This interesting surname is of Anglo-Saxon origin, from a personal name which traces its origin to two names recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086; "Ailiet" and "Aliet". Deriving ultimately from the Olde English pre 7th Century "Aeoelgyo" and "Aeoelgeat", they break down to mean in the first instance, "noble combat" ("aoel", noble, and "gyo", battle), and secondly, "noble great" ("aoel", noble, and "gait", goat), which is a masculine form of an old tribal name. Among the variant spellings of Aeolgyo to emerge are Elget and Eliet. These forms have contributed to the frequency of Elliot in its various spellings, so that Aylett and El(l)iot are closely linked. The modern recordings include: Aylett, Aylott, Allatt, Allett, Allitt, Alliott, whilst some nameholders found as Ellyatt, Eliot, Elitt and Eliott derive from the same source. Alice Aylett was christened on July 20th 1648, at St. Peter's, Pauls Wharf, London, whilst Walter Ellit embarked for St Christopher, in the West Indies, on October 15th 1635. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Boydin Ailot, which was dated 1279, in the "Hundred Rolls of Cambridgeshire", during the reign of King Edward 1, known as "The Hammer of the Scots", 1272 - 1307. 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.

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