This interesting surname is derived from "Col", a pet form of the personal name Nicholas, itself coming from the Greek given name "Nikolaos", from "nikan" meaning "to conquer", plus "laos", "people", plus the French suffix "-ad". The surname dates back to the early 14th Century (see below), and variations in the idiom of the spelling include Colard, Collarde and Couillarde. Recordings from London Church Registers include: the marriage of John Collard and Jone Bankin on March 23rd 1559, at St. Mary's, Lewisham; the marriage of Edward Collard and Dorothye Hyckeman on December 1st 1590, at St. Bride's, Fleet Street; and the christening of Christopher Collarde at St. Martin in the Fields, Westminster, on February 3rd 1594. An interesting namebearer, recorded in the "Dictionary of National Biography", was Frederick William Collard (1772 - 1860), a piano-forte manufacturer, who was a partner in the firm of Clementi and Co. from 1800 - 1831, and of Collard and Collard from 1832 - 1860. A Coat of Arms granted to a family of the name is, on an azure shield, three ladies' heads in fesse between as many fleurs-de-lis gold. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Richard Colard, which was dated 1332, in the "Subsidy Rolls of Sussex", during the reign of King Edward 111, known as "The Father of the Navy", 1327 - 1377. 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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