This interesting and unusual name is of English origin and is locational from a place so called near Rochdale in the county of Lancashire. The derivation is from the Olde English "grene", a green spot, with "rod" a clearing. In the modern idiom the developments include Greenrod (1617), Greenrode (1623), Greenroad (1671), and Greenroyd. During the Middle Ages when it was becoming increasingly common for people to migrate from their villages to seek work elsewhere, the custom evolved that they adopted the place name as a means of identification, thus resulting in a wide dispersal of the name. Some early records of namebearers in Rochdale, Lancashire areas follows. One Abenezar Grindrod was christened on 2nd February 1692, one, Mary Grindrod married Robert Milne on 6th June 1694, and one Edward Grindrod son of Richard Grindrod was christened on 17th April 1704. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Rychard Grenerowde, which was dated 1541, in the "Pipe Rolls of Salford", Lancashire, during the reign of King Henry V111, known as "Good King Hal", 1509 - 1547. 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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