Dronsfield

This interesting and unusual name spelt Dron or Drane may be the reverse of its literal meaning. The derivation is from Olde English "dran" and means "the drone" - an idle and lazy person! Medieval humour was extremley robust, and role-reversal was common as in "Little-John" of Robin Hood fame. Augusta Theodosia Drane (1823 -1894) was a famous poet, historian and Prioress. A slight variation of Dronsfield i.e. Dransfield, is an English locational name from Dranfield Hill in Mirfield (West Yorkshire) which contains the Olde English "dran" or "dron" (a male honey bee symbolic of laziness) and "feld" meaning "pasture" or "open country". The surname is mainly found in Yorkshire, and the prefix "dran" is probably a nickname in this instance. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Adam le Dron. which was dated 1275, in the "Pipe Rolls of Worcester". 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.