< & > signs around a surname on the IGI

I have just looked at the IGI christening record for:
Mary Ann 28 MAR 1854 at Brougham Street Primitive Methodist, West
Hartlepool, Durham.

This is probably a silly question but what do the two less than and greater

edgar...

8><------

than signs signify?

Hugh Watkins...

some more I see

4. MARY ANN - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Female Christening: 01 JAN 1778 Saint Edmunds, Salisbury,
Wiltshire, England
5. Mary Ann - International Genealogical Index
Gender: Female Christening: 05 NOV 1780 St James, Westminster, London,
England

Yours

Source Information:
Batch No.: Dates: Source Call No.: Type: Printout Call No.:
Type:
C163351 1834 - 1897 1546293 IT 1-2 Film NONE
Sheet:

click on the batch number

quite a few more

I would guess the surname has been added by the extractor from the
father's surname

Hugh W

edgar...

Thanks Hugh. I wondered if that might be the case but felt that I'd seen
lots of Parish Register records where the child is named only with
christian names and where only the father has a surname recorded. In those
cases I don't remember seeing the < & > signs.

You are right that this particular batch does have quite a few entries with
the signs.

It also names the chapel differently in different records:-
Brougham Street Chapel, West Hartlepool
&
Brougham Street Primitive Methodist, West Hartlepool.
This doesn't seem to be date related.
I'd have expected a batch to use the church/chapel name consistently
throughout.