Goodhew

This name has two possible origins. The first being a nickname for a trusted servant deriving from the Medieval English "gode" meaning "good" and "hewe", a servant (from the Olde English pre 7th Century "hiwan" meaning "members of a household"). the name may also be baptisimal in origin, coming from the Olde Norse personal name Gudhugi a compound of the elements "gud" - a battle and "hugi" - mind or spirit. The name Godhuge (without surname) is first recorded in suffolk c.1095. The surname appears nearly a century later. Alternate spellings of the name have included Godhou c.1240 and Godhewe c.1311. In the modern idiom, the name is spelt Goodhew, Goodhue and Goodhugh. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Robert Godhugh. which was dated 1181 "The Domesday of St.Pauls". during the reign of King Henry II, The Deceiver of the Irish, 1154 - 1189. 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.