Some surnames almost defy research, this is one of them. The origin of Stidever is German, however, in its present form it is apparently an Anglicized form which is either deliberate, to conceal the nation of origin, or it is one of a large group of Continental surnames which were misspelt on entry into the U.K. The derivation is from "stedefeder", itself a compressed developed form of "stedte-feld", and it is habitational for one who lived (er) at a place (stede) in open agricultural land (feld). It has to be said that even in Germany they have not been able to decide on a spelling form, variant spellings include Stedefetler, Stidfelder and Stedlefeder. The situation is further complicated by the erratic nature of German recordings, although it is hoped that as a result of the collapse of the Communists system in 1990; this problem will improve in the future. Early recordings include: Christine Elizabeth Stedefeder, christened on February 28th 1769, at St. Johannes Church, Herford, Westfalen, and Anna Christina Stideler, who married Gerhard Harter on August 15th 1773, at Hunsrueck, Rheinland, Germany. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Johan Stedtefelder, which was dated April 25th 1732, born at Blomberg, Lippe, Germany, during the reign of Emperor Charles V1 of the German Empire, 1711 - 1740. 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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