The Norman Marison surname comes from the Old French word "marais" meaning "a marsh." It may have arisen as a surname from the place name (Le) Marais in Calvados, Normandy.
Early Origins of the Marison family
The surname Marison was first found in
Kent where they held a
family seat as Lords of the Manor. After the Battle of Hastings in 1066, William, Duke of
Normandy, having prevailed over King Harold, granted most of Britain to his many victorious Barons. It was not uncommon to find a
Baron, or a Bishop, with 60 or more Lordships scattered throughout the country. These he gave to his sons, nephews and other junior lines of his family and they became known as under-tenants. They adopted the Norman system of surnames which identified the under-tenant with his holdings so as to distinguish him from the senior stem of the family. After many rebellious wars between his Barons, Duke William, commissioned a census of all
England to determine in 1086, settling once and for all, who held which land. He called the census the
Domesday Book,
[1]CITATION[CLOSE]
Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8) indicating that those holders registered would hold the land until the end of time. Hence, conjecturally, the surname is descended from the
tenant of the lands of Maris, Richard of Maris held estates and who was recorded in the
Domesday Book census of 1086. They were of Lemarais in Normandy.
Early History of the Marison family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Marison research.
Another 201 words (14 lines of text) covering the years 1191, 1199, and 1273 are included under the topic Early Marison History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Marison Spelling Variations
Spelling variations of this family name include: Marris, Marriss, Maris, Mariss, Mares, Marais and many more.
Early Notables of the Marison family (pre 1700)
More information is included under the topic Early Marison Notables in all our
PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Migration of the Marison family to the New World and Oceana
Some of the first settlers of this family name or some of its variants were: Mary Maris, who came to Virginia in 1650; Wm. Maris, who came to Virginia in 1661; George Maris, his wife Alice and their five children, who came to Pennsylvania in 1683.