Lyghan History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

The history of the Lyghan name began with the ancient Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. The name is derived from the baptismal name for the son of Leman, which was taken from the personal name Liefman. 1

Early Origins of the Lyghan family

The surname Lyghan was first found in Suffolk at Wenhaston, a parish, in the union and hundred of Blything. "The family of Leman had a [family] seat here. The church is an ancient structure in the decorated English style, with a square embattled tower, and contains several monuments to the Leman family." 2

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 provided some of the earliest records of the family, typically with ancient spellings: Leman Bru in Norfolk; Alan filius Leman in Cambridgeshire; Eldred Leman in Somerset; and Thomas Letman in Oxfordshire. 3

Early History of the Lyghan family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Lyghan research. Another 83 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1185, 1616, 1637, 1645, 1660, 1667, 1690, 1695, 1701 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Lyghan History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Lyghan Spelling Variations

Sound was what guided spelling in the essentially pre-literate Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Also, before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Therefore, spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Lyghan family name include Leaman, Leamen, Leman, Lemon, Lemmon, Leemon, Limon and many more.

Early Notables of the Lyghan family

Notables of the family at this time include Sir John Leman, Lord Mayor of London in 1616; Sir William Leman, 1st Baronet (died 1667), an English politician who sat in the House of...
Another 32 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Lyghan Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Lyghan family to Ireland

Some of the Lyghan family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 57 words (4 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Lyghan family

For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, the Canadas, the America colonies, and many of smaller tropical colonies in the hope of finding better lives abroad. Although the passage on the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving, those families that survived the trip often went on to make valuable contributions to those new societies to which they arrived. Early immigrants bearing the Lyghan surname or a spelling variation of the name include : John Leeman settled in Virginia in 1751; Sarah Leeman settled in Virginia in 1651; Joseph, Thomas and George Leaman all arrived in Philadelphia between 1840 and 1860..

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, 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)