Strong

Recorded in several spellings including Strang, Strange, Stong and Stronge, this surname is principally English, but also has some Scottish ancestry. It derives from the pre 7th century word "strang", which many centuries later in Medieval times became "strong", and was originally given as a nickname to one who possessed great physical strength, or given the robust humour of those times, the complete reverse! The surname was first recorded in the latter part of the 12th century, (see below), making it one of the earliest ever recorded, and suggesting that it was a name which was considered to have some status. These early reocordings taken from surviving roolls and charters include Simon Strong in the "Hundred Rolls" of the county of Cambridgeshire in the year 1273, and a William le Stronge, who was a witness at the Assize Court of Somerset in 1327. The form a "Strang" was preserved in the north of the country as shown in the recording of Adam Strang in the Poll Tax returns of Yorkshire, in 1379, whilst in Scotland John Strang was elected a councillor in the city of Aberdeen in 1398. On February 1st 1685, Charles Strong appeared on a list of "Monmouth rebels" held at Dorchester Gaol, and destined for transportation to the island of Barbados. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Richard Stronge. This was dated 1185, in the register of the Knights Templar for the county of of Warwickshire, during the reign of King Henry 11nd of England, 1154 - 1189. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.