This is originally a French locational name, from Carville in Calvados and in Seine-Maritime. The place name is derived from the Scandinavian personal name 'Kare' and the Olde French 'ville', for town settlement. When introduced into England and Ireland, 'Carville' sometimes evolved into 'Carverhill' for dialectual reasons. The majority of the early recordings of the name appear in Norfolk. There is an Irish family name (Mac) Carvill ('Mac Cearbhaill'), which is an Ulster sept noted for its musicians. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Robert de Clerevill which was dated 1183 Pipe Rolls of Norfolk during the reign of King Henry 11 The Builder of Churches 1154-1189 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.