Surname.

[Kay]

Need help here! Does anyone know the nationality of the surname "Scogg,Scog or Skog"? It sounds scandinavian to me but hubby says no. T.I A.

[waimarie]

Hi FINA, Try www.spatial-literacy.org and follow instructions to find surnames. They say that if there are more than 100 people with the same surname in the country, it should appear on this site. Not only does it give details of origin but also shows on a map the major areas where the name is most common.

[Buenchico]

I've got a copy of Reaney & Wilson's 'Dictionary of English Surnames', which is a well-respected and reasonably comprehensive reference work. The names Scogg, Scog or Skog are not listed in this book - this suggests that the name is a relatively new one to this country.

A Google search on 'Scogg' only shows people with this surname living in the UK or countries (like the US and Australia) where people have emigrated from the UK. The same is true of 'Scog'. Given that these names aren't listed by Reaney & Wilson, this suggests that these names are anglicised versions of a name from another country.

A Google search on 'Skog', however, brings up plenty of people with this surname living in Norway and several more living in Sweden.

The InterTran website shows that 'Skog' means 'Forest' in both Norwegian and Swedish.

None of this proves anything for certain but I'd say that there's a very strong possibility that anyone with one of these surnames will have Scandinavian ancestry on their father's side. I think that you can confidently tell Hubby that you're right and he's wrong - but isn't that what all wives do anyway? :-)

Chris

[dot.hawkes]

try looking for Scoggins

[:Ace:]

I think it sounds Scottish.

[Grunty]

Some people say that any name beginning Sk- is Scandinavian. It is not a foolproof theory and Skinner is an obvious exception, but it seems to be usually correct.

[DaSwede]

Hiya FINA, help is on its way! Although, come to think of it, I don't have much to add to Buenchico's reply... Skog (as a name quite often spelt Skoog) does indeed mean forest and it is indeed Scandinavian. Or at least Swedish - very common here. In Danish, forest would be spelled Skov. I think they use that as a surname. At least I know there's a Danish surname 'Skovmand', which would mean 'forestman.' In Norwegian, I don't know, but it's entirely possible they have a similar surname. Finnish doesn't sound anything like our other Scandinavian languages, so my guess is that if they do have a name meaning forest I wouldn't recognize it if you hit me over the head with it... The Icelandic language is also very different from Swedish, but I'm pretty certain the forest-word there is sk�gur. Wouldn't know if it's a name.

Pronunciation of Skog/Skoog in Swedish is with a 'long' ooo. There is no vowel in English that sounds exactly the same, but oo as in 'too' isn't too far off. Open your mouth a bit more though, retain the rounding of your lips and skip the diphthong-thing... and you're home.

[Kay]

Aw thanks all for your help. waimarie, I'll go onto that link now. I did a Google search Buenchico and found the same as you but you say its not an English name?. Ace,You've said just what my hubby thought, Scottish!. Dot I looked up Scog and Scoggins came up,they seem to be linked to US and Scandinavia. The name's linked to our family going back to 1800's. I wont give up..lol

[DaSwede]

Hello again, FINA. I might add to yesterday's lecture that for every regularly spelled surname you can dig up here in Sweden, there are also a couple of fancy spellings. For instance, Skog can also be written Schough - but the pronunciation remains the same.

In case I managed to confuse y'all with my phonological exercises, I'll clarify that there is of course no diphthong in 'too'. I just meant: Don't add one to Skog. Actually, just position your jaw and lips the way you would to say Oooooooh... the ghoulish way kids do when pretending to be ghosts - but don't purse your lips quite as much as that, only almost. That's the right kind of o-sound for Skog/Skoog/Schough et cetera. (No chain rattling required.)

[Octavius]

Skog is definitely Scandinavian. Did you know that Skewsby (in Yorkshire) is named after a corruption of Skog's by. A village near a Scrog or wood.

The English equivalent is 'Shaw'.

[DaSwede]

That's interesting, Octavius, I for one didn't know. I've been wanting to learn more about the Scandinavian influence on the English language, but, well I'm a bit lazy... you don't happen to know of any book or web site on the subject that is learned but suitable for the, er, um, well for the lazy...?

[Octavius]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/lj/conquestlj/legacy_01.shtml?site=history_conquestlj_colonists

Is a good place to start.

[DaSwede]

Yes! Perfect - exactly what I wanted, Octavius. Thank you. It's not exactly that it's hard to find things on the internet... but it is kind of tricky to find crash courses that are really good. But this looks like it!