Peacock

Peacock
Recorded as Peacock, Pocock, Peacocke, Peecock and Pacock, this is an early English surname. It derives from the pre 7th Century word "peacocc", meaning literally a peacock, and was originally either an occupational name for a breeder of these famous birds, or a nickname for a man who wore especially bright clothes or possibly given the robust humour of the Middle Ages, the complete reverse! Interestingly Pecoc as a personal name, there were few if any surnames before the 12th century, is first recorded in the Domesday Book for the county of Essex in 1086. The surname was first recorded in the latter half of the 12th Century (see below), and other early recordings include Richard Pocok in the Assize Court Rolls of Somerset in 1225, and Robert Pecok, in the Subsidy Rolls of Essex in 1327. Post medieval recordings include William Peacock who sailed from the port of London on the ship "Hopewell" bound for Virginia, New England, in 1635. He was one of the early settlers to enter what was to become ultimately America. Other interesting recordings include William Peacocke in the register of students of Oxford University in 1610, and the marriage of Edward Pocock and Ann Rogers on February 6th 1645, at St Dunstans in the East, Stepney. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Roger Paucoc. This was dated 1194, in the pipe rolls of the county of Cornwall, during the reign of King Richard 1st known to history as "Lionheart", 1189 - 1199. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was sometimes known as the Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.

Surnames reference. 2013.

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  • Peacock — (engl. für Pfau) bezeichnet: einen Stern, siehe Alpha Pavonis eine Computerfirma, Actebis Peacock GmbH eine Stadt in Texas, Peacock (Texas) ein amerikanisches Plattenlabel, Peacock Records eine Winterthurer Punk /Rockabilly und Psychobillyband,… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Peacock — Pea cock (p[=e] k[o^]k ), n. [OE. pecok. Pea in this word is from AS. pe[ a], p[=a]wa, peacock, fr. L. pavo, prob. of Oriental origin; cf. Gr. taw s, taw^s, Per. t[=a]us, t[=a]wus, Ar. t[=a]w[=u]s. See {Cock} the bird.] 1. (Zo[ o]l.) The male of… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • PEACOCK — PEACOCK, bird called ταως in Greek and tavvas in the Mishnah. The peacock (Pavo cristatus) is a ritually clean bird (see dietary laws ) belonging to the pheasant family. In mishnaic times some wealthy people in Ereẓ Israel bred the peacock as an… …   Encyclopedia of Judaism

  • Peacock — Constelación Pavo Ascensión recta α 20h 35min 38.9s Declinación δ 56° 44’ 06’’ Distancia …   Wikipedia Español

  • PEACOCK (T. L.) — PEACOCK THOMAS LOVE (1785 1866) En 1812, Peacock rencontra Shelley; puis, en 1817, il passa quelques mois à Great Marlow en sa compagnie. Cette période joua un rôle décisif dans le développement de sa carrière d’écrivain. Les idées qui… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • peacock — [pē′käk΄] n. pl. peacocks or peacock [ME pacok < pa, peacock (< OE pea < early WGmc borrowing < L pavo, peacock, ? akin to Gr taōs, ? of Asian orig.) + cok,COCK1] 1. a) any male peafowl, esp., one of a species (Pavo cristatus) with a… …   English World dictionary

  • peacock — c.1300, poucock, from M.E. po peacock + coc (see COCK (Cf. cock) (n.)). Po is from O.E. pawa peafowl, from L. pavo (gen. pavonis), which, with Gk. taos said to be ultimately from Tamil tokei (but perhaps is imitative; Latin represented the… …   Etymology dictionary

  • Peacock —   [ piːkɔk],    1) George, britischer Mathematiker, * Denton (bei Darlington) 9. 4. 1791, ✝ Ely 8. 11. 1858; lehrte in Cambridge (ab 1837 als Professor) und wurde später Dechant von Ely. Peacock errang große Verdienste um die Neubelebung der… …   Universal-Lexikon

  • peacock — ► NOUN ▪ a large crested pheasant of which the male has very long tail feathers with eye like markings that can be fanned out in display. ORIGIN Old English, from Latin pavo peacock + COCK(Cf. ↑cock) …   English terms dictionary

  • Peacock — Peacock, Thomas Love …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Peacock — Peacock, Thomas Love (1785 1866) a British writer and poet who used ↑satire (=a way of writing in which you make someone seem funny in order to show their faults) to criticize the politicians and writers of his time. His most famous works are… …   Dictionary of contemporary English

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