Recorded in several spellings including Gimeno, Jimeno, Jimenez, Gimenez, and Ximenez, the latter being the original form, this is Spanish surname but almost certainly of Romano-Greek and Hebrew origins. Its similarity with the ancient pre-Christian names Siminius and Simos, which combined together to produce the 'modern' Simon, is too close for coincidence. In addition for many centuries upto the year 410 a.d. the Spanish peninsula was an occupied area of the Roman Empire, and many Spanish and Portuguese given names and surnames originate from this period. However there is a possibility that the name may derive from a local origin, as is claimed by certain directories. The Hebrew 'Shimon' translates as 'to harken', whilst the Greek 'Simos' means 'the snub nosed one', and somehow over the centuries the two became combined. Early examples of the recordings taken from authentic church registers of the various periods include Ximenez de Pastrana, at Berbinzana, Navarra, Spain, on March 5th 1576, and Rosa Gabriel Jimenez at Nuestra Senora de la Antigua, Valladolid, on April 5th 1596. Francisca Gimenez married Elicia Garcia de la Pena at Jarandilla, Cerceres, Spain, on November 19th 1621, and on June 24th 1906, Eligia Jimenez married Isabel Tagles at Azusa, Los Angeles, California. The blazon of the coat of arms is a blue field, a single tower on a mount proper, between two gold fleur de lis. In chief a silver cross flory. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Christobal Ramirez Ximenez, which was dated July 1st 1537, born at the city of Seville, Spain, during the reign of King Charles 1st of Spain, Emperor of Mexico, 1516 - 1556. 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.