This interesting surname of English origin is a dialectal variant of the locational name Barwythe in Bedfordshire, deriving from the old English pre 7th Century "bar" meaning "boar" plus "worth" "enclosure". The placename is recorded as Bereuuorde in the Domesday Book of 1086. The surname dates back to the mid 17th Century, (see below). Variations in the idiom of the spelling include Burwood, Berward, etc.. Mary, daughter of John and Elizabeth Barwod, was christened on February 3rd 1771, at St. Mary, Whitechapel Stepney, London and Mary, daughter of Arthur and Catherine Barwood was christened on October 7th 1778, at St. George in the East Stepney, London. One Eliza Barwood, aged 16 yrs., a famine emigrant, sailed from Liverpool aboard the "Hannah-Kerr" bound for New York on June 20th 1846. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Sarah Barwood, christened, which was dated 1661, St. Giles, Cripplegate, London, during the reign of King Charles 11, "The Merry Monarch", 1660 - 1685. 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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