Last name: Taylor

This is an English surname but of French origins. It derives from the word "tailleur" meaning "a cutter-out of cloth", the surname being adopted from the medieval job description after the 12th century. It would seem that tradition dictates that the spelling as tailor refers to the trade of tailoring, whilst Taylor, Tayler, Tailour and Taylour are the surname forms, but this is arguable. What is certain is that the surname is extremely popular, and in England ranks second only to Smith in the surnames listing. It is said that over the centuries its numbers have been swelled by its adoption as the English forms of various equivalent continental names such as Schneider, Szabo, and Portnov, which have entered into Britain mainly as refugee names. Early examples of the surname recording taken from surviving rolls and registers of the medieval period include: William le Taillur in the Pipe Rolls of the county of Somerset in 1182, and Roger le Taylur in the Hundred Rolls of Lincolnshire in 1273. Among the many Taylors recorded in history are Zackary Taylor (1784 - 1850), the 12th president of the Unites States. He was a famous soldier who played a large part in the independence of Texas from Mexico, whilst Jane Taylor (1783 - 1824), was a famous childrens author whose works included the poem "Twinkle, twinkle, little star". The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Walter Taylur. This was dated 1180, in the records of Canterbury Cathedral, during the reign of King Henry 11nd, 1154 - 1189. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.

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