LEWARNE - Origins of the Name

Over the last thousand years there have been many spellings of the name, many of them corrupted by illiteracy up until the twentieth century. The most common spellings today are Lewarne, Le Warne, and Lewarn.

As with most names the exact origins cannot be guaranteed but it’s probable that it has Norman French roots and is of toponymic origin. This means that it is probably a surname that originates from a place name where the original bearer lived or held land. Lewarne is thought to be derived from the place name Lavergne that is in Limousine, France. La vergne in the French language means ‘the grove of alders’. The other possibility is that it is derived from the French word ‘vergne’ which was a term used for a measure of land.

The possibility of a French connection is strong and can be reinforced by the Norman invasion at Hastings by William the Conqueror and the strong links of Cornwall with the people who occupied coastal towns in northern France. The Domesday land survey book of 1086 has the following entry –

‘Lewarne’. Grim held it before 1066 and paid tax for 1 f; 1 v. of land there, however. Land for 1 plough. 2 smallholders with 1 slave. Woodland 10 acres. Value 2s.

The Domesday book entry implies that the land changed ownership at the time of the Norman invasion and it’s probable that a Frenchman with the name Le warne or similar took ownership or was the landholder?

The land referred to in the Domesday book still exists today under the name ‘Lewarne’ and can be found by the side of the A38 road from Bodmin to Liskeard in Cornwall (Ordnance Survey ref. 657 175). The land is split into three named sections – Middle, East, and West Lewarne. Some of it is still woodland and is referred to as the ‘Lewarne Great Wood. A further reference to this piece of land can be found in the book ‘Fleet of Fines’ dated 1321, on page 275. It is a minor reference that mainly concerns a piece of land named ‘Pengelly’ which is immediately adjacent to ‘Lewarne’.

There is little doubt that the English origin of the name belongs to Cornwall. The earliest family records show the name was widespread from coast to coast in central Cornwall from the seventeenth century and if family records existed before then they would probably prove much earlier Cornish associations with the name.

Over the years the spelling seems to have become regionalised and the American branch of the family favour the ‘LeWarne’ version whilst in the UK ‘Lewarne’ or ‘Lewarn’ is more common although all variations exist on both continents.