So I find out that my name comes from an old French family name dating back to the time when Normandy wasn't Normandy. Turns out, that part of France was conquered by some dude named Rollo, aka Hrolf Ganger.
the Wikipedia entry follows:
(Hrolf Ganger (Hrolf the Walker; Old Norse: Hrólfr Rögnvaldsson and Göngu-Hrólfr, Norwegian: Gange-Rolf). The nickname of that character, be it Rollo of Normandy or not, came from being so big that no horse could carry him. He has also been called "Rollo the Gangler" in some works.)
Rather than pay Rollo to leave, as was customary, the Frankish king, Charles the Simple, understood that he could no longer hold back their onslaught, and decided to give Rollo the coastal lands they occupied under the condition that he defend against other raiding Vikings.
So he ruled Normandy for many years.
Sometime around 927, Rollo passed the fief in Normandy to his son, William Longsword. Rollo may have lived for a few years after that, but certainly died before 933. According to the historian Adhemar, 'As Rollo's death drew near, he went mad and had a hundred Christian prisoners beheaded in front of him in honour of the gods whom he had worshipped
Seems like he was a really nice guy.
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