Chandra History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Scotland

Chandra is an Anglo-Saxon name. The name was originally given to a person who makes and sells candles. More rarely, the surname Chandra may have been applied to someone who had the responsibility of lighting the candles in a large house or someone who owed rent in the form of wax or candles. The surname Chandra is derived from the Old English words chaundeler and chandeler, which in turn come from the Old French word chandelier. This is derived from the late Latin word candelarius, which comes from the word candela, which means candle. This Latin word comes from the word candere, which means to be bright. 1

Early Origins of the Chandra family

The surname Chandra was first found in Yorkshire where the first record was that of the occupation: Nicholas de Malton, candelery 7 Edward II (Freemen of York.) Later the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 listed Matilda Candeler. The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 listed: Reginald le Chandeler, London; and William Candelarius, Leicestershire. 2

Another source notes that Matthew le Candeler from London, was also listed in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 and that William le Chandeler was found in the Assize Rolls for Essex in 1285. 3

Early History of the Chandra family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Chandra research. Another 141 words (10 lines of text) covering the years 1274, 1296, 1330, 1548, 1566, 1567, 1668, 1687, 1693, 1697, 1701, 1703, 1717, 1737, 1739, 1744, 1745, 1750, 1766, 1783, 1786, 1787, 1791, 1800, 1804, 1820, 1856, 1859, 1860, 1875 and 1881 are included under the topic Early Chandra History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Chandra Spelling Variations

One relatively recent invention that did much to standardize English spelling was the printing press. However, before its invention even the most literate people recorded their names according to sound rather than spelling. The spelling variations under which the name Chandra has appeared include Chandler, Chandlers, Channdler, Channdlers, Candler, Chaundler and many more.

Early Notables of the Chandra family

Notables of this surname at this time include: Edward Chandler (1668?-1750), Bishop of Durham, son of Samuel Chandler of Dublin. "He was educated at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, and in 1693 became M.A., was ordained priest, and appointed chaplain to Lloyd, bishop of Winchester. In 1697 he became prebendary of Lichfield; became D.D. in 1701, and in 1703 received the stall in Salisbury vacant by the death...
Another 66 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Chandra Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Chandra Ranking

In New Zealand, the name Chandra is the 629^th most popular surname with an estimated 1,129 people with that name. 4

Migration of the Chandra family

At this time, the shores of the New World beckoned many English families that felt that the social climate in England was oppressive and lacked opportunity for change. Thousands left England at great expense in ships that were overcrowded and full of disease. A great portion of these settlers never survived the journey and even a greater number arrived sick, starving, and without a penny. The survivors, however, were often greeted with greater opportunity than they could have experienced back home. These English settlers made significant contributions to those colonies that would eventually become the United States and Canada. An examination of early immigration records and passenger ship lists revealed that people bearing the name Chandra arrived in North America very early: John Chandler who settled in Virginia in 1623; followed by Arthur, Virginia 1623; Edmund Virginia 1630; Daniel Virginia in 1632; John, Maryland 1774; Mary, Virginia 1684.

Contemporary Notables of the name Chandra (post 1700) +

Subodh Chandra, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Ohio, 2008 5
Ananda Chandra Barua (1907-1983), Indian writer, poet, playwright, translator, journalist and actor from Assam
Binanda Chandra Barua (1901-1994), noted Indian writer and poet of Assamese literature
Govind Chandra Pande (1923-2011), well-known Indian scholar, philosopher and historian
Vinod Chandra Pande (1932-2005), Indian Civil Servant
Krishna Chandra Punetha (1951-2020), Indian politician and member of the Bharatiya Janata Party
Suresh Chandra Angadi (1955-2020), Indian politician, Minister of State for Railways (2019-2020)
Ram Chandra Dome (b. 1959), Indian politician and a leader of the Communist Party of India
Bankim Chandra Chatterjee (1838-1894), Indian writer
Sir Jagadis Chandra Bose (1858-1937), Indian physicist and botanist

Citations +

Harrison, Henry, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary Baltimore: Geneological Publishing Company, 2013. Print
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
"Most Common Last Names in New Zealand." Forebears, https://forebears.io/new-zealand/surnames
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 3) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html