Iorns

This rare and interesting name is of Anglo-Saxon origin and is a diclectal variant of the name Horne, whcih has two possible sources, the first and most likely being an English topographic name for one who resided by a spur of land. The name derives from the Old English "horna" meaning "a tongue of land". Horne in Rutland, Somerset and Surrey are all named with this element. The first named place is situated on a stream which takes a sharp turn north of the village. The latter two are on a projecting spur of a hill. Horn(e) may also have originated as a metonymic occupational name for someone who made small articles i.e., Combes, Spoons etc., out of horn or for one who played the musical instrument. Among the recordings in London are the christenings of Hannah Iorns, on January 18th 1627 at St. Mary's Somerset, and William Iorns on February 9th 1708 at Martin-in-the-Fields, Westminster. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Aluuinus Horne, which was dated 1066 - The Domesday Book of Middlesex, during the reign of King William 1, "The Conqueror", 1066 - 1087. 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.