Surname Origins, Their Source and Significations (1875)

man as 'Richard le Horner' or 'John le Horner,' but it may not equally have struck him how all-important would be his trade at such a period as this. That his chief manufacture was that of the musical horn I cannot doubt, so used as it was officially or ordinarily, at fair and festival, at dance and revelry, in time of peace and in time of war. The 'Promptorium Parvulorum' describes it as 'hornare, or horne-maker. 'Still this would not be all — far from it. Windows were commonly made of this material, frames were constructed of it, the child's horn-book being but a memory of this; lanterns were formed of it, cups of all sizes were fashioned from it, chessmen were manufactured out of it. In the 'Franklin's Tale' descriptive of Winter it is said

Janus sits by the fire with double herd,

And drinketh of his bugle-horn the wine.

As a sign-name ' at the horn ' would be a common expression, and certainly we have had plenty of 'Horns,' if not the ' horn of plenty,'at all times during the last six hundred years.

Turning for a moment to vessels of a more general character, our' Coopers ' or 'Cowpers'' or 'Coupers have ever flourished extensively. Such forms as Thomas le Cuper,' 'Warin le Couper,' or 'Richard le Cupare' are found on every side; while even such entries as 'Richard Cowpeman ' or 'Roger Cowperesemay be occasionally alighted upon. The term ' coop ' is not in itself in common use now — indeed, saving in

1 'We find this now well-known surname thus spelt in a statute passed in Elizabeth's reign, in which are included the lynen-weaver, turner, Cowper, millers, earthen-potters.' (5 Eliz. c. iv. 23.)

SURNAMES OF OCCUPATION (TOWN).

composition, as in hencoop, for instance, it is all but obsolete. The Norman and more correct 'cuve' gave us such early names as 'Ralph le Cuver' or 'John le Cover,' or 'Adam le Covreur' or 'Robert le Coverur,' the latter being one more example of a reduplicated termination.' Our modern 'Covers,' however, pre-serve the earlier and more simple form. Our 'Cad-mans,' once written 'Cademans,' framed the cade or barrel, the sign-name of which gave us the notorious Jack Cade of early insurrectionary times. Shakespeare facetiously suggests a different origin when he makes Dick the butcher to insinuate that it was for

Stealing a cade of herring.

In either case the same word is used, and the derivation in no way impeached. Our 'Barrells' are either sign-names also, or but corruptions of such an old entry as 'Stephen le Bariller.' 'Alexander le Hopere' and 'Andrew le Hopere,' now 'Hooper,' explain themselves.2 Doubtless they would be busy enough at this time in strengthening these several barrels, cuves, coops, and cades with pliant bands, whether of wood or metal. Speaking, however, of wooden bands, reminds us of our 'Leapers,' 'Leapmans,'and 'Lip-mans.' A ' leap' was a basket of flexible, but strong, materials, its occurrence in our old writers being so

1 In the Issues of the Exchequer we find a 'Ric. le Cuver' at one time providing three buckets, and at another working with other eight carpenters upon the outer chamber of the King's Court. (43 Henry III.}

2 'John BusheIer' occurs in Valor. Eccles. Henry VHI. He probably made the old bushel measure, once in common use. 'Is a candle bought to be put under a bushel?' (Mark iv. 26.)