From Olde English pre 6th Century 'Wende', the name means the 'Dweller by the River Bend'. Wendon is the more usual spelling of the name and it is recorded as such in the Hundred Rolls of Lincolnshire 1273 and in various London marriage records from 1626 to 1798. One Alex de Wenden is recorded in the Humdred Rolls of Cambridgeshire 1273 and is the only instance of this spelling given. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of William Wende. which was dated 1275, The Norfolk Poll Tax Records. during the reign of King Edward I, The Hammer of the Scots, 1272 - 1307. 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.

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