This unusual name is Flemish or Dutch and as such was introduced into England late in the 18th Century. It is a topographical surname denoting someone who lived by a conspicuous lime tree, derived from the German "linde", in Olde High German "linta". The word was also used in a number of Old German female personal names, with the meaning "Spear" or "Shield", due to the fact that lime wood, being very hard was often used in the making of shields and spears and some name bearers may descend from this source. One Charles Vanlint married Martha Brimmer at St. Pauls, Bunhull Row, in London on the 21st December 1845. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Henry Vanlint, christened. which was dated 21st April 1793, St. Anne's, Soho, Westminster. during the reign of King George III, Farmer George, 1760 - 1820. 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.