FAMILY NAMES AND NICKNAMES IN COLONIAL QUÉBEC

 

Introduction

 

The inhabitants of the Saint Lawrence Valley in the 17^th and 18^th centuries were subject to the laws and customs of France.  Each of them had a family name and a given name.  Children had the family name of their father.  Married women kept their family name from birth, on official documents, although they were commonly known by their husband’s family name.  For instance, after Jeanne Marie-Louise Gagné married Guillaume-François Baret, she was listed as “Jeanne Gagné” on the baptismal certificates of her children, but was known as “Madame Baret” to her neighbors. 

 

Though the practice of handing on family names from one generation to the next is helpful for genealogists, there are some problems.  First, there are many variations for some names, for several reasons.  Most colonists in early Québec were unable to read and write, or even of signing their names.  Even for the literate, spelling was not standardized.  Priests and notaries, charged with recording vital statistics, wrote the names as they heard them. For instance,   Guillaume Baret’s family name might also be written Barette or Barrette, and Jeanne Gagné’s family name might be also be written Gagnier or Gasnier.   Another factor for those who decipher colonial documents is that the data can be difficult to read because some letters such as m, n, r, and u are easily confused in handwriting.  And, of course, there are the inevitable “transcription errors” made by the person who entered the data.  For instance, a priest who served in the same parish for two or three decades might write the family name of the bride’s grandmother instead of that of her mother in the marriage register, or the name of another brother of the baby’s father instead of the name of the actual godfather.

 

Another problem concerns the use of “dit” names, so called because they are introduced by the French word “dit’ (called).   “Dit” names have many origins. Many were originally the “nom de guerre” adopted by the troops in a specific military company.  The name “Lafleur” is the most common of the “noms de guerre”, associated with about 220 family names.  There are nicknames associated with a physical characteristic, as “Legrand” or with a place of origin, as “Normand”, or the location of a property, as “Lapointe”.  In some cases, the mother’s family name is associated with the father’s, as Jacques Couillard dit Després.  As for our exemplar couple, the husband has a dit name: Guillaume-François Baret dit Courville, while his spouse is known simply as Jeanne Marie-Louise Gagné.  Their granddaughter Marie-Josephe, spouse of Pierre-Amable Baret dit Courville is known sometimes as “Marie-Josephe Gagné”, sometimes as “Marie-Josephe Catin”.  But that, as they say, is another story!

 

Introduction composed by Fr. John L. Sullivan -  owentagart@aol.com

 

 

 

The List

 

            The list is presented in three parallel columns.  The column on the left (first column) contains an alphabetical list of Quebec surnames (family names), as found in sources such as baptismal and marriage registers and in repertories such as Jette, PRDH and Laforest.  The center column (second column) contains spelling variations of the name in the first column, and only of that name. 

 

            The column on the right (third column) contains "dit" names for the name on the left, and only for that name.  Spelling variations and "dit" names for the names on the right will be found where each of these names appears in the column on the left (first column).  If a particular family name does not have any spelling variations nor any dit names, that will be noted in the respective columns.

 

List prepared by Fr. John L. Sullivan and Diane Paré Szabo dianeszabo@comcast.net      

(Updated Aug 3, 2006)

 

NAME	spelling  VARIATIONS	“Dit” Names
Abel	Abel, Abelle, Habel, Habele, Habelle	Barbe, Benoit, Capel, Desjardins
Abelin	Ablin, Ablain, Abelin, Ablin, Blain, Habelin, Hablin	No dit names listed
Abraham	Abraham,Abram, Abran, Habraham, Habran	Cedula, Courville, Desmarais, Langevin, Pedrement
Achee	Aché, Achée, Haché, Hachée, Harché, Harchey	Chaveneau, Gallant, Hélot
Achin	Achain, Achen, Achim, Achin,Haschin	André, Baron, Boutellier, St. Andre
Adam	Adam, Adame, Adams, Adan	Labranche, Laramée, Ledoux, Neuville
Adhémar	Ademar, Adhemar, Adhemard, Adhemars	Lantagnac, St-Martin
Adrien	Adrien, Adriens, Adriere	Flamand, Laforge, Lamoureux, Ménard
A’Gallien	A’Gallien, Galien, Gallien	Giraud, Tremblay, Lagrillade
Agement	Agement, Ancheman, Asement, Asman	Martin, Son, St-Martin
Agnier	Agnier, Aguenier, Agueniau, Haguenier, Hagueniau	Delestre, Lafontaine, Légie
Aide	Aide, Ayde, Ede	Crequy, Chiquet
Ailleboust	Ailleboust, Dailleboust, Daibou, Dailboust, Dailbout, Daillebout	Boulasserie, Carillon, Coulonges, d’Argenteuil, Boulogne, de Mantet, Desmusseaux, Lamadeleine, Périgny, St-Vilme
Aineau	Aineau, Enau, Enaud, Eneau, Eneaud, Eno, Enos, Esnaud, Esneault, Hainau, Henau, Heneault, Heneaut, Heno, Henot	Canada, Delorme, Deportneuf, Deschamps, Hunault, Lafrenière, Lamontagne
Ainse	Ainse, Ainsse, Ance, Anse, Hains, Hanse, Haynes, Heinse, Hens	Barbeau, Bernard
Aiot	Ahiot, Aiot, Aillot, Ayot, Ayote, Ayotte, Hayot	Baril, Ouellet, St-Laurent
Aix	No spelling variations listed	No dit names listed
Alain	Alain, Alen, Alin, Allain, Allen, Allin, Halin, Hélène	Bissonnet, Fugère
Alarie	Alarie,Alary, Grandalary, Grantalarie, Halari, Halarie, Halary, Lary	Lafleur, Laramée, Legrand
Albert	Alber, Albert, Allebert, Halbert	Beaulieu, Lafontaine, Laroche, Perot, St-Aignan, St-Vincent
Alexandre	Alescendre, Alexandre	Bleau, Laliberté, Raux, St-Pierre
Allain	Alain, Alin, Allain, Halain, Halin	Briere, Dudemaine
Allaire	Alair, Alaire, Aler, Alere, Allair, Allaire, Aller, Halaire, Halere, Hallaire	Baril, Barrière, Labarre, Lart, Lavergne, Longpré
Allard	Alard, Allard, Allart, Halard, Hallard	Bary, Lavergne, Longpré, Méry
Aloignon	Aloignon, Lognon, Loignon, Lognon	Larose, Poitevin
Amand	Amand, Amant	Francoeur, Hus, Jolicoeur, Limoges, St-Amand
Amaury	Amory, Mauri, Maury	Desherbiers
Amboise	Amboise, Damboise, Dambroise	Bergeron
Ambrault	No spelling variations listed	Duchesneau
Ameau	Amo	Deshaies, Dubuisson, St-Séverin
Amelin	Amelin, Amelot, Amlin, Hamelin	Belou, Grondines, Lacave, Laganière, Rouget, Sanspeur, St-Jean
Amelot	Amelot, Amelote, Amelotte	Sanspeur
Amiel	Amiel, Amielle, Miel	Lusignan
Amiot	Amiault, Amiot, Amiotte, Amyot	Bocage, Hautmény, Larpinière, Lincour, Neuville, Villeneuve, Vincelot
Amirault	Amireau, Amireault, Mero, Miraud, Mirau, Miraux, Mireau, Mireault, Moreau	Delaboutonnière, Tourangeau
Amont	Amond, Aymong, Emond, Hamon, Haymon	Hervé, Sanscartier
Amyot	Amiault, Amiot, Amiotte, Amyot</