This interesting and unusual surname is of Germanic origin, and seems to be most widespread in the Lincolnshire area. The derivation of the name is from the Middle Low German "drotsete" (a cognate of the Middle High German "truhsaeze", from the Old High German "truhtsazzo"), composed of the elements "truht", body of servants, and "sizzen", to sit, in the sense of "preside". The surname was therefore given as an occupational name for a steward or head waiter. The term was also used as a title in various different contexts. Job-descriptive surnames originally denoted the actual occupation of the namebearer, and later became hereditary. In the modern idiom the surname can be found as Drost, Droste, Drossart, Drossate, Drossaerd and Drust. Recordings of the surname from various Church Registers include: the christening of Hellena, daughter of Robti Drust, on November 21st 1602, at Wrawby, Lincolnshire; the marriage of William Drust and Ellen Butter on June 22nd 1629, at Saxilby, Lincolnshire; and the marriage of Dorothea Catharina Drust and Augustin Grabow on October 21st 1738, at Gulenpaaren, Brandenberg, Germany. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Robti Drust, which was dated August 10th 1599, witness at the christening of his son, Stephamus, at Wrawby, Lincolnshire, during the reign of Queen Elizabeth 1, known as "Good Queen Bess", 1558 - 1603. 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.