This interesting surname of English origin is a nickname for a person considered to resemble the water-bird in some way, deriving from the Middle English "tele" meaning "teal". The surname dates back to the early 13th Century, (see below). Further recordings include one Matilda Tele (1273), "The Hundred Rolls of Cambridgeshire", Robert Tele (1275), "The Subsidy rolls of Worcestershire" and John Teed (1328) "Kirby's Quest for Somerset". Variations in the idiom of the spelling include Teall, Teal, Teyle, Teele, etc.. Edmunde Teale married Mawdlen Bttell on September 17th 1580, at St. Giles, Cripplegate, London. Hannah, daughter of Benjamin and Mary Teale, was christened on March 26th 1701, at St. martin in the Fields, Westminster, and Martha, daughter of Thomas and Elizabeth Teal, was christened at St. Dunstan's, Stepney, London, on December 15th 1728. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Ralph Tele, which was dated 1201, "The Pipe Rolls of Nottinghamshire", during the reign of King John, known as "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.