Castella

This is a surname of Roman origins but found equally in Spain, Portugal, France and England. Recorded in some thirty different spellings ranging from Castellan, Castellano, and Castellain, to Castelan, Castelanho and Castella, it is occupational for the governor or constable of a castle, or the warder of a prison. It derives from the pre Christian period 'castellanus' itself a derivative of 'castellum' - a castle. This is a surname of status, and as such this is reflected in the coat of arms as shown below. Occupational surnames were not in themselves hereditary, however in this case the name reflects the authority of the original bearer. One of the earliest surnames into the New World of the Americas, the recordings commence in Mexico as shown below. These recordings taken from original civil and church registers include Ribera Castellano at Asuncion, on August 24th 1669, Camallo Castellano at San Sebastian, Mexico, on November 18th 1797, Billie Castellano, born at Richmond, California, on May 26th 1940. The coat of arms has the blazon of a red field, a castle proper, inside a border of silver with a semee of gold lions rampant. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Osbert Castelyn, which was dated 1240 a.d., in the ancient rolls of England called 'Archaeologia Cantiana', during the reign of King Henry 111 of England, 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.