This is a locational name which derives from a place now apparently "lost" which translates as "the clearing (halh) of the Deer (Deor)". It is possible that a village of this name did exist but if so we have not been able to identify its situation, although the village of Durleigh, in Somerset is a possibility. There are many alternative spellings recorded, a familiar situation when the "origin" disappears and a reference point is lost. These recordings include the following examples of the name development - Elizabeth Durdell, christened at the Church of St. Katherine by the Tower, London, on March 3rd 1696, whilst Sarah Durdle married Thomas Durling, a name which translates as "the Family or the descendants of "Deer" at the Church of St. John the Baptist, Shoreditch on April 20th, 1831. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Avise Durdol, which was dated July 23rd 1663, married Thomas Coock at Pitney by Langport, 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.

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