In conclusion a few words must be said about tree names, so common in their simple form and in topographical compounds. Here, as in the case of most of the etymons already mentioned in this chapter, the origin of the surname may be specific as well as general, i.e. the name Ash may come from Ash in Kent rather than from any particular tree, the etymology remaining the same. Many of our surnames have preserved the older forms of tree names, e.g. the lime was once the line, hence Lines, Lynes, and earlier still the Lind, as in the compounds Lyndhurst, Lindley, etc. The older form of Oak appears in Acland, Acton, and variants in Ogden and Braddock, broad oak. We have ash in Aston, Ascham. The holly was once the hollin, whence Hollins, Hollis, Hollings; cf. Hollings-head, Holinshed. But hollin became colloquially holm, whence generally Holmes. Homewood is for holm-wood. The holm oak, ilex, is so called from its holly-like leaves. For Birch we also find Birk, a northern form. Beech often appears in compounds as Buck-; cf. buckwheat, so called because the grains are of the shape of beech-mast. In Poppleton, Popplewell we have the dialect popple, a poplar. Yeo sometimes represents yew, spelt yowe by Palsgrave. [Footnote: The yeo of yeoman, which is conjectured to have meant district, cognate with Ger. Gau in Breisgau, Rheingau, etc., is not found by itself.]
In Sallows we have a provincial name for the willow, cognate with Fr, saule and Lat. salix. Rowntree is the rowan, or mountain ash, and Bawtry or Bawtree is a northern name for the elder. The older forms of Alder and Elder, in both of which the -d- is intrusive (Chapter III), appear in Allerton and Ellershaw. Maple is sometimes Mapple and sycamore is corrupted into Sicklemore.
Tree-names are common in all languages. Beerbohm Tree is pleonastic, from Ger. Bierbaum, for Birnbaum, pear-tree. A few years ago a prominent Belgian statesman bore the name Vandenpereboom, rather terrifying till decomposed into "van den pereboom." Its Mid. English equivalent appears in Pirie, originally a collection of pear-trees, but used by Chaucer for the single tree
"And thus I lete hym sitte upon the pyrie."
(E. 2217.)
From trees we may descend gradually, via Thorne, Bush, Furze, Gorst (Chapter I), Ling, etc., until we come finally to Grace, which in some cases represents grass, for we find William atte grase in 1327, while the name Poorgrass, in Mr. Hardy's Far from the Madding Crowd, seems to be certified by the famous French names Malherbe and Malesherbes. But Savory is the French personal name Savary.
The following list of trees is given by Chaucer in the Knight's tale—
"The names that the trees highte, —
As ook, firre, birch, aspe, alder, holm, popeler,
Wylugh, elm, plane, assh, box, chasteyn, lynde, laurer,
Mapul, thorn, beck, hasel, ew, whippeltre." (A. 2920.)
They are all represented in modern directories.