This interesting and unusual surname, recorded in church registers of Lincolnshire from the early 17th Century under the variant spellings Mawmwell and Maumwell, is believed to be of locational origin from a now lost place originally in that county.The prime cause of the "lost" village phenomenon was the enforced "clearing" and dispersal of the former inhabitants to make way for sheep pastures at the height of the wool trade in the 14th Century, along with natural causes such as the Black Death of 1348. The component elements of this placename are the Old English pre 7th Century "mamme" related to the Welsh "mam", breast or hill plus "well", a spring or stream. On March 28th 1680, Mary, daughter of John Mawmwell, was christened in St. Gabriel, Binbrook, Lincolnshire, and on January 21st 1732, one, mary Maumwell, was christened in St. James, Grimsby. The marriage of Elizabeth Mamwell to Thomas Holmes took place in Tetney on June 4th 1740. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Allice Mamwell, (marriage to Bartle Ramsey), which was dated November 28th 1621, Market Rasen, Lincolnshire, during the reign of King James 1 of England and V1 of Scotland, 1603 - 1625. 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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