Golding / Golden / Goulding et al Family History on Facebook
Where did GFolks originate from within the UK or Ireland?
YDNA points to some interesting locations, but I am interested in the era of 900-1400. Last names were not incredibly common in England until after 1300-1400. Under the Normans, last names made it easier to impose and to track tax payments.
The Irish and the Scots went by Clan names and patronymics (son of __). Clan names are not/were not surnames, although for many it did eventually work out that way when some eventually adopted clan names as their family surname — surnames being hereditary from generation to generation.
Short story: My own family name of ‘Golden’ does not rank anywhere as being at least 1% popular or common in any county of England, Ireland or Scotland. The name itself does not seem to have a point of origin. My belief is that Golden is derived from Golding or Goulding. It is common for some modern English to drop the ‘g’ sound at the end of words, and this appears to have happened in the USA since the census began in 1790. Our American census records shows great diversity in the spelling of our family’s name.
It is also common for Americans to drop the ‘g’ sound at the end of words: havin instead of having, sayin instead of saying, herein instead of hearing.
Gaulding and Gaulden fair the same as Golden: these family surnames exist in the modern UK but there is no significant concentration of these families within the general population.
Maps – Ireland is not included in the maps presented as no variation of associated GFolks family names appear with any signficance in Ireland (=> 1%).
Gouldens, Goldings and Gouldings
The Goulden name does make a strong appearance in the north of England along the Scottish border counties.
Per the Morgan family history, my oldest known grandfather Nathaniel Greene Golden was ‘Goulden’ at the time of his marriage to Rachel Isabella Morgan in 1810 in South Carolina.
Golding – once you look at the map you can pretty much tell where the Goldings originated … at least from the time they got off the boat from whereever they came from before that.
Gouldings – The Goulding family name enjoys strong popularity in five counties, all being different but several are adjacent to the two counties where Golding has a strong presence in the local population.
You are welcome to add to or to correct this story by contacting: Bill Golden, Norfolk1956@gmail.com
BTW – I look forward to sharing your stories, photos and in-search-of quests. Contact me at the email address above.