This long-established and distinguished name is of Norman origin, introduced into Britain after the Conquest of 1066. It is a locational surname, deriving from the place called "Lassy" in Calvados, France, so called from an ancient Gaulish personal name, "Lascius", of uncertain etymology, meaning, with the locational suffix "-acum", denoting "place of, settlement". Two members of the original "Lassy" family came to England ith William the Conqueror, the brothers Ilbert and William de Laci or Lacy. Ilbert was the ancestor of John, 1st Earl of Lincoln, who was one of the barons involved in compelling King John (1199 - 1216) to sign Magna Carta in 1215. William's descendants distinguished themselves in Ireland under Henry 11 (1154 - 1189), and Peter, Court Lacy (1678 - 1751), eventually became military adviser to Peter the Great of Russia. Early examples of the surname include: Henry de Lasci (1185, Lincolnshire); Gilbert de Lascy (1273, Shropshire); and Isabella Lassy (1379, Yorkshire). The modern forms are Lacey, Lacy, Lassey, De Lac(e)y and Leacy (Ireland). Among the recordings in Church Registers are the christening of John Lacy on August 26th 1586, at St. Botolph without Aldgate, London, and the marriage of John Lacey and Samone Steeven in Ingatestone, Kent, on October 13th 1594. One of the many early Coats of Arms granted to this illustrious family depicts three ermine bendlets on a blue shield. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Roger Laci, which was dated 1086, in the Domesday Book, during the reign of King William 1, known as "William the Conqueror", 1066 - 1087. 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.