Alanson History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Scotland/England
England
Scotland

The history of the name Alanson began when it was derived from the given name Alan, meaning little rock. Patronymic surnames arose out of the vernacular and religious given name traditions. St. Alan was a Welsh and Breton saint and was very popular among the people of those two cultures.

Early Origins of the Alanson family

The surname Alanson was first found in Yorkshire where they held a family seat at Richmond, but following the pattern of many Norman and Breton families, junior branches of this distinguished name moved northward over the border into Scotland. They appeared to have settled in Dumbartonshire in Scotland. This is where we found the first records of the family. "Reginald filius Alani was a burgess of Aberdeen in 1317 and a few years later, another Ada filius Alani de Dunbretane witnessed a charter by Donald, earl of Lennox after 1334 and in the reign of Robert I the 20 pound land of Sproustoun was forfeited by John, Thomas, and William filii Alani. " 1

Further south in their native Yorkshire, Johannes Alynson and Robertus Alaynson were both listed in the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379. 2

Early History of the Alanson family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Alanson research. Another 173 words (12 lines of text) covering the years 1375, 1447, 1463, 1469, 1576, 1610, 1616, 1640, 1653 and 1656 are included under the topic Early Alanson History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Alanson Spelling Variations

There are many spelling variations of Breton surnames, because the Old and Middle English languages lacked definite spelling rules. The official court languages, which were Latin and French, were also influential on the spelling of a surname. Since the spelling of surnames was rarely consistent in medieval times, and scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded rather than adhering to any specific spelling rules, it was common to find references to one individual with many different spellings of their surname in the ancient chronicles. Moreover, a large number of foreign names were brought into England, which accelerated and accentuated the alterations to the spelling of various surnames. The name has been spelled Allanson, Alanson, Allansone, Alansone, Allansoune and many more.

Early Notables of the Alanson family

Notable of this family during the Middle Ages was Sir William Allanson (died 1656), an English merchant draper and politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1640 to 1653. He became a freeman of the...
Another 37 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Alanson Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Alanson migration to the United States +

An examination of many early immigration records reveals that people bearing the name Alanson arrived in North America very early:

Alanson Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Arthur Alanson, who landed in New York in 1837 3

Contemporary Notables of the name Alanson (post 1700) +

Ann Alanson (b. 1926), American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from California, 1960 (alternate), 1964; Member of Democratic National Committee from California, 1965-67 4
Henry Alanson Barnum (1883-1892), United States Civil War general from New York, recipient of the Medal of Honor
Brigadier-General Nathaniel Alanson Burnell (1897-1976), American Assistant Chief of Staff (G-4), 2nd Army (1947-1950) 5
Alburtis Alanson Carley (b. 1833), American Republican politician, Member of New York State Assembly from Cortland County, 1881-82; Chair of Cortland County Republican Party, 1886-90 6
Alanson Bigelow Houghton (1863-1941), American businessman, politician, and diplomat, United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom (1925-1929), United States Ambassador to Germany (1922-1925)
Alanson Morris, American Republican politician, Postmaster at Kirksville, Missouri, 1866-69
Alanson Woodworth, American politician, Member of New York State Assembly from Seneca County, 1846 7
Alanson Doty (1800-1866), American politician, Supervisor of Pitt Township, Michigan, 1836-37
Alanson Skinner (1794-1876), American politician, Member of New York State Senate 21st District, 1850-51 8
Alanson Hamlin, American politician, Mayor of Bridgeport, Connecticut, 1838-39 9

The Alanson Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Virtute et labore
Motto Translation: By valour and exertion.

Citations +

Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
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)
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, February 2) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
Generals of World War II. (Retrieved 2011, November 3) Nathaniel Burnell. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/Burnell/Nathaniel_Alanson/USA.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, December 9) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 2) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, August 17) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, January 26) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html