Recorded as Cremer, Kramer, Krammer, Krimmer and others, this is a surname of Germanic origins. It is medieval and was originally an occupational name for a merchant or tradesman, one who travelled through the countryside buying butter, hens and eggs. These he collected in a 'cram', a special pack which may have been carried by a servant but more probably on mule or horseback to the local market. The ultimate derivation of the name being from the pre 7th century Old German word "kram" meaning originally a trading post or tent. It is not therefore perhaps surprising that this is one of the earliest recorded surnames in the German listings. These include Walther Kramer of Eblingen in the charters of that town for the year 1294, whilst Egherd Crammer is recorded in Hanover in 1412. The name is recorded in England in Elizabethan time, perhaps the earliest example being that of Abraham Cremer, christened on New Years Day 1552, at St. Margaret's Westminster. This was during the reign of King Edward V1th known as "The Boy King". He reigned from 1547 to 1553, when he died aged seventeen. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was sometimes known as the 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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