This interesting and long-established surname is of Old French origin, and is an occupational name for an extractor or seller of oil, deriving from the Old French "olier, huilier", Anglo-Norman French "olier" (from "oile, huile" oil, with the agent suffix "-er"). In its original sense, "a man who has to do with", the "-er" designates persons according to their profession or occupation. Job-descriptive surnames, such as this, initially denoted the actual occupation of the namebearer, and later became hereditary. Early recording of the name include: Richard le Oyller, noted in "Middle English Surnames of Occupation" (Lincolnshire, 1281), and Reginald le Oyler (Leicestershire, 1286). In northern England linseed oil obtained from locally grown flax was more widely used than olive oil for soap, lamp fuel, and in the making of oil paints. Occasionally, Oiller may derive from the Old French male given name "Olivier", traditionally associated with the Latin "Olivarius", olive tree, but ultimately deriving from the Scandinavian "Anleifr", an ancient personal name composed of the elements "an", ancestor, and "leifr", remains. On January 31st 1847, Sarah Oiller and Richard Woodridge were married at St. Pancras, Old Church, London. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Richard Oylere, which was dated 1248, witness in the "Assize Court Rolls of Hampshire", 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 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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