Furneaux - meaning and variations of the name

I grew up in a small steel and coal mining town in Australia in the 60s and 70s, generally known as the kid with the funny sounding foreign name. So over the years I have often wondered where the name came from, and what it meant. This blog outlines the background and history of the name, backed up by multiple sources.

The meaning of 'Furneaux'

According to  Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary [p.156] the name originally was 'de Fourneaux" which means 'of the furnaces', in the sense of a place name. In French, furneau is the singular - furnace, and in old French it was spelt fournel (which helps to explain some of the variants below). So simply put, Furneaux means furnaces, and as it was 'de fourneaux', meant from the place of the furnaces.A map search shows that there are many places in France called Fourneaux. Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain and Ireland argues the original migrant to Britain came from Fourneaux near Manche. A search online suggests there are many other places, including Les Vieux (old) Fourneaux near Bayeux, however this may be just a location, not a township.

Earliest Mentions

The earliest mentions of the name in the United Kingdom are from:

• The Battle Abbey Roll [1577 - Leyland]
• • the list of knights who travelled to England with William the Conqueror) which was meant to have been taken near the time of the conquest.

• • Unfortunately, there are multiple Battle Abbey Rolls, and the names listed are contested.

• The Falaise Roll [1931] recorded prominent companions of William, not necessarily those who fought at Hastings
• Exon Domesday [1086]
• • this is the more detailed precursor to the full Domesday Book from Essex Norfolk and Suffolk, and is a census of all landholders in the area [recorded as Eudes (Otto or Odo) de Fourneaux]

So there is good evidence from a tax census, that the Furneaux took up residence in the early years of the reign of King William, however the evidence that he fought at Hastings is not strong.

Variants on the Name

While this blog has followed my personal family tree spelling of Furneaux, which is also the main variant listed in the references below, the name has many variants:

• Miscellanea Genealogica et Heraldica [p.272] gives variants of Furneaux as :
  • Furneaux, Furneus, Furneux, Furnel, Furnell, Furnellis, Furnes, Furneis,
  • Furneyes, Forneus, Forneux, Forneaux, Fornel, Fornell, Fornellis, Fornes, Forneis
• Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain and Ireland [p. 990] gives variants of Furneaux as
  • Furnace, Furness, Furnish, Furniss, Farnish, Varnish, Furnell, Furney;
    • It also gives other place name derivatives of Furneaux Pelham as:
  • Furness, Furneux, Furnelle, Forneys, Furneus, Furnysshe, Funish,
    • It also gives name bearers, as
  • de Fornels, de Fornelt, de Furnell, de Furnaus, de Furnellis, de Furneaus, de Furneals, de Furnaux, Furnex, Fourneys, Furnace, Furneix, Furneux
• Kirby's Quest for Somerset (1284-85) gives the following variants of Furneaux
  • Forneaux, Fornelle, Forners, Fornyens, Fourneaux, Furneis, Furnell, Furneus, Furneys, Furnivall
• Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary [p.156] gives variants as:
  • Fourneaux, Furnellis
• The Battle Abey Roll (Vol. II) [p.32] gives:
  • Furnieueus or Furneaux
• Patronymica Brittanica [p.122] gives a variant of Furneaux as
  • Furnell

Howard, J. (1900) Miscellanea Genealogica et Heraldica Volume III. London: Mitchell and Hughes. p.272