Was my surname about in 1066

Question

Was my surname about in 1066

Answer 1

You were living in 1066?

Don't you remember?

If you want to know your family history, you will have to research your ancestry.

And going back that far you will many ancestors to look for.

Answer 2

Probably not.  Europeans did not have a surname until the last millennium. Most had one in England by the end of the 14th century.  They were based on a)being the son of someone b)occupation c)where they lived d) some characteristic about them.  When they got through it wasn't impossible for legitimate sons of the same man to have a different surname and still they could have each shared their surname with others not part of their family.

Also it was a couple of more centuries before, in many cases, the same surname was passed down to each generation.