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| Origins Available: |
| | England |
The Altehan name has descended through the generations from the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture. Their name comes from having lived in an enclosed place. The surname Altehan literally means dweller at the old enclosure or dwelling.
The surname Altehan was first found in Essex, Suffolk and Yorkshire at Aldham. In all cases, the place name meant "the old homestead," or "homestead of a man called Ealda," from the Old English personal name + "ham." 1
Aldham, Essex and Aldham, Suffolk were both listed in the Domesday Book of 1086 and both were listed under the same spelling, Aldeham. 2
Another branch of the family was found at Elford in Staffordshire. "Before the Conquest the manor [of Elford] belonged to Earl Algar, and in the reign of Henry III. was held by William de Alderne, whose descendants continued to enjoy it until the marriage of the heiress of Sir John Alderney with the Stanleys, when the property passed to that family." 3
Aldhelm (640?-709), was Bishop of Sherborne, the son of Kenten. "Aldhelm was no less great as a builder than as a scholar. He built a church dedicated to SS. Peter and Paul to be the head church of his monastery. He also built two other churches at Malmesbury. One of these, St. Mary's, succeeded St. Peter's as the chief church in the tenth century. " 4
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Altehan research. Another 50 words (4 lines of text) covering the years 1616, 1652 and 1660 are included under the topic Early Altehan History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Only recently has spelling become standardized in the English language. As the English language evolved in the Middle Ages, the spelling of names changed also. The name Altehan has undergone many spelling variations, including Aldham, Aldam, Aldem, Aldum, Aldeham, Aldom, Eldham, Eldam, Eldum, Haldiman and many more.
Distinguished members of the family include Thomas Aldham or Aldam (c. 1616-1660), an English Quaker who was imprisoned in York in 1652 for speaking in a "steeple-house" (church), and fined 40 shillings for refusing to pay...
Another 35 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Altehan Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
To escape the unstable social climate in England of this time, many families boarded ships for the New World with the hope of finding land, opportunity, and greater religious and political freedom. Although the voyages were expensive, crowded, and difficult, those families that arrived often found greater opportunities and freedoms than they could have experienced at home. Many of those families went on to make significant contributions to the rapidly developing colonies in which they settled. Early North American records indicate many people bearing the name Altehan were among those contributors: Daniel Aldam aged 27 who settled in Maryland in 1775.