This interesting name has two possible origins, the first is derived from the Middle English (1200-1500) personal name "Dere", from the Old English pre 7th Century "Deora", meaning beloved and used as a byname. The second possible origin is from the Middle English nickname "dere", from the Old English "deor", used to describe a wild, swift animal, specifically a deer, the nickname may have been given to a person who had some of the characteristics of a deer. The modern surname can be found as Dear, Deare, Deares, Deer, Deere and Deerr. An interesting namebearer was Joseph Deare (1804-1835) who was a sculptor and exhibited marble groups and portrait busts at the Royal Academy from 1826-1832. Among the sample recordings in London are the marriage of Thomas Dear and Anne Haynes on April 17th 1722 at St. Anne's, Soho, Westminster, and the christening of George, son of George and Eleanor Dear, on March 10th 1844 at St. Mark's, Kennington. Ann Dear married Edward Thornton on August 31st 1773 at St. Leonard's, Shoreditch, London. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Goduui dere, which was dated 1086, in the Domesday Book, Bedfordshire, during the reign of King William 1, known as "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.

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