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ArchivesRe: Is Endeavour really an existing male English first name?
in reply to a message by Lucille
Actually, "endeavour" (or, the American spelling of "endeavor") is a noun as well as a verb, meaning: "a conscientious or concerted effort toward an end".
I wouldn't be surprised that it may have been used as a name in the past, as the Puritans were well-known to give their children "virtue names" such as Solace, Confidence, Discretion, Perseverence, etc. I don't believe the Quakers, though, were as much inclined to use those types of names.
The reference to Captain Cook has to do with his ship, which was named The Endeavour.
-- Nanaea
I wouldn't be surprised that it may have been used as a name in the past, as the Puritans were well-known to give their children "virtue names" such as Solace, Confidence, Discretion, Perseverence, etc. I don't believe the Quakers, though, were as much inclined to use those types of names.
The reference to Captain Cook has to do with his ship, which was named The Endeavour.
-- Nanaea
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Replies
It beats some of the ridiculous, outlandish, made-up names of today!
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Not to mention such awful names as Remember Patience, etc. :/
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So they used his name in the TV series, did they - spoilsports!
Ship names do turn up sometimes - especially on the birth of a child to a woman whose husband went down with that specific ship. Just as well Morse Senior didn't have a passion for the Marie Celeste ...
I read somewhere that when African slaves were sold in the USA they needed Western names and were often called after the ship they arrived on; apparently this accounts for slaves' names like London and York which look geographical but were in fact the names of slave ships. Can anyone confirm this?
Ship names do turn up sometimes - especially on the birth of a child to a woman whose husband went down with that specific ship. Just as well Morse Senior didn't have a passion for the Marie Celeste ...
I read somewhere that when African slaves were sold in the USA they needed Western names and were often called after the ship they arrived on; apparently this accounts for slaves' names like London and York which look geographical but were in fact the names of slave ships. Can anyone confirm this?
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That would account for the slaves in old records named S.S. Minnow, Busted Flush, and Monkey Business...
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