to have been situated in the parish of Wolstanton (Staffordshire), because of the high incidence of early surname recordings from that county. The component elements of the placename are the Olde English pre 7th Century "wice", wych elm, and "wudu", wood; hence, "wych elm wood". The prime cause of medieval village disappearances was the enforced clearing of rural settlements, and the consequent dispersal of the former inhabitants to make way for sheep pastures at the height of the wool trade from the 14th Century on, along with natural causes, such as the Black Death of 1348, in which an eighth of the population perished. The famous family of pottery makers bearing this name traces its descent from Stephen de Wedgewood (below). They settled in Burslem in 1612, and in 1769, Josiah Wedgewood opened new pottery works at Etruria, a village he had built by his workmen. His son, Thomas Wedgewood (1771 - 1805), was known as "the first photographer". A Coat of Arms granted to the Wedgewood family in 1576 is described thus: "Gules, four mullets argent, a canton of the last. Crest - On a ducal coronet gold, a lion passant silver". The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Stephen de Wedgewood, which was dated 1358, in "Medieval Records of Brerehurst", Staffordshire, during the reign of King Edward 111, known as "The Father of the Navy", 1327 - 1377. 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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  • Wedgwood — Wedgwood, strictly Josiah Wedgwood and Sons , is a British pottery firm, originally founded in 1759 by Josiah Wedgwood, which in 1987 merged with Waterford Crystal, creating Waterford Wedgwood, the Ireland based luxury brands group. The company… …   Wikipedia

  • Wedgwood — ist der Familienname folgender Personen: Emma Wedgwood (1808–1896), Ehefrau von Charles Darwin James Ingall Wedgwood (1883–1951), Gründer und erster Erzbischof der Liberalkatholischen Kirche Josiah Wedgwood (1730–1795), englischer Unternehmer… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • WEDGWOOD (J.) — WEDGWOOD JOSIAH (1730 1795) Principal représentant d’une importante dynastie de potiers anglais, Josiah Wedgwood, treizième enfant de Thomas Wedgwood, est né à Burslem (Staffordshire). Dès l’âge de neuf ans, il travaille à la poterie paternelle… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Wedgwood® — /wejˈwŭd/ noun Pottery made by Josiah Wedgwood (1730–95) and his successors, including a distinctive type with cameo reliefs in white on a coloured ground (also Wedgwood ware) Wedgwood blue noun A greyish blue colour much used in Wedgwood pottery …   Useful english dictionary

  • Wedgwood™ — [Wedgwood] noun [U] fine English ↑pottery and ↑china made by the company established in 1759 by Josiah Wedgwood (1730–95) near ↑Stoke on Trent in ↑ …   Useful english dictionary

  • Wedgwood [1] — Wedgwood (spr. Wedschwudd), Josiah, geb. 1730 in Staffordshire, der Sohn eines Töpfers, ergriff selbst dieses Handwerk, suchte aber den Gefäßen eine antike, bes. etruskische Form zu geben; namentlich stellte er im Verein mit Chryselius (John… …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Wedgwood [2] — Wedgwood (spr. Wedschwudd), eine Art Steingut (s.d. a), nach dem Verbesserer desselben, Josiah Wedgwood, benannt. Man hat es von allen Farben; das strohgelbe heißt Bamboo, das blaugraue Basaltes, das gelblichweiße Biscuit od. Jasper… …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Wedgwood [2] — Wedgwood (spr. ŭéddsch wudd), Josia h, der Schöpfer der englischen Tonwarenindustrie, geb. 12. Juli 1730 zu Burslem in Staffordshire, gest. 3. Jan. 1795 in Etruria, erlernte die Töpferei und bemühte sich um die Verbesserung des Materials und der… …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • wedgwood — type of English pottery, 1787, from Josiah Wedgwood (1730 1795), English potter …   Etymology dictionary

  • Wedgwood — ► NOUN 1) trademark ceramic ware made by the English potter Josiah Wedgwood (1730 95) and his successors, especially a kind of stoneware with white embossed cameos. 2) a powder blue colour characteristic of this stoneware …   English terms dictionary

  • Wedgwood — [wej′wood΄] [after J. Wedgwood (1730 95), Eng potter] trademark for a fine English ceramic ware, typically with delicate neoclassic figures applied in a white, cameolike relief on a tinted background …   English World dictionary

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