This unusual name is of French locational origin, probably from a village called Pont-Chardon in the Argentan district of Normandy. It is recorded in Domesday as "de Ponte-Cardon" and there is a village in Devon that the family gave the suffix to, as in Heanton Punchardon. Pinchard and Punchard are contractions of the original and there have been a number of variations on the name. John Hulse and Jane Punchard were married at St. Georges, Hanover Square, in London in 1785 and in 1886 a Pinckard is recorded as having been resident in Boston, U.S. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Robert de Punchard which was dated 1270-1278 "Book of the Nevilles" during the reign of King Edward 1, known as "The Hammer of the Scots" 1272 - 1307 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.