BEEMAN. BEMAN. Li former times, when mead or methlegn was a favourite beverage, the number of bees kept in England must have been much larger than now. Bce-jtarlts, or enclosures, exist in several parts of the country, though now appropriated to other uses. The keeper of such a jjark was called Custos Aphtm — " keeper of the bees" — whence Beeman. His duties are defined in the Gloss, of Services, Cott. M.S. Titus. A. XXVII. fol. 150. Ellis, Introd. Domesd. Among the Domesd. tenants of Herefordshire is a Custos Apium. In one instance, however, this surname is a known corruption of Beaumont.

Lower, Mark A (1860) Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom. London: J.R. Smith. Public Domain.