Bessecarr – Evolution of the Modern Spelling

Bessecarr was a small settlement in the western part of the Parish of Cantley, though in recent times it has become a dormitory sprawl for Doncaster.  It features from the mid-1500s in the baptismal records for St Wilfrid’s Church, Cantley  (CD “Cantley – St Wilfrid.  Baptisms 1539 – 1932”, CD published by the Doncaster & District Family History Society).  From casual observation, the spelling of the name has shown substantial variation, even into quite recent times.  This paper examines the evolution of the modern spelling of Bessecarr, using the full set of data contained in the St Wilfrid records.

Phonetically, the Bessecarr name has remained fairly constant.  It appears always to have consisted of three  components.  These are, in sequence, phonetic “bess”, phonetic (vowel sound “ah”, “eh”, “ih”, “oh”, “uh”), phonetic “car” or alternatively phonetic “cle”.  Very rarely (a single observation) the central vowel sound is absent from the spelling.

Twenty seven separate spellings were recorded from the baptismal records, only one of which (Bess) appears to be an abbreviation.  These were analysed for the frequencies of the variants (4) of the phonetic “bess” part of the name and, secondly, for the frequencies of the variants of the remainder of the name (vowel + phonetic “car”/”cle” – 16).  Data were grouped by decade, starting with 1550-59 and ending with 1930-39.

The main spelling variation in the phonetic “bess” part of the name has been in the use of one or two letters “s”, eg “bes” vs “bess”.  Only three examples of “Bas” or “Bis” were observed, all before 1640.  From the earliest records (1550-59) until about 1660 the “Bes” alternative was predominantly used.  However, after that date, the “Bess” alternative gained ascendancy and by 1730 it was the predominant spelling, though the “Bes” alternative still occurred sporadically to the end of the 19^th century.  Does this main spelling variation indicate that the sound of the first part of the Bessecarr name was either “bez” or “bess”?  My own recollection of local pronunciation in the 1950s and 1960s was that both variants were used in local speech.

In virtually all spelling variations of “Bessecarr” there is a pronounced vowel in the middle of the name.  This vowel is predominantly “a” or “e”.  The use of “a” as the vowel was the predominant form from1590 until 1820 but after the latter date it was rapidly replaced by “e” and after 1900 that was the exclusive form. My own recollections of local pronunciation are that the vowel sound was short “e” but that is not very different from short “a”.

During the period 1560 to 1700 a great variety of spelling variants for the latter part of the Bessecarr name was observed.  From 1620 until about 1660 the predominant form was “-cle” but after the latter date until 1690 this changed to the “-car” variant.  This, in turn, gave way to the “-cre” variant but by 1770, this too had been displaced.  From about 1810 the “-car” variant made its return, this time in association with the “e” vowel and by 1900 this was the exclusive spelling variant.  Most of these spelling variations are understandable in terms of attempts to render in writing subtle variations in pronunciation of essentially the same phonetic name.  However, the “-cle” variant is less easy to understand, since it was probably preceded and followed by similar phonetic renderings of the Bessecarr name.  How was “Besacle” pronounced?  Is it possible that local inhabitants in the first half of the 17^th century had the same difficulty as modern Japanese do in distinguishing “r” and “l” sounds?  If so, “Besacle” and “Besacre” may have had similar pronunciations.

In summary,   “Bessecarr” seems to have had a similar pronunciation throughout the period 1550 – 1930 but the spelling has shown considerable variation, perhaps reflecting subtle changes in pronunciation.  Most of the variation in spelling has been in the latter half of the name and this may, in turn, indicate that most variation in pronunciation was also in that region.  Up to 1700 there were many variants but these quickly condensed to just a few.  Predominant spelling forms evolved as follows. 

1590-1620                            Besacar/Besacle (or similar)

1620-1660                            Besacle

1660-1730                            Besacre

1730-1770                            Bessacre

1770-1820                            Bessacar

1820-1900                            Bessecarr (predominantly)

1900-                                    Bessecarr (exclusively)

Don Fox

20130415

donaldpfox@gmail.com