Harmon

This unusual and interesting surname has a very ancient history. It is one of the Norman forms of the Germanic personal name "Hermann", composed of the elements "heri, hari" meaning army, plus "man", man. The first known bearer was "Arminus", the 1st Century leader of a tribe called the "Cherusci", recorded by the Latin historian Tacitus. The popularity of the name is borne out by the large number of surnames it has generated throughout Europe; in England the inherited Norman forms existing in the modern idiom are Hearmon, Harmon, Herman, Harmon, Harmond, Harmant, and Hermon. The name development includes: Robert Hereman (1196, Norfolk), William Heremond (1296, Sussex), and John Harman (1327, Suffolk). London Church Records list the marriage of Constantine Harmon to Margaret Fenton, on October 31st 1570 at St. Mary Abchurch, and John Harmon to Alice Mason, on October 10th 1572 at St. Botolph's, Bishopsgate. A Coat of Arms granted to a Harmon family is silver, in base a red crescent issuant therefrom a green rose branch, blue flowered. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Willelmus Hermannus, which was dated 1141 - 1149, in the "Records of Holme", Norfolk, during the reign of King Stephen, known as "Count of Blois", 1135 - 1154. 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.