People often wonder what nationality my last name is. (1 Viewer)

[StephenA]

My last name is Asquith, and people wonder what country it's from. I tell them England, and alot of them don't believe me, or are very surprised. It's crazy. I've actually got people thinking it's German, Spanish, and French.

 

[BrianB]

Sounds thoroughly English to me. Reminds me of that most excellent of English actors, Robin Askwith...

 

[Adam Bluhm]

Heh, it doesn't seem an ounce of German. My father is 100% German. His father fought for the Germans in WW2 and his mother is PA Dutch (Deutsch).

 

[Holadem]

Certainly doesn't sound French either...

People wonder what nationality ALL my names are. When I tell them, they proceed to wonder where the hell that is.

--
Holadem

 

[Richard Travale]

I get the same thing. People seem to think my name is French(because it kind of looks like Travail which is French for work) when it is actually Italian.

 

[Kolya]

About half and half for my name. My surname (Rice) proves more difficult.

 

[Josh Dial]

People always wonder where MY last name is from
cheers!
Josh

 

[Dennis Nicholls]

Any relation to PM Asquith?
Link Removed

 

[teapot2001]

People think I'm Chinese.

~T

 

[MickeS]

Josh Dial:
I never wonder, but I always think of Nikki Dial when I see your name. It's a pleasant thought.
/Mike

 

[Rain]

How come people never believe me when I tell them my name is Rain? :frowning:
Oh well, I've got ID.

 

[StephenA]

Dennis, I'm not sure exactly where he fits into my ancestry, but my grandmother says he's in there somewhere.

 

[Richard Travale]

How come people never believe me when I tell them my name is Rain

I didn't think twice about your name. I took into account that we are on the west coast and you appear to be in your late 20s early 30s so it's very likely that your folks were of the "earthy" type and named you Rain.

 

[SteveA]

You wouldn't happen to have any relatives in the Philadelphia area, would you? A woman in my company who I have occasional contact with lives there and shares your last name.

 

[StephenA]

I only know about my immediate relatives around here, because my grandfather and his family immigrated to the US in 1918 to my area. I have no idea if I have any relatives in Philidelphia area.

 

[Jeff Ulmer]

With a last name like "A" I thought you were Canadian....

 

[Rob Tenniswood]

How about "Tenniswood" - what do YOU think it is?

 

[Rex Bachmann]

Rain wrote:

I have been assuming it is short for "Rainer".

 

[Rain]

I have been assuming it is short for "Rainer".

Nope. And my surname isn't Fassbinder either.

 

[Rex Bachmann]

StephenA wrote:

Actually, the name "Asquith" (var. spelling "Askwith") is of Scandinavian origin. It's a placename from Yorkshire in England: ask 'ashtree' and -"with" < Old Norse vithr 'wood(land)', somewhat parallel to "Beckwith" < Old English be:cc 'beechtree' + the same Anglicized second compound member. Both names are prevalent in Yorkshire, and York was the capital of the Danelaw, the region of England conquered and settled by the Danish Vikings in the 10th century (I believe).
If the name were "native English", among other things, the first compound member would have been ash, rather than ask, as, for example, in "Ashley".