This name originally chiefly found in the West Midlands of England, was first given as a nickname to a careless person or 'one free from care' ie. worry. It derives from the Olde English pre 7th century 'carleas' - a compound of the elements 'caru' meaning 'grief' or 'care' and 'leas' - 'free from' or 'without'. In the modern idiom the name has three spelling variations: Careless, Curless and Corless (the latter spelling found chiefly in Lancashire). The forms Carloss and Carlos also appear. An illustrious name bearer was William Careless or Carlos who escaped to France with Charles 11 (Sept. 1651) and was taken into his service. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Reginald Carles which was dated 1200 The Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire during the reign of King John nickname Lackland 1199-1216 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.