Double

Recorded in several forms including Dobel, Dobell, Doble, Double, Dobble, and possibly others, this is an English nickname surname. It originates from the Olde French word 'doublet' introduced into England after the conquest of 1066. In this context it does not apparently refer to a quiltered coat, but to a 'twin', as in twin brother, twin sister, or somebody who looked very similar, perhaps the 'double' of a famous person. In this respect the name may have had a hidden meaning, perhaps for somebody who was a natural child, and hence looked very much like the real father. In our opinion the name could also have been occupational for a maker of doublets, as this word in this context can also have the transferred meaning of 'close fitting'. It is not easy to tell which is the origin from the earliest known recordings. The first of these was Richard Dublet in the charters known as the Winton Rolls of the county of Hampshire in the year 1115. This was during the reign of King Henry 1st (1100 - 1130), and at the very begining of the creation of surnames. Other recordings from the succeeding periods include Robert Duble of Suffolk in the Pipe Rolls of 1196, Adam le Dobel of Sussex in the Subsidy Tax Rolls of 1296, and finally Richard Doble in the Letter Books of London, in 1336.