Haddock

At first glance the origin of this surname, seems so obvious, but obvious it is not. Firstly the origination is Old e English pre 10th century, and for most name holders the origin is the personal name "Hadduc" which translates as "one who has prosperity and fortune". Not surprisingly with such a build up the name was highly popular as a baptismal name, in the pre surname periods. Usually the Olde English like their Anglo Saxon, Viking, and Norman successors, were keen on names which reflected Glory, Victory or God, but if not then a bit of prosperity was very welcome in those hard times. The second possibility is that the name is locational, a derivation from the Gaelic (Welsh-Olde English) "Leiddog" which can describe either a barley farm or a stretch of moorlands. It is found today in the modern place name "Haydock" and there seems little doubt that nameholders from the North West will often derive from this source. The development from "Heddoch or Haidoc" as the place name appears in the Rolls of Lancashire for 1170, is mirrored by the surname. In some (so-called) dictionaries of surnames, the origin is given as being a nickname for a fishmonger. This is almost certainly rubbish, the nickname for a fishmonger is - Fish! Examples of the surname include William Haddoc in Suffolk in 1228, John Haddoc and William Haddock in the 1302 Subsidy Rolls of Yorkshire. Later recording examples are Robertus Haddocke christened at Bebbington, Cheshire, on January 28th 1628. He may have been the grandson of Richard Headocke, a spelling also recorded as Heydock, who was married at Heswall, Cheshire, on February 3rd 1573. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Richard Haddoc which was dated 1208, in the Charter Rolls of Suffolk, during the reign of King John, Known as "Lackland", 1199 - 1216. 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.