Platfoot

This most interesting and unusual surname is of Anglo-Norman French origin, and was apparently a nickname given to someone who had flat feet, one who walked in some peculiar way, or someone who may have had some deformity of the feet. The derivation is from the Old French "plat", flat, from the Late Latin "plattus", Greek "platys", meaning broad, flat; and the Olde English, Middle English "fot", foot; hence flat foot. The first recorded namebearer appears in the mid 13th Century (see below), while William Platfote is recorded in the Close Rolls during the reign of Queen Mary (1553 - 1558). Other early examples of the surname include the marriage of Joan Playfoote and Robart Game, which took place on May 4th 1602 at Earls Colne, Essex; the marriage of Sarah Plattifoot and John Atkinson at the Church of St. Dunstan's, Stepney, London; and the marriage of Edward Platfoot and Elizabeth Gresho, also at the Church of St. Dunstan's, on February 19th 1776. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Matilda Platfot, which was dated 1260, witness in the "Assize Court Rolls of Cambridgeshire", during the reign of King Henry 111, known as "The Frenchman", 1216 - 1272. 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.