This interesting surname, of Anglo-Saxon origin, is a variant of the locational name Caldecote, from any of the numerous places in Bedfordshire, Berkshire, Cambridgeshire, Cheshire, Northamptonshire, Warwickshire and elsewhere, deriving from the Olde English pre 7th Century "c(e)ald" meaning "cold", plus "cot", cottage or dwelling, hence "a hut or a shelter for animals in an exposed position", or, Calcutt in Wiltshire, Calacott(s) in Devon, or a "lost" place called Calcot in Berkshire, in all of which the first element apparently comes from the Olde English personal name "Cola" or the word "col" meaning "(char)coal", in which case the meaning would be something like "coal-shed". The surname dates back to the late 12th Century (see below). Variations in the idiom of the spelling include Corkitt, Cascutt, Corcut, Caulkett, and Colkett. One Jeffry Corket married Alice Parker on January 16th 1647, at St. Giles' Cripplegate, and Joseph Corkett married Ursilla Legg on September 17th 1659, at St. Dunstan's, Stepney, both in London. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Simon de Caldecot, which was dated 1195, in the "Pipe Rolls of Cambridgeshire", during the reign of King Richard 1, known as "The Lionheart", 1189 - 1199. 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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