Tremeer

This interesting surname is of English locational origin from a place thus called in Camelford rural district, of Cornwall. The placename derives from the Old Cornish "tref" or "tre" meaning homestead plus the Old English pre 7th Century "mere" a lake; hence "homestead by the lake". During the Middle Ages when migration for the purpose of job seeking was becoming more common, people often took their former village name as a means of identification, thus resulting in a wide dispersal of the name. The surname is first recorded in the mid 16th Century, (see below). In the modern idiom the surname has many variant spellings including Tremeir, Tremeere, Treymer, Tremer, Treamer, Tremar, etc.. Recordings of the surname from the English church registers include; Phillip Tremeer, who was christened on February 19th 1596, at Holsworthy, Devon; on March 5th 1599, Susan, daughter of William Tremar, was christened at St. Dunstan's, Stepney, London; and Alice, daughter of Wilmott Tremeer, was christened at Bradworthy, Devon, on May 1st 1601. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Richarde Tremayre, witness at christening, which was dated December 23rd 1545, Dartington, Devon, during the reign of King Henry V111, "Good King Hal", 1509 - 1547. 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.