Recorded in the modern spellings of Warren and the much rarer Waren, Warran and Warron, this is an English surname, but one of medieval French origins, of which there are three. The first is locational from the village of La Varrenne in the departement of Seine-Maritime, and meaning the place on the sandy soil. The second topographical and describing someone who lived by a game park, whilst thirdly it may be occupational for someone employed in such a place. If so the derivation is from the Norman French word "warrene", meaning a warren or land set aside for breeding game. Introduced into England and Scotland after the Conquest of 1066, the surname is one of the earliest on record as shown below. Early examples of recordings include William de Warren in the Hundred Rolls of Norfolk in 1273, and William de Warenne, in the tax registers known as the Feet of Fines for the county of Essex in 1285. Recordings from surviving church registers include the marriage of William Waren and Alys Agno on May 13th 1542, at St. Margaret's Westminster, and the marriage of William Warren and Elizabeth Bullwack on January 25th 1544, at St. Martin Orgar in the city of London. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of William de Warenne. This was dated 1086, in the Domesday Book for London, during the reign of King William 1st of England, and known as "The Conqueror", 1066 - 1087. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.

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