Weber

Recorded in the spellings of Webar, Weber, Webor, and Webermann, this is a German surname. Cognate with the English surnames Weaver, Webber, Webster and Webb, it is occupational for a weaver of cloth. The derivation is claimed to be from the Olde English pre 7th Century word "webbe", meaning to weave, as in the quote "My wife was a webbe and woolen cloth she made", from the tales of Piers Plowman in the 13th century. Early examples of the surname recordings include Heinricus Weber, given as being a burger of the city of Basel, Switzerland, in the year 1290, whilst Hensli Webermann, was a citizen of Freiburg, who is recorded in the charters of that German city in 1472. William Henry Weber (or Webber) was an editor of plays and secretary to Sir Walter Scott in Edinburgh in 1804. The first recorded spelling of the family name anywhere in the world is believed to be that of John le Webber. This was dated 1255, in the Fines Court Rolls of the county of Sussex, England, during the reign of King Henry III, 1216 - 1272. 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.