This is a variation of the surname Gerard, itself one of the most popular medieval personal names, composed of the elements "geri" or "gari", spear and "hard" meaning hardy, brave or strong. The name was introduced into Britain by the Normans, and is recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 as the personal names "Gerardus" and "Girardus". In the modern idiom there are nearly thirty recorded derivatives of the personal name as surnames, ranging from Gerald to Jarrold, Garrard and Gerrard to Jarrard and Gerred and so on. The first recording of the form "Jarrard" is that of the christening of Gilbert Jarrard on the 4th March 1589, at the Church of St. Lawrence Pountney in London. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Hugo Gerard. which was dated 1199, in the "Pipe Rolls of Northamptonshire". during the reign of Richard 1, known as "Richard 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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