Bicheno

Perhaps not surprisingly there are many alternative spellings recorded of this ancient heraldic name, which derives from the Flemish 'Bechenhove' itself a developed form of the German 'Becher' and the French 'Bichet'. In both cases the name is probably job descriptive either for a grain merchant, one who used a vessel for measuring corn, or possibly one who collected the taxes from the sale of corn. The name has been recorded in England since the 17th Century and is probably associated more with the Flemish weavers and their descendants, than the Huguenots, the first recorded holders found under the varied spellings of Connyers Bechinno (1664), Coniers Bechinoe (1677) and Conyard Bechino (1680), other spellings include Beechinoe (1740), Beachiuve (1744), whilst James Ebeneezer Bicheno (1785 - 1851), was a Barrister and Law Commissioner in Ireland in 1833, and secretary of Van Diemans Land (Tasmania) in 1842, where he died. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Conyers Bechino, which was dated July 18th 1663, married Elizabeth Kempson at St. Catherin's Church, during the reign of King Charles II, The Merry Monarch, 1660 - 1685. 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.