Aldiss is a name that came to
England in the 11th century wave of migration that was set off by the
Norman Conquest of 1066. Aldiss comes from the Old English given name
Aldus. Ald, the first part of the name, means
old.Early Origins of the Aldiss family
The surname Aldiss was first found in the counties of
Norfolk,
Suffolk and
Lincolnshire in the south east of
England, where they held a
family seat from very ancient times. Soon after, Rudolphus Aldous was recorded in
Yorkshire in 1168 as holding considerable estates and lands, and Robert Aldous was recorded in
Norfolk in 1230.
Early History of the Aldiss family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Aldiss research.
Another 166 words (12 lines of text) covering the year 1284 is included under the topic Early Aldiss History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Aldiss Spelling Variations
Before the last few
hundred years the English language had no fixed system of spelling rules. For that reason,
spelling variations occurred commonly in Anglo Norman surnames. Over the years, many variations of the name Aldiss were recorded, including Aldis, Aldous, Aldhouse, Aldus, Aldiss, Oldis and many more.
Early Notables of the Aldiss family (pre 1700)
More information is included under the topic Early Aldiss Notables in all our
PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Migration of the Aldiss family to the New World and Oceana
The unstable environment in
England at this time caused numerous families to board ships and leave in search of opportunity and freedom from persecution abroad in places like
Ireland,
Australia, and particularly the New World. The voyage was extremely difficult, however, and only taken at great expense. The cramped conditions and unsanitary nature of the vessels caused many to arrive diseased and starving, not to mention destitute from the enormous cost. Still opportunity in the emerging nations of Canada and the United States was far greater than at home and many went on to make important contributions to the cultures of their adopted countries. An examination of many early immigration records reveals that people bearing the name Aldiss arrived in North America very early: Nathan Aldis who settled in Massachusetts, 1640; he was made freeman 1640 and was a Deacon of the town. He died March 15; 1670; had at least two sons from which many of the North American family name descended..
Contemporary Notables of the name Aldiss (post 1700)
- Brian Wilson Aldiss OBE (1925-2017), English author, anthologist and critic, primarily involved with science fiction, Grand Master by the Science Fiction Writers of America in 2000 and inducted by the Science Fiction Hall of Fame in 2004; he received two Hugo Awards, one Nebula Award, and one John W.
Campbell Memorial Award