Chasmor

This is an English surname of locational origins. Recorded in the various spellings which include Chasemore, Chasemoore, Chasmore, Chassmore, Chasmer, Chasmor, and Chasmoor, it derives from a now "lost" medieval place believed to have been in the county of Surrey, where there is a high incidence of early recordings. The component elements of the placename are the Middle English "chase" or the French "chasse", describing a hunting ground, plus the Old English pre 7th Century "mor", meaning a wasteland. Locational surnames were originally given either to the local lords of the manor, or later as an easy means of identification to those who left their birthplace to settle elsewhere. In this case early examples of the surname recording taken from surviving church registers of the period include: Thomas Chasemoore, who married Barrary Diddlystone at Ockley, Surrey, on July 19th 1545, Augnes, the daughter of William Chasmore, christened at Snodland, Kent, on January 15th 1570, whilst on January 11th 1583, Alice, the daughter of Thomas Chasmer, was christened at West Clandon, Surrey. Other recordings include: the christening of Nicholas, the son of James Chasmer, at the famous church of St. Dunstan's in the East, Stepney, city of London, on January 11th 1606. 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.