How do sum full black Afro Americans have Scottish, Irish surnames? most slave owners were high class English?

Question

I know the slave names were adopted by der owners but da owners were high class English people, whereas Scottish, Irish immigrated after the slave trade and were themselves just making their way up in American life and competing with the blacks for jobs, status, etc, i dont think scottish or irish families were high enough to have slave workers, so just how did some Afro Americans have irish, scottish surnames.

Answer 1

this is a bit of generalisation, but to sum up there were scottish and welsh gentry as well just not as much, several families in wales hadcolonies in the caribbean which is the basis of british black culture

rather than kidnapping black people and forcing them to work as slaves, they went and conscripted whole villages and moved tehm all to one island promising them a better life - it was only slightly better and the 'slaves' were more willing than forced slavery, it also kept their culture intact (there is a name for it but i forget what it is now, colonoisation i think)

also when the welsh were being hounded by the prince of wales under king richard 3rd and his son, many english gentry who were sympathisers to their cause allowed the welsh to use their surnames so they wouldnt be caught, one of the biggest sympathisers was a 'jonas' clan which is why jones or several variations of it is most common in wales, herbert was the name of one of the kings most trusted confidants and castle builders and he lived in welsh borders so it is possible that is a welsh surname as well

english and british surnames are notoriuosly difficult to trace bcos of our mish mash of cultures from different invaders over the centuries, some surnames only come into being after the norse and viking invasion so their custom of bestowing fathers name onto child is believed to have come into being

many slaves also simply took any name they fancied or names of friends after the civil war, as slave plantations rarely had the need for 'real' surnames so the slaves actually didnt have one

Answer 2

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RE:
How do sum full black Afro Americans have Scottish, Irish surnames? most slave owners were high class English?
I know the slave names were adopted by der owners but da owners were high class English people, whereas Scottish, Irish immigrated after the slave trade and were themselves just making their way up in American life and competing with the blacks for jobs, status, etc, i dont think scottish or irish...

Answer 3

There were a lot of Scots in the South even prior to the Civil War--John C. Calhoun, South Carolina Senator and author of the Articles of Secession, was of recent Scottish descent Calhoun is from the Colquhoun clan (trust me, I know this...I'm marrying one of his descendents).

Alexandria, Virginia, a common hangout for George Washington and Thomas Jefferson and Robert E. Lee, was founded by Scottish merchants in 1769, so there were plenty just in that neighborhood wealthy enough to have house slaves.

While a lot of Scotch and Irish in the South were poor, some did come from upper crust. Other black folks may attribute their last names to abolitionists who purchased their freedom, or who helped them escape the South. It's not as common, but there's definitely history of stuff like that.

Answer 4

I've often had similar thoughts. I have met and worked with a large number of Afro Americans with Scottish surnames Campbells, Mackenzies among many so I look forward to answers to your question.

heavenlyhaggis

Answer 5

Please pick up an ever-loving history book!!! I mean damn, even if you just read Roots you'll discover that Alex Haley's slave owner relatives were in fact Irish!!! There were both Irish and Scottish immigrants here prior to the Revolutionary War! The major emigration of Irish and Scottish people that you are however referring to occurred in the late 19th and early 20th centuries nevertheless there were still Irish and Scottish immigrants prior to that and yes, some were even slave owners. Not all early Americans (especially slave owners) were British blue bloods! You're on the damn internet, burst a brain cell or two and do some research!

Answer 6

You need an entire history listen of Americas History. Black slaves were owned by many people not just the rich and adopted the surname of their owner. Also many Rich scottish landowners emigrated to America not just the English and many of them good farm owners. Scotland and Ireland was not just full of poor people we did have rich also. Please stop believing all of the stereotypes you see in the movies and start watching decent documentaries that show fact. Movies only show very fictional accounts. Scotland has moved on since Braveheart.

Answer 7

Many Irish, Scottish, and English share the same last names. Those countries are all geographically close together. "High class English people"?!?!?!? These early Americans wanted nothing to do with England!!!!!!!

Answer 8

If you do a good readup into the British Isles and its history, you will find that the Scottish and the Irish, being basically lazy bastards and not wanting to work, did as much slave trading as the Dutch did if not more. In the Southern States most families were Jock or Irish as well, where do you think that bloody stupid drawl comes form? Its intersting to note that most "cowboys" were German, Polish, Rumanian and Scottish, avarage age 16, average age at death 19 to 22. There was roughly 1 woman per 200 men in an area 4 times the size of Wales......................Why do you think there are so many Mulattoes and 8th breeds around etc? The "British" used the slave for whatever they wanted, its NOT an "American" thing at all. We started it! This is MY opinion, my opinion only counts to me and those who think the same as me so bugger of and dont whinge at me.

Answer 9

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Answer 10

Boy are you wrong. Some of my ancestors were Irish, with the Turrentine name. They came from Ireland. And they had slaves. There is a farm in North Carolina that was originally theirs, but when the civil war broke out, they had too many relatives that were from the north, so they left. After the war the slaves came back, but the Turrentines didn't, so they took the name and kept the farm. There is a Turrentine family association and the president is black.