This unusual name of Olde English origins, is locational from either Pooley in Warwickshire, or possibly a place now called Hunts Hall in Essex, but recorded in 1291 as 'Polheia'. The surname is a very early example and recordings from this period include William de Poleye in the 1273 Hundred Rolls of Berkshire, Elias de Polye, in the 1275 Hundred Rolls of Norfolk, and William de Polleye of Worcester in the same year. The derivation of all the various forms of the surname is from the pre 7th Century 'pol-ge-haeg' which translates as 'one who was resident by the water side in a low lying area'. Later post medieval recordings include Thomas Pooley, the son of George Pooley, christened at Allresley, Warwickshire, on 23rd November 1587, Robert Pooly who married Jane Brewer at St Stephans, Coleman Street, London, on August 4th 1601, and Sarah Pooley, who married Nathaniel Day, at St James Church, Duke Street, London, on March 12th 1694. The Coat of Arms of Pooley has the blazon of a gold field, charged with a black lion rampant. On its shoulder a gold crescent, signifying the defeat of the infidels. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Walter de Polhey, which was dated 1248, in the "Feet of Fines, Essex," during the reign of King Henry 111, known as "The Frenchman", 1216 - 1272. 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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