This interesting and unusual surname is of Old Germanic origin, and is composed of "Eber", a diminutive form of the Germanic personal name "Eberhard", which is composed of the elements "eber", a wild boar, and "-hard", hard, brave, strong, plus the diminutive suffix "-el, -ell". Eberhard itself is quite popular in Alsace-Lorraine, as are the surnames Ebrard, Eberlin, Eberling, Eberlein and Eberle. Hence the name was probably introduced into England by the Normans or perhaps later by French Huguenots fleeing religious persecution in the late 16th and 17th Centuries. The surname appears in English Church Registers as Ebrell, Ebrall, Ebborell, Ebriell and Ebbrall. Early recordings of the surname include: the marriage of Henry Ebrell on November 7th 1613, at St. Andrew by the Wardrobe, London; the christening of his daughter, Martha, at the same church, on May 7th 1615; the marriage of Samuel Ebral to Sarah Gifford on January 28th 1672, at Allhallows, London Wall, London; and the marriage of John Ebbrell and Mary Smith at St. Mary's, Cheadale, Cheshire, on December 25th 1809. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Margaret Ebraule, which was dated April 30th 1561, marriage to John Dawson, at St. Augustine's, Watling Street, London, 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.