There are usually numerous ways of spelling first and surnames in genealogy records. Some are just abbreviations like Wm for William but could be transcription errors.

Especially in times of limited literacy it may be that the person recording events used their personal knowledge (bias) or even just spelt names as they ‘heard’ them.

We also have the myth that names were changed at Ellis Island which is dispelled in an article posted by the New York Public Library.

Below are just some of the examples come across in my tree research of how surnames may be spelt that either are definitely related or extremely plausible that come from the same root (family group).

There are likely to be more variants found at The Surname Society website along with the meanings of the names.

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