Skeates - Meno

This interesting and uncommon name, found mainly in the East Anglian counties of Norfolk and Suffolk, is of Old Scandinavian origin, dating from the Nordic settlement of northern and eastern areas of England before the 10th Century. The name Scase of Skase is one of the variant forms of the surname Skeats, also found as Skeates, Skates, and Scates. These are patronymic variants of the name Skeat or Skate, derived from the Old Norse personal name "Skjotr", from "skjotr", swift, fleet, used also as a byname or nickname. The personal name is recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 as "Scet" and Schett". Among the recordings of the name in East Anglia, where variant forms include Scaice, Skace, and Skase, are that of the marriage of Bridget Skase and James Prime in Thrandeston, Suffolk, on July 17th 1578, and the marriage of Thomas Scase and Ann Chapman in Swaffam, Norfolk, on October 30th 1655. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Nicholas Sket, which was dated 1201, The Shropshire Pipe Rolls, during the reign of King John, known as "Lackland", 1199 - 1216. 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.