The name is derived from Mabb, a pet form of Mabel,
itself a derivative of Amabel or Amabella from the Latin Amabilis,
meaning ‘The Loveable One’. In this case the surname means the ‘son
of Mabb’ or ‘little Mabb’ (petit Mabb from Norman French.)
The name is first recorded as a personal name as in
Mabota Ryder – 1379 in the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls, the surname
developments being Mabot – 1509 Oxford and Mabbett – 1646
Somerset.
Family names as hereditary surnames did not come into
general use until after the Norman Conquest of 1066. The Normans
introduced National Taxation to England, which they called the POLL
TAX; in consequence the need for surnamed for identification purposes.
The first recorded spelling of the family name is
shown to be that of Richard Mabot, which was dated 1509 – Oxford
County Pipe Rolls, during the reign of Henry VII (Henry Tudor 1485 –
1510)
Scotland, Ireland and Wales obtained formal records
later than England and this is reflected in the recordings. All
surnames of every Country have been subject to changes owing to
dialect, Civil War and poor spelling.