Devon Surname Interests

About These Pages

These pages are for researchers who have websites containing information on Devon families and also for those doing One-Name Studies (even if they don't have a website).

If you would like your website or One-Name Study surname interests added to this section, then please contact me.

Places to Leave your Surname Interests

Unfortunately, it is beyond the realms of DevonGenWeb to be able to keep a complete listing of everyone's Devon surname interests.  However, there are already a number of places around the internet where researchers can add their surname interests to online databases or upload their family tree.

Surname Interests Databases

Leaving your surname interests around the internet is a great way to find others who are researching the same surnames.  The following websites are places where you can do this.

Resources about Surnames and Online Books

  • British Surnames - Research the origins and distribution of your surname.
  • Meaning of Names - Meanings of names and surnames, including origins, histories, websites and family trees.
  • named - This site maps places in the UK where one (or two) surnames historically have an unusually high local population.
  • Public Profiler GB Names* - This website shows the distribution of surnames in Britain collected by the University College, London from modern and historical records. Use the blue "Search for a Surname" button, as the link to the National Trust Surnames no longer works.
  • Surname Origins - Article from Who Do You Think You Are where you can discover the origins of some commen British surnames and the best websites for researching surnames.
  • Surnames - A brief introducation of where the use of surnames came from and why they were introduced.
  • W. Arthur (1857), An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names, New York, Sheldon, Blakeman & Co.

One-Name Studies

For those interestest in conducting a one-name study, the following websites may be of interest:

Online Family Trees

There are also some places on the internet where you can upload your family trees, again very useful in helping researchers find others researching the same surnames and/or families.

  • Ancestry Family Tree - Upload your family tree and find others researching the same names.
  • Genes Reunited - You can upload your family trees and search the indexes for free, but to contact other researchers or view online records requires a yearly subscription.
  • GENi - Genealogy tools to help you build your family tree.  You can work with relatives on a single tree, share you tree and connect with other members. Automatic tree matches help you find long lost cousins researching the same families.
  • Lost Cousins - This website enables you to add your ancestors from the British 1881, Canadian 1881 or US 1880 census and finds matches with others if they have entered the same data.
  • World Connect Project - A place where you can upload your family tree files, search family trees and connect with others.  Please note: WorldConnect family trees will be removed fom RootsWeb on 15 April 2023 and migrated to Ancestry later in 2023.

In all places where you may upload family trees or share information with others, please remember to Respect others PRIVACY... whether your own family or those that may have been shared with you.

Some online family trees automatically set living people to private, while others such as Genes Reunited will simply add the names of living people, unless you change the tree settings. Make sure everyone has a birthdate (even if it's a calculated guess), as those without birthdates is another way that "living" people often accidentally get put online.

PLEASE BE CAREFUL otherwise not only might you land up upsetting people, but you could potentionally put others personal identity and / or security at risk!!

Copyright & Genealogy Etiquette

While names, dates and places are not classified as copyright due to them being in the public domain.  A family history report that has written content, would be classified as copyright to the author... although the names, dates and places that it contains would still be public domain.

You may also find it useful to read some of the articles at Cyndi's List on Etiquette and Ethics in genealogical research.

Note: Websites* marked with an asterix are no longer "live" on the internet or maintained and have been archived by the [Way Back Machine]. Information is generally still accessible, although some links or email addresses may no longer be available.

Sites with strikethrough no longer appear available. Please advise if you know of their whereabouts.