Old English Trade names and descriptions

These nouns are mostly old English, mixed with some German, French and Latin.

Should be good for folks doing research in the British islands.

TRADES

Accomptant - accountant

Accoucheur - man who acts as a midwife

Accoucheuse - midwife

Administatrix( plural trices) - female administrator

Almoner - giver of charity (alms) to the needy, a household chaplain

Amanuen(sis) - secretary or stenographer

Aquarius - ewer; waterman

Artificer - maker or fixer of intricate objects; military mechanic, an inventor, skillful designer

Ashmanshipman - sailor who cleans the boilers of coal ashes

Aulnager - official responsible for inspecting and measuring woolen cloth

Aurifaber - goldsmith

Avenator - plantifene; hay and forage merchant

Bailie - bailiff, alderman, a magistrate who functioned like a sheriff

Banksman - gives instruction or assistance to driver; overseer at a mine pit

Barker - ( Scottish)tanner, one who removes bark,

Baxter - baker

Belhoste - tavern keeper

Belleyetere - bellfounder

Boniface - innkeeper

Borsholder - officer appointed by the manor or parish, constable.

Bower - bowmaker

Brasiler - dyer using the dye obtained from the Brazilian red wood tree

Brazier (Brasier) - brass worker

Braxator - brewer; beer maker

Brightsmith - worker in shiny metal

Brownsmith - copper or brass smith

Burl - cup-bearer

Burneman - carrier of barm or waters for brewers

Burnisher - metal polisher

Campaner (campanero Spanish ) bell maker, bellman

Cancellarius - chancellor

Cardmaker - maker of cards- wire instruments for combing and cleansing wool

Carner - granary keeper

Carnifex - butcher

Carpentarius – carpenter

Carter - maker of carts, to drive or use a cart

Caulker - filler of cracks (in ships or windows)

Cautioner - guarantor (One who becomes security for another)

Chaisemaker - carriage maker

Chaloner - dealer in shalloon a light woven woolen fabric made in

Châlons-sur-Marne, France

Chandler - maker or seller of candles; retailer of groceries; dealer or trader

Chapman - merchant, peddler, buyer, dealer

Chesterman - guard

Chiffonier - wigmaker, ornamental cabinet, old clothes man

Chirurgeon - surgeon

Cissor - tailor

Clarke - cleric or scribe

Clericus - clerk in holy orders

Clerk - clergyman, cleric

Clicker - printer in charge of final layout

Clicker - (shoe mfg) in charge of lace holes

Cobbler - shoe maker/repairer

Cocus (Keu) - cook

Cohen - priest

Colporteur - peddler of books

Comber - woolcomber

Conveyor - grantor or seller

Cooper - maker or repairer of vessels made of staves & hoops i.e barrels, casks and tubs Coppice keeper - one who takes care of small wood taken from a low growing thicket

Cordewanarius/Cordwainer/Corvisor - shoemaker, originally any leather worker using Cordovan leather from Cordoba (Cordova) Spain

Costermonger - peddler of fruits and vegetables

Cotiler - cutler

Crayman - driver of a cart carrying heavy loads

Crocker - potter; maker of crocks

Crowner - coroner

Cuhreur/Cunreur - currier

Culler - gelder of male animals

Cuper - cooper

Currrier - tanner of leather; user of curry comb on horses, groomer of horses

Cutler - one who makes or sells knives etc.

Dareman - dairyman

Daunsel - gentleman in waiting; groom; squire

Dexter - dyer, right hand

Diviner/Dowser - one who finds water under the ground using a divining or dowser rod

Docker - stevedor; dock worker who loads and unloads cargo

Dowser - finder of water (or other items) using dowsing rods or witching stick

Draper - dealer in cloth and dry goods

Drayman - driver of a dray: a long strong cart without fixed sides for carrying

              heavy loads (later a brewery delivery team i.e. the Budweiser Clydesdales)

Dresser - surgeon's assistant in a hospital, valet, lady's maid

Drover - driver of animals to market; dealer in cattle

Drummer - traveling salesman

Dubber - one who raises the nap of cloth, make leather waterproof

Dudder - probably a maker of coarse cloaks, wearer of old duds

Duffer - peddler, hawker, dull clumsy person

Dyer - one who dyes cloth

Dysshere - probably a ditcher, or in some cases a disher

Elymaker - oilmaker

Endholdern - inn keeper

Enumerator - census taker

Executrix (ces)- female executor

Faber – smith

Factor Agent - merchant for commission (or factor); attorney (not in the modern US sense);

      one who transacts business for another ,usually absent, Scottish Steward or bailiff of an    estate

Falkner - falconer - keeper/trainer of falcons

Farmer - tax-collector or bailiff

Farrier - horse doctor, blacksmith, one who shoes horses

Fell Monger - one who removes hair or wool from hides in preparation for leather making, one           who deals in fells and furs

Fence Viewer - township official who inspects farmer's fences, settles line disputes

Ferur/Ferator - farrier or blacksmith

Feuar - holder of lands granted for services

Fisher/Fishdryver - victualer, one who sells victuals

Flauner - confectioner

Flax Dresser - one who works with flax fibers

Fleshewer - flesher - butcher

Fletcher - maker of bows and arrows; arrowmaker

Forestarius - forester

Framar - farmer

French polisher - polish wood by hand using French polish, wax or lacquer

Frereman - servant of the Friars

Fuller - fuller of cloth; shrinker and thickener of woolen cloth by washing, heating and

             pressing; a felter, cleaner, and thickener of cloth, one who trampled cloth, see walker

Furber/Furbour - furbisher of armour

Gaoler - jailer

Garcifer/Garcio - groom; attendant

Garlekmonger - garlicmonger; dealer in garlic

Ginerr - ginner - joiner, one who operates a gin

Glassewryght - glasswright; maker and mender of glassware

Glazier - one who fits panes of windows, one who applies glaze to pottery

Glover - dealer or maker of gloves

Gobar - jobber

Grecher – grocer

Guilderer - maker of gold or silver coins

Gynour - engineer

Hacker - hoe maker

Hamberghmaker/Hamberow - horse collar maker

Hansard - weapon maker or seller

Harper - musician

Hatcheler - one who combs out flax

Hawker - peddler

Haymonger - dealer in hay

Hayward - inspector of fences, poundmaster

Headborough - constable

Hedger - one who trims and tends hedge-rows

Herd - shepherd or herdsman

Hetheleder - provider of heather for fuel

Higgler - itinerant peddler

Hillard/Hiller/Hillier - one who covers houses with slate; tiler, hills seedling plants

Hind - farm laborer

Hooker - reaper

Hooper - maker of hoops for casks, barrels, tubs etc., cooper

Horsler - hostler, stableman or groom, horse servant at an inn

Hosteler - innkeeper

Huckster - seller of small articles/wares

Husbandman - a farmer; animal husbandry; tenant farmer

Indentured servant - one who has committed to working for someone for a fixed number of years

Ironmonger - dealer in iron goods

Jorman - journeyman

Journeyman - craftsman who had served his apprentice, a master craftsman

Joyner/Joiner - joiner; skilled carpenter

Keeler - bargeman, shallow tub

Keller - salt keeper

Kellogg - slaughter man

Kempster - wool comber

Kepegest - innkeeper

Lardner - official in charge of pig food or keeper of the cupboard

Latouner - worker in latten (a metal resembling brass)

Lavender - washer woman

Lederer - leather maker

Leech - physician,

Limeburner - maker of lime

Limner - draughtsman or artist, painter

Lokeer - locksmith

Longshoreman - stevedor

Lorimer/lormer - bridlemaker

Macon/Macun/Marson - mason

Malender - farmer

Malster - brewer of malted beverages (beer)

Manciple - steward as of an English college

Marescallus - marshall

Marshall - horse servant, or groom (in medieval times)

Mason - stone carver

Mayer - physician

Medicus - leech; doctor in medicine

Mercator - merchant

Millow - miller

Millwright - one who designs or builds mills

Molendinarius/Muner - miller

Monger - seller (of goods ie. ale, fish)

Muleskinner - a mule-driver, teamster

Neatherd(er) - cow herder, herdsman

Nedder - needle-maker

Nettir - knitter

Ordinary - innkeeper; keeper of a fixed price Inn

Osler - bird-catcher

Osnard - herder of oxen

Outrider - mounted attendant riding before, beside or behind a carriage

Packman - itinerant peddler

Palmer - a pilgrim; one who had been, or pretended to have been, to the holyland and brought             back a palm branch

Paneler - saddler

Pannarius - clothier and draper

Pannebeter - pan-hammerer, or perhaps clothdriver

Parcheminer - parchment maker

Pardoner - one licensed to sell Papal Indulgences

Parochus - rector, pastor resplonsible for a parish or church

Patton/Patten Maker - a maker of a clog shod with an iron ring; maker of iron-rimmed patterns             for footware

Patton/Patten Maker - A clog was a wooden pole with a pattern cut into the end

Peever - pepper-seller

Pelliparius/Peltarius - skinner

Peregrinator - itinerant wanderer

Peruker/Perukmaker - wig maker

Pettifogger - shyster; lawyer

Pictor - painter

Pigman - crockery dealer

Pilcher - maker of pilches

Pinder - keeper of the pound or pinfold

Piscarius - fishmonger

Piscator - fisherman [Pescador in Spanish]

Pistor - miller or baker

Plantifene - see avernator

Plomer - plumber

Ploughwright - one who makes or repairs ploughs/plows

Plumber - one who applied sheet lead for roofing and set lead frames for plain or stained glass             windows, does plumbing work

Porcher - pig-keeper

Porter - gate-keeper or door-keeper

Poulterer - dealer in poultry

Puddler - wrought iron worker, mixer of molten pig iron into wrought iron

Pynner - pin-maker

Quarrier - quarry worker

Quarryman - stonecutter, workman in a quarry

Revenuer - federal officer enforcing the law against illegal manufacturing of whisky

Rigger - hoist tackler worker, one who fits the riggings of ships

Ripper - fish monger

Roper - ropemaker; maker of rope or nets

Rotarius - wheelwright

Rower - builder of (small) wagon wheels

Saddler - maker and repairer of saddles and bridles

Safernman - grower of saffron

Samitere/Samite - maker of a kind of heavy silk stuff

Sauntere - probably salt maker

Sausere - salter

Savant - servant, a man of special learning

Sawbones - physician

Sawyer - sawer of wood, carpenter, lumberman

Scabbler - person who uses a scabbler (pick) to trim the sides of a tunnel

Schumacker - shoemaker; cobbler

Scribbler - minor or worthless author

Scrivener - scribe or clerk; professional or public copyist or writer; notary public

Scrutiner - election judge, examiner

Seinter - girdlemaker

Seler/sellarius - saddler

Serviens - sergeant

Servus - servant

Sevier - sieve-maker

Sewer - tailor or shoemaker

Sharman/Sherman/Shearman - one who raised the surface of wollen cloth and then

             sheared it into a smooth surface, cutter of woolen cloth

Shether - see vaginarius

Shrieve - sheriff

Sifter - sievemaker, one who seperates fine parts from coarse

Sissor/Cissor - tailor

Sizer - one who applies size (gelatinous material-glue) to textiles

Slater - roofer; tiler, hair remover from hides

Slatter - slater (same as hillard)

Slaymaker/Sleymaker - maker of reeds or slays (instruments to part threads in weaving) for             looms

Slopseller - seller of ready-made clothes in a slop shop, loose outer garment

Snobscat/Snob - shoe repairer; cobbler

Soper - soapmaker

Sorter - tailor

Soyor - sawyer

Spicer - grocer

Spinster - unmarried woman; spinner (female)

Spittleman - hospital attendant

Spragger - person who inserts a piece of wood (sprag) between the wheels

             of a lorry (truck) to bring it to a standstill

Spurrer/Spurrier - spurmaker

Stabler - ostler, takes care of horses in an inn

Stasyon/Stawsun - probably a stationer

Stokiner - maker or weaver of stockings

Squarewright - carpenter, specifically a furniture maker

Squire - country gentleman; farm owner; justice of peace, knight's attendant

Stuff Gown/Gownsman - junior barrister, a person entitled to wear the gown of his profession

Sugarer - dealer in sugar (grocer?)

Sumner - summoner or apparitor

Supercargo - officer on merchant ship who is in charge of cargo and the commercial concerns             of the ship

Sutler - a peddler who follows an army to sell goods and food to the

soldiers

Tabernarius - taverner; innkeeper

Tannator - tanner; curer of animal hide into leather

Taper - candlewick maker or seller

Tapley - one who puts the tap in an ale cask

Tasker - reaper

Tawer - one who taws (makes hide into leather without the use of tanning)

Teamster - one who drives a team (horses or oxen) for hauling

Teinter - dyer

Tenter - attendant for an engine, machine for stretching cloth

Textor - weaver

Thatcher - roofer using thatch or straw

Thirdbororough - tithing man or deputy constable

Tinctor - dyer or possibly a painter

Tinker - an itinerant mender and seller of kettles, tin pots and pans

Tipstaff - policeman, bailiff, constable

Todder - fox hunter

Travers - toll bridge collector

Tripper - dancer, tourist

Tucker - cleaner of cloth goods, exhaust, a covering worn over the shoulders by women

Turner - turner of wood (using a lathe) into spindles

Upholder - upholsterer; also a cheapjack and seller of secondhand goods

Vaginarius - sheather; scabbard maker

Venator/Venur - huntsman

Verderer - a Borsholder, Constable. Victualer - tavern keeper, or one who provides an

      army, navy, or ship with food supplies, officer in charge of the royal forests

Vitner - wine merchant

Vulcan - blacksmith

Wagoner - teamster not for hire, driver of wagons

Wainwright - wagon maker

Waiter - customs officer or tide waiter; one who waited on the tide to collect duty on goods             brought in

Walker - fuller; cloth trampler or cleaner

Webber/Webster - weaver; loom operator

Wharfinger - owner of a wharf and collects wharfage fees

Wheelwright - builder/repairer of wagon wheels, carriages etc.

Whitcher - maker of chests

Whitesmith - tinsmith; worker of iron who finishes or polishes the work

Whittawer - one who tans skin into white leather

Wonkey-scoop - driver who operates a one horse scoop

Wright - workman, especially a construction worker ie. wheelwright

Yeoman - farmer who owns his own land; freehold farmer

Etienne Elskens, Clinton Twp., MI 48038