I'm an enthusiastic amateur genealogist, and along the way I've learnt that a brother of an ancestor married a woman called Sexey (around 1810). A quick search shows that it doesn't seem to be a common name, but it was occasionally given, and usage seems to be predominately limited to the Somerset, England area.
My questions are, would Sexey have the same connotations then, as it does currently? When would usage of the word sexy have come into common use in English (as we would understand it today)? Or were there alternative meanings to the word that would make it suitable as a name for a child in the late 1700s, early 1800s? Thanks in advance
Sexey was the surname of a prominent family in Somerset. Indeed Sexeys School still exists in Bruton. If it was a first name it may have indicated a link to the family, if a surname then it is more obviously linked to the family.
Sexey was the surname of a prominent family in Somerset. Indeed Sexeys School still exists in Bruton. If it was a first name it may have indicated a link to the family, if a surname then it is more obviously linked to the family.
A good source for English surname questions is P.H. Reaney and R. M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames, 3rd ed., Oxford, 1995. They often provide etymologies for their names. I have it at home, but I'm at the office.
Edit: why did I forget Google Books?!
Sexy : Sexi Forfot 1137 ELPN; Warin filius Sexhiue 1185 Templars (Ess); John Sexi 1210—11 PWi; Robert Sexy 1230 P (Ha); John Sexy 1508 FFEss. ON Saxi, Sexi. But OE *Seaxgifu (f) has probably also contributed to the surname.
I'm assuming that Sexey is just a spelling variant of Sexy. The first part is just a list of examples. For example, Sexi Forfot was found in 1230. (The bits after are the source: ELPN is Ekwall, Early London Personal Names; P (Ha) is Pipe Rolls for Hampshire.)
So it's in origin an O[ld] N[orse] name, almost certainly masculine, Saxi or Sexi, but probably also based on O[ld] E[nglish] Seaxgifu (f[eminine]). (I can't quickly find what the asterisk means). The first surname use is "son of Sexhiue", a standard patronymic form, and the marker has simply been lost over the years, not uncommon in English.
Edit 2: why did I assume "surname" when it wasn't in the question? But it worked anyway; Reaney and Wilson does have a number of given names too, because as shown here, given names were often the source of surnames, and later, surnames could be used as given names (e.g., Guildford Dudley).
A good source for English surname questions is P.H. Reaney and R. M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames, 3rd ed., Oxford, 1995. They often provide etymologies for their names. I have it at home, but I'm at the office.
Edit: why did I forget Google Books?!
Sexy : Sexi Forfot 1137 ELPN; Warin filius Sexhiue 1185 Templars (Ess); John Sexi 1210—11 PWi; Robert Sexy 1230 P (Ha); John Sexy 1508 FFEss. ON Saxi, Sexi. But OE *Seaxgifu (f) has probably also contributed to the surname.
I'm assuming that Sexey is just a spelling variant of Sexy. The first part is just a list of examples. For example, Sexi Forfot was found in 1230. (The bits after are the source: ELPN is Ekwall, Early London Personal Names; P (Ha) is Pipe Rolls for Hampshire.)
So it's in origin an O[ld] N[orse] name, almost certainly masculine, Saxi or Sexi, but probably also based on O[ld] E[nglish] Seaxgifu (f[eminine]). (I can't quickly find what the asterisk means). The first surname use is "son of Sexhiue", a standard patronymic form, and the marker has simply been lost over the years, not uncommon in English.
Edit 2: why did I assume "surname" when it wasn't in the question? But it worked anyway; Reaney and Wilson does have a number of given names too, because as shown here, given names were often the source of surnames, and later, surnames could be used as given names (e.g., Guildford Dudley).