Brant

This name, with variant spellings Brand, Brandt, Braund, Braun(s) and Bront, derives from the Germanic male given name Brando, a short form of various compound personal name, such as Hildebrand, containing the element "brand", sword or fire-brand, a derivative of "brinnan", to flash. The names Brant and Brand form the first element of various placenames, such as Brandeston, (Suffolk), and Branston in Leicestershire and Lincolnshire. As these places were recorded prior to 1066, the indication is that Brant and Brand were introduced to England by the Norsemen, Brand(r) being a common old Norse name. One, Ralph Brand was recorded in the 1184 "Pipe Rolls of London", and a Hamo Braund in the 1219 "Curia Regis Rolls of Bedfordshire". On May 26th 1546 John Brand and Agnes Bissine were married in Saint Lawrence Pountney, London and on March 25th 1565 Rosa Brant was christened in St. Andrew's, Enfield, London. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of William Brant, which was dated 1086, The Domesday Book, Norfolk, during the reign of King William 1, "The Conqueror", 1066 - 1087. 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.