Drillingcourt

This rare and interesting surname apparently originated in Utrecht, the Netherlands and is formed from a combination of two separate names, both of which are recorded heraldically for Holland and Rietstap's "Armorial General". A Dutch family bearing the name Drieling were granted a Coat of Arms circa 1650. The shield is blue with three gold stars, representing honour and achievement in service of the state. A silver central band bears three red quintefeuilles (five-petaled flowers) symbolic of hope. This particular name is ultimately believed to derive from the German "drillich", a coarse linen or cotton cloth, and was a metonymic occupational name for a maker of this material. The ultimate origin of Court is the Old French "Court(e)", a yard or enclosure (usually one attached to a large house), and presumably in this specific case referring to an enclosed yard where linen was woven from spun fibres of flax. The Court Coat of Arms for Holland is also blue with two workman's implements on a top silver band. On August 21st 1748 Ann Dreiencourt and John Nicholls were married in St. George's, Mayfair, Westminster. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Jane Drillingcourt, (born to John Drillingcourt and Mary Stevenson), which was dated February 7th 1866, Aughnacloy, Co. Tyrone, during the reign of Queen Victoria, "The Great White Queen", 1837 - 1901. 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.