This is a surname which is rare but never the less well recorded in England, although under a variety of "anglicized" spellings. Its Huguenot (French protestant) ancestry is proven by the early recordings is the strangers Church at Canterbury, created specifically for the incoming refugees, whose methods of devotion, although protestant, were only just acceptable to the established Anglican Church. The meaning is much the same as Mallorie or Mallory which is literally translated as "unfortunate", but in fact was probably a form of oak like "Pourdiev" - the modern Purdey and Pardew surnames. The name examples and development include - Samuel Malinoir, who was christened at the strangers church, (as below) on March 27th 1688, he was the son of Pierre and Antoinette Malinoir and John Mollner, recorded at Sheffield, Cathedral on August 5th 1792. On June 15th 1800 Charles Mollenie married Elizabeth Edwards at the church of St. Clement Danes, London in the reign of George 111 (1760-1820). The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Jaques Mollinor, which was dated August 19th 1683, a christening witness at the Strangers Church, Canterbury, during the reign of King Charles 11, "The Merry Monarch", 1660 - 1685. 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.