Poxon

Recorded in several forms including Pogson, Pockson, Poxson, Poxon, and even Poxton, this is an English medieval surname. It is a metronymic, which is to say that it originates from the name of the first bearer's mother. European society has often been patriarchal throughout history, the given name of the male head of the household being handed on as a distinguishing name to successive generations, but much less so that of the mother. In this case the derivation is from the Middle English female given name "Pogg", a variant of "Mogg", itself a diminutive of the popular "Margaret". Margaret derived ultimately from a Persian word meaning "a child of light". The name appears to have originated in Antioch, capital of the Greek kingdom of Syria, and one of the earliest strongholds of the Christian faith. It was there that "Mild Margarete that was God's maid" was martyred in the 3rd Century. Early examples of the surname recording include Antonius, the son of Johis Pogson, who was christened at Kirkburton, in Yorkshire, on June 2nd 1549, Elizabeth Poxon, the daughter of Jhon Poxon, who was christened at St Brides Fleet Street, in the city of London, on February 2nd 1611, and Louisa Poxton, the daughter of Thomas Poxton, who was christened at the famous church of St Mary-le-Bone, also London, on January 12th 1825. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Richard Pogson. This was dated 1440, in "A Descriptive Catalogue of Sheffield Manorial Records", for Yorkshire, during the reign of King Henry V1, known as "The Founder of Eton", 1422 - 1461. 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.