The village of Dovaston in Shropshire is the origin of this name which is Olde British (i.e. pre Roman) origin. The name derives from "Dufan" in which "Du" means "Black" a personal name and "fan" may be a patronymic to create "The son of Black" plus "Tun" a Farm. The village name is first recorded as "Dovaneston" in the Fines list for 1198, in the nominal reign of Richard the Lionheart. The name development includes William Dovason (1696), Thomas Doveastone (1802) and Thomas Doveston, (1622), christened at Oswestry. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Katherina Dovaston. which was dated 1541, married at Pontesbury Church. during the reign of King Henry VIII, Good King Hal, 1510 - 1548. 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.