he word 'scara' is found in Latin meaning 'cut' in
English. This is then found in old German as 'schare' meaning a cut in the
flesh. In the Scandinavian languages this became 'skar' and also had the
meaning of a cut or divide through a rocky area. This word came to the north of
England with the Vikings about a thousand years ago. They named many places
'skar' in Wensleydale especially. Eventually the Scandinavian 'k' was replaced
by 'c'. Within a few miles of Askrigg we find the following place names -
Hooker Mill Scar, Long Scar, Scar Hos, Oxtop Scar, Scar Top, Nappa Scar, Blue
Scar, Bull Scar, Bob Scar, Rowantree Scar, Low Scar, Ivy Scar and another Long
Scar. The word is occasionally found in other parts of the country but nowhere
as frequently as north Yorkshire and in particular Askrigg.
n the period up to the
thirteenth century when people were beginning to be known by a surname, many
took their name from the place where they lived and it is not surprising that
those living in a rocky area such as Wensleydale would take the name 'Scar'. It
must not be supposed that everyone with the name Scarr is descended from one
person, nor must we suppose that they are of Viking origin. It is the name
itself that is Scandinavian. In Wensleydale parish records abound with the name
'Scarr', in villages such as Aysgarth, Hawes and Grinton, but especially
Askrigg. By 1600 we find quite a few Scarrs in the parish records of York and
Leeds but earlier records show Scarrs mostly in the western part of north
Yorkshire. There were variations of the spelling, using 'k' instead of 'c' and
with or without a second 'r'. The name 'Scarre' originated when a certain
pregnant Mary Ann was found a husband who was paid to marry her before
departing for America. The family insisted she use the name 'Scarre' to
distinguish her family from the true male line. This name is still found in
Darlington. Then there was a parish where all records were in Latin so we get
an entry such as Robertus Scara. Again we find this has survived as 'Scarah' in
the Hull area.
he Scarrs of Cambridgeshire seem to be a separate group
as also most of the early Scarrs in London. In Cambridgeshire the earliest
spelling was 'Skarr' or 'Skare' which very soon became 'Scare'. It would seem
that this was pronounced 'Scair' a spelling which is found occasionally. It was
only in the middle of the nineteenth century that the northern spelling of
'Scarr' was adopted generally. There was an inventory of Dutch and Flemish
'strangers' in London in the middle of the sixteenth century and the name
'Skarr' was included. That name is still found in Germany today and there are
just a few with the name 'Skare'. It would seem likely, then, that the southern
Scarrs came directly from southern Europe.