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Lavenham is a name whose history is connected to the ancient Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. The name is derived from when the Lavenham family once lived in the region of Langham in various counties throughout England. 1
"There are places called Langham in cos. Essex, Suffolk, Norfolk, and Rutland. The baronet's family originated in the last-mentioned county. In 10. Edward I. Henry de Langham held three carucates of land in Langham, and from him the pedigree is regularly deduced." 2
The surname Lavenham was first found in Dorset where Walter de Langham was recorded in the Pipe Rolls fore 1201. Later, William de Langham was recorded in 1327 in the Subsidy Rolls for Leicestershire. 3
The Hundredorum Rolls for 1273 included: William de Langham, Suffolk; Henry de Longeham, Lincolnshire; and Dionis de Langham, Norfolk. 4
Over in Suffolk, Lambert de Langham was found there in the Subsidy Rolls for 1283. 3
Simon Langham (d. 1376), Archbishop of Canterbury, Chancellor of England, and Cardinal; "was born at Langham in Rutland. To judge from the wealth which he seems to have possessed, he was probably a man of good birth. He became a monk at St. Peter's, Westminster, possibly about 1335, but is not mentioned until 1346, when he represented his house in the triennial chapter of the Benedictines held at Northampton. In April 1349 he was made prior of Westminster, and on the death of Abbot Byrcheston on 15 May following succeeded him as abbot." (Nbio)
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Lavenham research. Another 118 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1380, 1381, 1383, 1384, 1401, 1410, 1557, 1575, 1621 and 1647 are included under the topic Early Lavenham History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
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 Lavenham family name include Lanham, Landham, Lavenham, Lavingham and others.
Notables of this surname at this time include:
For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, Canada, 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 Lavenham surname or a spelling variation of the name include: Henry Lanham settled in Maryland in 1758; William Lanham settled in Philadelphia in 1820.