Henningham History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

The Henningham surname is most likely taken from the name of a village in England called Hevingham, near the city of Norwich in Norfolk county, but there are other towns of similar names in England. The Saxon word "Ham" meant "village," and the Old Norse word "Hami" similarly referred to "homestead." It is the suffix -ham that leads one to believe that Henningham was originally a habitation name.

Early Origins of the Henningham family

The surname Henningham was first found in Norfolk at Hevingham, a village and civil parish in the union of Aylsham, hundred of South Erpingham. The first record of the place name was found in the Domesday Book of 1086 when it was listed as Heuincham 1 and literally meant "homestead of the family or followers of a man called Hefa," from the Old English personal name + "-inga" + "ham." 2

"Hevingham formerly belonged to the bishops of Norwich, one of whom, Walter de Suffield, in 1250 built a palace here, no trace of which now remains. " 3

Early History of the Henningham family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Henningham research. Another 129 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1273, 1414, 1498, 1547, 1577, 1601, 1604, 1633, 1640, 1653 and 1678 are included under the topic Early Henningham History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Henningham Spelling Variations

It is only in the last few hundred years that the English language has been standardized. For that reason, early Anglo-Saxon surnames like Henningham are characterized by many spelling variations. As the English language changed and incorporated elements of other European languages, even literate people changed the spelling of their names. Scribes and monks in the Middle Ages spelled names they sounded, so it is common to find several variations that refer to a single person. The variations of the name Henningham include: Heningham, Henyngham, Hevenyngham, Heveningham, Henygham, Henningham and many more.

Early Notables of the Henningham family

Notables of the family at this time include Sir John Hevenyngham, who was knighted in 1414 at Bury St. EdmundsSir John Henyngham was knighted at the Tower of London by King Edward IVSir Anthony Henygham was knighted in 1547 by King Edward VI; and William Heveningham (1604-1678), an English politician who sat in the House of Commons from...
Another 58 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Henningham Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Henningham family to Ireland

Some of the Henningham family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. More information about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Henningham migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Henningham Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. George Henningham, English convict who was convicted in Warwick, Warwickshire, England for life, transported aboard the "Elphinstone" on 27th May 1837, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 4
Mr. Joseph Henningham, English convict who was convicted in Warwick, Warwickshire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Earl Grey" on 27th July 1838, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 5

Contemporary Notables of the name Henningham (post 1700) +

John Henningham, Professor of Journalism at the University of Queensland in Australia, and author of "Institutions in Australian Society" and other works of Political Science

Citations +

Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 18th March 2022). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/elphinstone
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 17th August 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/earl-grey