This is an unusual occupational name for a public speaker either from the Olde English pre 7th Century word 'motere' or from the Olde English word 'motian' to plead, speak, converse, or utter. This word was especially used in the sense of a law case, eg., 'the talks statutes as fiercely, as if he had mooted suen years in the inns of Court 1628'. Hence the word 'moot', a gathering for discussion has its origin in this word. In 1723 in St. Giles Cripplegate, London one Sarah, the infant daughter of William and Anne Mutter was christened. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Hugo le Motere, which was dated 1130 Pipe Rolls London, during the reign of King Henry I, The Lion of Justice, 1100 - 1135. 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.

© Copyright: Name Origin Research 1980 - 2024