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| Rackenford : Village Sign & Road cc-by-sa/2.0 - © Lewis Clarke - geograph.org.uk/p/3011542 |
Loveday is the Middle English form of the Anglo-Saxon name Léofdæg, derived from the Old English lēof ' "dear, loved"+ dæġ 'day'. Léofdæg was in use before the Conquest of 1066 and managed to survive to good use in the Middle Ages as Loveday and with the alternative pronunciation Lowdy.
The term "loveday" is also a literal translation of dies amoris, a day of reconciliation on which enemies met to settle disputes and the name was sometimes given to babies who were born on such a day. By the 16th century, the given name was predominantly used in Cornwall and Devon and mostly for girls. Over the course of the 19th century, Loveday was fairly consistent in use, averaging around eight births per year. It declined by the 1930s.
The earliest record I have for a Loveday in the family was Loveday Flew, daughter of Richard and Jane Flew, who was baptised in Rackenford, Devon in 1804. This Loveday, with John Land, were the parents of James Land, who, with Rose Anna Beamer, named their daughter Loveday Jane Land (b. 1864).
Loveday Jane Land, along with her husband (my great-grand uncle), Frederick James Stone, named their third daughter Loveday Jane Stone (b. 1884).
And in turn, Loveday Jane Stone, with her husband, James Shopland, named their only daughter, Loveday Jane Shopland, who was born on 14 Feb 1907.
The name has nothing to do with Valentine's Day, but that was a happy accident.
Loveday Jane Shopland married Leonard Southcott. Their daughter, Loveday Jane Southcott was born in 1930, probably one of the only ones by then.
