This name derives from the Latin "oliva" meaning "olive" - a plant name and a symbol of peace. Legend also links the olive branch with Noah and the Dove - a symbol of God's reconcilation with man after the Great Flood. The Italian Saint Oliva, whose feast day falls on June 3rd, is regarded as the patroness of olive crops. The name is first recorded in England as Olyve, "a descriptive catalogue of ancient deeds", Northumberland. One Margaret filia (daughter of) Olive appears in "The Hundred Rolls of Shropshire", dated 1273. The surname is recorded a few years later, (see below). In the "modern" idiom the name is spelt Olive or Ollive. On December 25th, 1692 William Ollive and Ann Roberts were married in St. Katherine by the Tower of London. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Richard Olive. which was dated 1279, in the "Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire". 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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