This unusual name has a number of possible origins, the first and most likely being from an early Medieval English occupational name for a tradesman or a merchant, a dealer. The derivation is from the Old English pre 7th Century verb "sellan", to give, hand over, a seller, dealer, in Middle English "Sell(en)". Secondly, the modern surname, which can be found as Sal(l)an, Sellan, Salling and the plural forms "Sallans", "Sallens" and "Sallings", may be locational in origin, deriving from the place in Essex called "Saling". The placename is recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 as "Salinges", and means the dwellers at the willows or "Willow copse", derived from the Old English pre 7th Century "Salh", sallow, willow, with the Old English suffix "-ing"(as)" denoting "people of". The plural forms of the modern surname are either patronymics, meaning "son of Sallan", or the sensitive case of the locational name, "of Saling". Richard Sallans was christened in Kemerton, Gloucestershire, in April 1st, 1619. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Robarte Sallens (marriage to Joane Butte), which was dated September 16th 1577, at Hungerford, Berkshire, during the reign of Queen Elizabeth 1, known as "Good Queen Bess", 1558 - 1603. 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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