New: MyHeritage adds millions of Nordic records

By Esther

December 11, 2013

My surname is Hodgson. My family tree can be traced back to the North of England in 1578. The following, condensed from my genealogy files, should be of interest to others researching the name Hodgson.
Vikings from Norway emigrated to Ireland and in the tenth century relocated over the Irish Sea and the Isle of Man to the northwest of England. From the 800s-1000s AD, Britain was settled by the Danes from Denmark and the Norse from Norway, the two differing slightly in language and culture, the Danes into Yorkshire and Lincolnshire, the Norse initially in Ireland and when forced out by Irish tribes in 902 AD, they moved across the Irish Sea to colonize Cumberland and North Lancashire. Today the name Hodgson is most common in the northwest of England in the same areas colonized by these Norse-Viking settlers.
There is a correlation between the population density of the Hodgson surname and the pattern of Norse settlement and today DNA affirms a high percentage of Norse blood among male Hodgsons. Most modern Hodgsons are probably descended from about 50 tenth-century Vikings.
In the North of England, names were Oddgeirson, Oddgson, Oddson and Odesun. The record of an Odesune in the 1085 Domesday Book affirms its use in the 11th century. Early Norse variants Oddgeirson, Oddgson, Oddson, Odesun and Hrodgeirson go back over 1100 years to the 900s AD.
Oddgeir is found in modern Norway. The words ‘odd’ or ‘oddr’ mean literally ‘sharp point’, the word ‘geir’ means ‘spear’, hence ‘point of spear’. Hrodgeir means ‘fame spear’. Oddgeir sounds like ‘odd gire’ but with the ‘r’ almost silent, it comes as ‘odd guy’ with the stress on ‘odd.’ Similarly, Hrodgeir sounds like ‘hrod guy’.
The leading ‘H’ in Hodgson comes from the Anglicization of the peculiar Norse pronunciation of the leading vowel, resulting in later variants as in Hrodgeirson and Hodgeson. Over time surnames Oddgeirson, Hodgeirson and numerous variants fell sway to the surviving and contemporary spelling of Hodgson, the silent ‘g’ a survivor of its past syllable ‘geir.’
According to Geoffrey M. Hodgson, Hodgson DNA evidence provides a good measure of Norse paternity. Hodgson DNA is roughly one-third Norse and 5-10 per cent Danish, most of the remainder being similar to the native British. The proportion of Norse blood among Hodgsons is much higher than in the British population. It is estimated that about 6 per cent of Y-DNA in the British Isles is of Norwegian origin.
Many place names across the North of England derive from the Norse settlers and there is a marked similarity between their Nordic tongue and the present dialect in the upper dale. The consensus: Most Hodgsons today originate from the North. We are a combination of Norse, Irish and even Danish backgrounds, with the most common being Norse.
Feedback is welcome, pro and con. / Bruce G. Hodgson

Comments

Doris McQueen

December 11, 2013

I can hardly wait to have the time to explore this new source of information! MyHeritage is doing such a great job of assisting in my family history.

Thank you!
Nancy

December 13, 2013

Are the records translated into English?
- E
  
  Esther
  
  December 15, 2013
  
  Hi Nancy,
  
  Most of the records are in English. Some of the records have certain fields that have values only in the original language. It varies, but generally they are in English.
  
  The records that are in other languages, will still be matched to your tree, since a name is a name, regardless of the language, and so are the dates.
  
  Regards,
  MyHeritage Team
priscilla ewing

December 13, 2013

Fine family tree
Bruce G. Hodgson

January 2, 2014

My surname is Hodgson. My family tree can be traced back to the North of England in 1578. The following, condensed from my genealogy files, should be of interest to others researching the name Hodgson.
Vikings from Norway emigrated to Ireland and in the tenth century relocated over the Irish Sea and the Isle of Man to the northwest of England. From the 800s-1000s AD, Britain was settled by the Danes from Denmark and the Norse from Norway, the two differing slightly in language and culture, the Danes into Yorkshire and Lincolnshire, the Norse initially in Ireland and when forced out by Irish tribes in 902 AD, they moved across the Irish Sea to colonize Cumberland and North Lancashire. Today the name Hodgson is most common in the northwest of England in the same areas colonized by these Norse-Viking settlers.
There is a correlation between the population density of the Hodgson surname and the pattern of Norse settlement and today DNA affirms a high percentage of Norse blood among male Hodgsons. Most modern Hodgsons are probably descended from about 50 tenth-century Vikings.
In the North of England, names were Oddgeirson, Oddgson, Oddson and Odesun. The record of an Odesune in the 1085 Domesday Book affirms its use in the 11th century. Early Norse variants Oddgeirson, Oddgson, Oddson, Odesun and Hrodgeirson go back over 1100 years to the 900s AD.
Oddgeir is found in modern Norway. The words ‘odd’ or ‘oddr’ mean literally ‘sharp point’, the word ‘geir’ means ‘spear’, hence ‘point of spear’. Hrodgeir means ‘fame spear’. Oddgeir sounds like ‘odd gire’ but with the ‘r’ almost silent, it comes as ‘odd guy’ with the stress on ‘odd.’ Similarly, Hrodgeir sounds like ‘hrod guy’.
The leading ‘H’ in Hodgson comes from the Anglicization of the peculiar Norse pronunciation of the leading vowel, resulting in later variants as in Hrodgeirson and Hodgeson. Over time surnames Oddgeirson, Hodgeirson and numerous variants fell sway to the surviving and contemporary spelling of Hodgson, the silent ‘g’ a survivor of its past syllable ‘geir.’
According to Geoffrey M. Hodgson, Hodgson DNA evidence provides a good measure of Norse paternity. Hodgson DNA is roughly one-third Norse and 5-10 per cent Danish, most of the remainder being similar to the native British. The proportion of Norse blood among Hodgsons is much higher than in the British population. It is estimated that about 6 per cent of Y-DNA in the British Isles is of Norwegian origin.
Many place names across the North of England derive from the Norse settlers and there is a marked similarity between their Nordic tongue and the present dialect in the upper dale. The consensus: Most Hodgsons today originate from the North. We are a combination of Norse, Irish and even Danish backgrounds, with the most common being Norse.
Feedback is welcome, pro and con. / Bruce G. Hodgson
Jonathan Rogers

April 4, 2015

Bruce,
I wondered if our old Scottish name of Rodger based in Anstruther has links to Hrodgeirr meaning ‘famous spear-man’ in the Old Norse language. In Australia Rodger became Rogers our current surname.
Our ancestor Robert Rodger was born in 1797 and arrived in Sydney, Australia in 1836.

Thanks

Regards

Jonathan Rogers (Melbourne, Australia)

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Doris McQueen

Nancy

Esther

priscilla ewing

Bruce G. Hodgson

Jonathan Rogers

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