[1] The name derives from Anglo-Norman caunter/cauntour, "singer, one who leads the singing", or from Latin cantor, referring to precentors in cathedrals or monasteries.
[2] Bearers of the name have historically been established in the South Devon towns of Ashburton and Tavistock[3] and villages of Widecombe in the Moor (from at least the 15th century)[4] and Staverton.
[5] A Caunter family of Widecombe emigrated to Ontario, Canada in the mid-19th century, where the name soon came to be spelled Counter.
[9] He discusses the family legends – and considers them just that – that the Devonshire Caunters are descended from Condor, Earl of Cornwall and that there is a connection with John the Chanter, a 12th-century Bishop of Exeter.
F. L. Caunter also refers to family notes that state that the alleged descendants from Condor "in the direct line settled in that part of the County called 'the South Hams,' & a younger branch retired to a more remote part of the County of Cornwall.