This unusual and long-established surname, with variant spellings Bott, Bote and Botte, derives from the Old Frisian personal name "Botho" or "Bote", a messenger (ultimately from the Old High German "boto", to announce). Introduced by the Normans after the Conquest of 1066, the name is distinguished by being first recorded in the Domesday Book (see below). Other early recordings include: Walter Botte, who appeared in the 1189 Pipe Rolls of Oxfordshire, and Walter le Botte, recorded in the Hundred Rolls of that county, dated 1273. The surname is well recorded in the Church Registers of London, Norfolk, Suffolk and Shropshire, and early examples from some of these places include: the marriage of Elizabeth Bote and James Oxyenhouse on January 29th 1564, at St. Mary's, St. Marylebone Road, London; the marriage of Elizabeth Botte and Harry Bradfield on January 28th 1566, in Catfield, Norfolk; and the christening of Sarah, daughter of George Bott, on February 6th 1592, in Tasley, Shropshire. An interesting namebearer, recorded in the "Dictionary of National Biography", was Thomas Bott (1829 - 1870), a china painter, who was an artist in the Royal Porcelain Works in Worcester; his work there in "Worcester enamel" gained a considerable reputation. The family Coat of Arms is on a gold shield an ermine chevron between three black mullets pierced gold, the Crest being on a glove a falcon proper. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Aldred Bot, which was dated 1086, in the Domesday Book of Kent, during the reign of King William 1, known as "The Conqueror", 1066 - 1087. 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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