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Re: Meaning
The only thing I came up with was that 'parme' in French means violet or blue ...Parmesan as in the cheese looks related. The word comes from the Italian town of Parma ...but I don't know the origins of that name. If I had to guess, I'd say it's roots are Latin or pre-Latin which are often the base for many names in all Romance languages.

The name also seems quite common in England, which may either have come from France via the Normans or perhaps there is some Germanic origin ...anyone else?
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Actually the french surnames Parmentier and Parmantier have the same meaning as Parmiter.
The Parma colour it is a violet (mauve). The name came into use only at the beginnig of last century.
The origin of name Parma is obscure: it is considered Etruscan so long before latin times.
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This is a variant of Parmenter, an occupational surname for one who made ornaments for clothing. It is in fact an English surname, and parmenter is an Old English word.
See http://parmenter-fam-assn.org/p1d_surnamesp.htm
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