Not that Orm, the other one
I mentioned that one branch of Sharon's part of the family tree extends back to 10th century England and ends with a fella named Orm son of Gamal. Because he shares a first name with that of the Viking Orm, who legendarily tossed his severed leg onto the shore of Scotland to become the leader of the Viking settlement there, I thought that perhaps he was a descendant of the legend. That is wishful thinking because we have no good records that link Orm the Viking with Orm son of Gamal. And standard last names weren't in wide use at the time of his birth Perhaps his parents simply chose to honor the legend by naming their child for him. While investigating to find a link, I discovered an annoying complication. Finding an Orm son of Gamel in history isn't all that complicated, I found that our Orm may be the same person as Orm Gamalson, who had a son he named Gamal, after his father. This son is often referred to as Gamal Ormson through the creation of last names using the...