Edgars

This ancient and distinguished surname is of Anglo-Saxon origin, and derives from the Olde English pre 7th Century male personal name "Eadgar", composed of the elements "ead", prosperity, fortune, with "gar", spear; the first element was a distinguishing mark of the royal house of Wessex. Eadgar (944 - 975), the grandson of Alfred, was one of the most successful kings of that house, and his name became a favourite among the English, and survived the Norman Conquest, unlike many native English given names. It is recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 as "Edgar" and "Etgar", and appears in Suffolk as "Aedgar" (1095), and "Adger" (1182). The personal name was also found early in Scotland, where the first of the name recorded is Eadgar, King of the Scots, who reigned from 1097 - 1100. The surname was established there by the early 14th Century, when Richard Edgar of Wedderbie was a witness at the second marriage of King Robert Bruce (1306 - 1329). Recordings of the surname from London Church Registers include that of the marriage of James Edgar and Joane Watson at St. Giles' Cripplegate, on August 14th 1605. A Coat of Arms granted to a family of the name depicts a gold cross formee between four gold martlets on a blue shield. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Thomas Edgar, which was dated 1250, in the "Book of Fees of Surrey", during the reign of King Henry 111, known as "The Frenchman", 1216 - 1272. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.