Paradise

This interesting and unusual surname, recorded in London church registers from the mid 16th Century under the variant spellings Parradice, Parradyce, Paradis, Parades etc., derives from the Old English "pardis", from the church Latin "paradisus", ultimately from the Greek "paradeisos" meaning garden, and was originally given as a locational name to someone from any of the various places thus called. These places include Paradis near Burnham, (Somerset); in Hemel Hempstead (Hertfordshire); in Newcastle - upon Tyne, (Northumberland) and south east of Gloucester, (Gloucestershire). On November 16th 1564 Rychard Paradyse and Elizabeth Savage were married in St. Dionis Backchurch, London. Early 18th Century records show the introduction of Paradis and Parades as a French Huguenot surname - probably also of locational origin from some enchanting spot in France familiarly known as Paradis from the Old French "paradis". On June 10th 1725 Marie Magdelaine, daughter of Nicholas parades and Marie Joyeux, was christened in the French Huguenot Church, Threadneedle Street, London. A coat of arms granted to the De Paradis family from Lyons, Huguenot settlers in Ireland, depicts a gold cross between four birds of Paradise, having brillantly coloured ornate plumage, on a blue shield. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Margaret paradise, (marriage to Richard Heyborne), which was dated May 24th 1552, All Hallows Honey Lane, London, during the reign of King Edward V1, known as "The Boy King", 1547 - 1553. 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.