This is a dialectually transposed variant of Westwood from any of the various places thus called in Kent, Wiltshire, Warwickshire etc. The name itself derives from the Olde English elements 'west' - west and 'wuda' - a wood. Such locational names (in their transposed forms) were given to inhabitants who moved either voluntarily, or otherwise, from their village of origin - or to the Lord of the Manor as in the first recording. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Robert de Westwod. which was dated 1207 Court pleas before the King's Justices, Kent. 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.