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The ancient history of the Ensten name begins with the ancient Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. The name is derived from when the family resided in either of the parishes named Henton, in the counties of Oxfordshire and Somerset.
The Oxfordshire liberty dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086 when it was first listed as Hentone. 1 The Somerset parish actually dates back further to Saxon times when it was known as Hentun in 1065. Both literally meant "farmstead where hens are kept," from the Old English "henn" + "tun." 2
The surname Ensten was first found in Hampshire where Adam de Henton was listed in the Pipe Rolls of 1200. Later, Laurence de Henton was found in the Assize Rolls of Somerset in 1258. 3
The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 had two listings of the family: William de Henton, Oxfordshire; and Alex, de Henton, Somerset. 4
Again in Somerset, we found two more early entries for the family: Hugh de Hentone; and Walter de Hentone, both were listed 1 Edward III (during the first year of King Edward III's reign.) 5
Simon Henton or Heinton (fl. 1360), Dominican, was born at Henton, near Winchester, became a Dominican friar, and eventually provincial of the order in England. 6
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Ensten research. Another 96 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1086, 1273 and 1545 are included under the topic Early Ensten History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Until quite recently, the English language has lacked a definite system of spelling rules. Consequently, Anglo-Saxon surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. Changes in Anglo-Saxon names were influenced by the evolution of the English language, as it incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other languages. Although Medieval scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded, so it is common to find one person referred to by several different spellings of his surname, even the most literate people varied the spelling of their own names. Variations of the name Ensten include Henton, Henston, Hennton, Hentone, Heanton and others.
More information is included under the topic Early Ensten Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Searching for a better life, many English families migrated to British colonies. Unfortunately, the majority of them traveled under extremely harsh conditions: overcrowding on the ships caused the majority of the immigrants to arrive diseased, famished, and destitute from the long journey across the ocean. For those families that arrived safely, modest prosperity was attainable, and many went on to make invaluable contributions to the development of the cultures of the new colonies. Research into the origins of individual families in North America revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Ensten or a variant listed above: Elias Henton, who sailed to Virginia in 1624; as did John Henton in 1652; Thomas Henton in 1655; Thomas Henton in 1658; Joane Henton in 1668 and Christopher Henton, in 1672..