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I've recently had occasion to ponder the differences and similarities of the English surname "Parmer". Very often, and in some official genealogical references, these surnames are said to be equivalent. Their origins were in Normandy and the name, meaning "Palm bearer", crossed the English channel with William the Conqueror.
However, it seems that the names actually diverged early on, and stayed distinction, despite some specific exceptions. This project is an attempt to enumerate those exceptions.
The surname "Palmer" became, apparently pretty quickly, the overwhelmingly popular spelling. "Parmer"s, however, maintained their surnames for many generations, and also to the present day. However, I know of a few cases where a conscious name change was undertaken, and Parmers became Palmers. I don't know of any conscious name changes that went the other way.
It is thus possible to look at lineages where a Parmer seems to be the descendant of a Palmer and realize that something is very probably wrong. People just didn't change their name from Palmer to Parmer, although the reverse was certainly true upon occasion.
The one probable case I know of a Parmer->Palmer switch was John Parmer . Also, Saxon Palmer .