MURDUCK-L is a 'no-cost' email based forum for subscribers to discuss aspects of the
history, geography and genealogy
of this large and extensive surname group.
We are a group of people who, like you, are interested in the genealogy, the history and the geography of the MURDOCH, the MURDOCK, and the MURDUCK surnames, including all of the many spelling variations that have been recorded in documents over time and space.
According to one subscriber who has studied and written on the subject, the MURDOCH(K) surnames represent a merged evolution from ancient Gaelic origins - with both forms considered to be of Scottish origin. Those carrying this surname who are/have been found in Ireland are believed to be descendants of MURDOCH(K)'s that moved there during and after the Planation period.
The oldest form is that of MURDOCH where the "och" is the same as that found in the Scot's word for lake, "Loch", as in Loch Ness. The MURDOCK derivation of the surname is the Anglicized version that developed following the ascension of James VI (of Scotland ?) as James I of England.
Today there are still more MURDOCH's than MURDOCK's in Scotland.
In Ireland the name sometimes retained the "ough" form ... again the word for Lake, as in Lough Neagh. This Irish form of the name developed into the modern MURTOUGH and/or MURTAUGH.
(For the full version of the subscriber's posting on this aspect of our surname group, please see the instructions about retrieving the Archived File LOG9705. The posting in question was made early in May, 1997, by Chev. J. David Murdock)
The MURDUCK variant has been noted from the early 1500's in London and East Anglia in England, and several derivative spellings have been found within this group, such as: MARDOCK, MURDACK, MURDICK, MUDDOCK, MOORDOCK, MUTTOCK, MADDOCK, MATTOCK, MADDIX, etc., as well as the much more common MURDOCK and MURDOCH spellings that were often incorrectly written by well meaning clerks in the urban areas.
Today there are small pockets of MURDUCK families in England, in parts of the US, and in Canada. There are also individuals with surnames of MUTTOCK, MATTOCK, and so on, who claim ancestry through MURDUCK individuals from East Anglia.
The surname, in all of its variant forms, has appeared in English records for a little more than 800 years. People with these surnames have dispersed throughout the western world since at least the mid 1600's.
Discussion in this group will focus on *any* aspect that interests you, the subscriber, and may relate to: