I used the word fishmonger the other day and it reminded me of a family story from many years ago when we saw a shop sign “Elsden’s Ongers”. Elsden is quite an unusual name so we noticed this and had a little laugh about it and I wondered for some time what ‘Ongers’ were… until I belated realised that Mr Elsden must have had a fishm -ongers, or an ironm-ongers!
Since then I have wondered then about the derivation of the word; I understood that monger meant dealer or trader, and of course when I looked it up I was exactly right, it comes from Latin, through old English to today’s meaning. So fish mongers deal in fish, iron mongers deal in iron. It can be used linked to other words, for example warmonger or gossip monger. I believe I have heard the term fleshmonger for butcher (in the literal sense not the gruesome murder sense!) but I cannot find an origin or connection for that.
My husband’s parents lived in a house called Cormongers, but I can’t find any origin for the name so I am guessing it was either something like corn monger, or something else which transformed over the centuries, or it had a meaning which is now lost. Going back to Ongers… the name so tickled me that I once named my house ‘Ongers’!
Lois Elsden 
My maiden name is Ongers
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How wonderful! I didn’t realise there was such a name, it must be most unusual and rare!
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Oh and my Great Grandfathers name was Louis (Lois)
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Another coincidence!
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My family and I also lived at Cormongers House in Nutfield. We were there between 1963 and 1970 after which the house was sadly demolished.
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Hello David, I checked with my husband and his family lived in Little Cormongers, on Cormongers Lane. This was many, many, many years ago – the family name was Colgate, but my husband is a Sparshott.
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Hi, I lived at little cormongers farm, mid Street south nutfield 19 50s and early 60s. Just found this as trying to find out what cormongers meant as well!
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Did you ever know of the Colgate family who lived round there too? It’s a lovely area, and no doubt much changed! The Colgates moved to Godstone latterly.
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