What does devil anse mean?

Anderson is his given name and "anse" is short for that and devil is after the biblical devil since he was hated by the McCoys, who gave him the name.

William Anderson "Devil Anse" Hatfield (September 9, 1839 – January 6, 1921) was the patriarch of the Hatfield clan during the infamous Hatfield–McCoy feud which has since formed a part of American folklore. Devil Anse himself survived the feud and agreed to end the feud in 1891.

Hatfield was born in Logan, Virginia (now Logan, West Virginia), the son of Ephraim Hatfield and Nancy Vance. He ran a logging operation, which accrued much wealth for his extended family.

There are a number of stories about the origin of his nickname, "Devil Anse": that it was given to him by his mother or by Randolph McCoy, or earned from his bravery during battle in the American Civil War, or as contrast to his good-tempered cousin, Preacher Anse Hatfield.

A southern sympathizer, Hatfield formed a Confederate guerrilla fighting unit during the Civil War that he named "The Logan Wildcats." In 1865, he was suspected of having been involved in the murder of his rival Asa Harmon McCoy, who had fought for the Union Army and was waylaid by "The Logan Wildcats" on his return home. Hatfield had been home ill at the time of the killing, which was most likely committed at the instigation of his uncle, Jim Vance. This sparked the beginning of the notorious feud between the two families that claimed many lives on both sides.

Hatfield was baptized on September 23, 1911 in Island Creek and converted to Christianity. He went on to found a Church of Christ congregation in West Virginia. (Wikipedia)