Like the country "Canada", this name is of Iberian (Spanish) origins and was originally locational or job descriptive. It derives from "Canna" meaning cane or rushes and describes one who lived by or collected the rushes used in medieval floor covering. In the case of Canadine, Cannadine, Cannidine and Canadyne, the suffix is a form of patronymic (son of Canada), developed from the original Anglo-Saxon "kin" or in some instances a development of the old English "denu" - meaning a valley - the valley of rushes. It is probable that such a place existed but if so we have not been able to confirm the location either in the United Kingdom or abroad. The name examples include Isabell Canadie who married George Emersone on October 19th 1603 at the church of St. Botolph, Bishopgate. The term "Canadian" was not used until the year 1805 in the Napoleonic wars. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Thomas Canadyne, which was dated June 26th 1589, a witness at St. Margaret's church, Westminster, during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, "Good Queen Bess", 1558 - 1603. 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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