Recorded as Loud, Loude, Lowde, Louder, and possibly others, this is an English surname. It has three possible origins. The first is from the pre 7th century word 'hlud' meaning loud, and used as a nickname, the second was a residential name from (say) the River Lud in Lincoln, which also gave its name to the town of Louth, whilst the third when recorded as Louder may also be residential or occupational for one who lived or worked on a River Lud, of which there are a num,ber of examples. William Loud, recorded in the Fees Roll of the county of Devon in the year 1242, probably did describe a 'loud' person, or possibly given the robust humour of the period, the reverse! The surname was clearly residential when applied to the recording of Robert de la Lude of Somerset in 1225, whilst Richard de Luda in the London Rolls of 1319 probably did originate from the town of Louth, as did Robert de Louthe in 1325. According to Ekwall's Dictionary of English Place Names, the baptismal name forms the prefix in the town names of Lowdham (Nottinghamshire) and Loudham (Suffolk). Other early examples of recordings include Reginald Lude of Surrey in 1215, the year of Magna Carta, Henry atte Lud of Worcester in the Subsidy Rolls of 1275, and in the city of London, Mary Louder who married William Angel at St Botolhs Bishopgate, on July 7th 1644. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Richard Lud, which was dated 1221, in the Curia Regis rolls of the county of Devon, during the reign of King Henry 111, known as 'The Frenchman', 1216 - 1272. 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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