Skedge - Name

This unusual name is a variant spelling of the ancient Norse-Viking personal name "Skeggi" as found in the modern town "Skegness", the translation being "the headland of Skeggi". The precise meaning of "Skeggi" is believed to be "The Cliff" and is presumably a locational nickname for one who originally lived in the proximity of such a place. The name development includes the first name holder (below) who married Margarett Ossee, also at Blofield in 1592. It would seem that Norwich and Blofield are the main sources of the name, although Jane Skages was recorded in Newcastle upon Tyne in 1639 and Richard Skegg in Oxford (1629). The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Demond Skedge, which was dated 1550, christened at Blofield, Norfolk, during the reign of King Edward VI, "The Boy King", 1548 - 1554. 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.