Duhamel History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Netherlands
France
Germany

The Duhamel surname comes from an Old French word "hamel," which meant "homestead." It was likely first used as a name to describe someone who lived at a farm on the outskirts of a main town, or for someone that lived in a small village. 1

Early Origins of the Duhamel family

The surname Duhamel was first found in Normandy (French: Normandie), the former Duchy of Normandy, where this distinguished family held a family seat at Désert, Fougeroux, and St.-Etienne.

The name was first found in Normandy with Guillaume in 1066, and again with Richard in 1116. 2

They branched to the west at Bottelière in Brittany (French: Bretagne), and to the east to Artois where they held a family seat in Bellenglise, to St.-Rémy in Champagne where they were elevated to the Counts du Hamel. They also branched to Holland at Arnhem and Bois-le-duc. At Désert in Normandy they were elevated to the nobility in 1598. Many of the estates and titles were lost during the French Revolution which started in 1789.

Early History of the Duhamel family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Duhamel research. The years 1624, 1700, 1706, 1762 and 1782 are included under the topic Early Duhamel History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Duhamel Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Hamel, Hamell, Hamil, Hamill, Hammel, Hammell, Hammil, Hammill, Hamelin, Hamlin, du Hamel, du Hamell, duHamil, du Hamill, du Hammel, du Hammell, du Hammil and many more.

Early Notables of the Duhamel family

Notable amongst the family in this period was

Jean-Baptiste (Du Hamel, Duhamel or du Hamel) (1624-1706), a notable French cleric and natural philosopher and the first secretary of the Academie Royale des Sciences

Duhamel Ranking

In Quebec, Canada, the name Duhamel is the 851^st most popular surname. 3 However, in France, the name Duhamel is ranked the 285^th most popular surname with an estimated 13,840 people with that name. 4

Duhamel migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Duhamel Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Francois Nicolas Duhamel, aged 22, who landed in Louisiana in 1719 5

Duhamel Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Henry Duhamel, who was naturalized in Philadelphia in 1807
Flavan Duhamel, who arrived in Massachussetts in 1820

Contemporary Notables of the name Duhamel (post 1700) +

Denise Duhamel (b. 1961), American poet
Joshua David "Josh" Duhamel (b. 1972), American actor and former fashion model
Claire Duhamel (1925-2014), French film and stage actress
Henri Duhamel (1853-1917), French mountaineer, author and skiing pioneer
Antoine Duhamel (b. 1925), French composer, orchestra conductor and music teacher
François Duhamel (b. 1984), French professional footballer
Mathieu Duhamel (b. 1984), French footballer
Henri-Louis Duhamel du Monceau (1700-1782), French physician, naval engineer and botanist
Laurent Duhamel (b. 1968), French football referee
Georges Duhamel (1884-1966), French novelist
... (Another 4 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Citations +

Dionne, N.-E., Origine Des Familles Canadiennes-Français. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1969. Print.
Hozier, Charles D, and Antoine Bachelin-Delforenne. État présent De La Noblesse française (1883-1887): Contenant Le Distionnaire De La Noblesse Contemporaine Et Larmorial général De France, Dapres Les Manuscrits De Ch. D Hozier. Librairie Des Bibliophiles, 1884. Print.
"The first 1,000 family names by rank, Quebec (in French only)" Institut de la statistique du Quebec, https://statistique.quebec.ca/en/document/family-names-in-quebec/tableau/the-first-1000-family-names-by-rank-quebec
http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/nom/
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)