Lewknor

This very uncommon name is of Anglo-Saxon origin, and is a late variant of the locational surname Lackner or Leakner, itself rare, which derives from the place called Lewknor near Watlington in Oxfordshire. The place is early recorded as "Leofecanoran" in the Saxon Diplomatic Codex of 994, and as "Levec(h)anole" in the Domesday Book of 1086, while by circa 1160 the placename appears as "Leovechenora". The name is derived from the Olde English pre 7th Century given name "Leofeca", a derivative of "Leofa", "Dear, Beloved", with "ora", bank, slope; thus, "Leofeca's slope". Locational surnames were used particularly as a means of identification by those who left their birthplace to settle elsewhere; regional dialectal differences and varying standards of literacy subsequently gave rise to variant forms of the original name. In this instance, the variants range from Lewk(e)nor(e), Leakner and Lackner, to Luckner, Lucknor, Lockner, Lackney and Lockney, and are found mainly in the south eastern counties of England. Examples from Church Registers include: William Leackener (1564, Kent); John Lacknar (1614, Surrey); and Richard Lockner (1623, Sussex). The marriage of Ruth Lockney and Joseph Taylor was recorded in Thames Ditton, Surrey, on July 31st 1763, while in Alnwick, Northumberland, James Wilson, son of James Lockney, was christened on December 25th 1809. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Geoffrey de Leweknore, which was dated 1273, in the "Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire", during the reign of King Edward 1, known as "The Hammer of the Scots", 1272 - 1307. 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.