The name Bellanger was brought to England in the great wave of migration following the Norman Conquest of 1066. The Bellanger family lived in Nottingham in the midlands of England. However, the family was originally descended from the Bellengers, the Knights of Facomberg in Picardy, France and the name has been corrupted from the name of the French Boulanger family, who were chevaliers (knights) of Hainaut and Flanders.
The surname Bellanger was first found in Nottingham in the midlands of England where they held a family seat from very early times, and granted large estates in that shire, by William the Conqueror, their liege lord.
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Bellanger research. Another 89 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1200 and 1721 are included under the topic Early Bellanger History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Endless spelling variations are a prevailing characteristic of Norman surnames. Old and Middle English lacked any definite spelling rules, and the introduction of Norman French added an unfamiliar ingredient to the English linguistic stew. French and Latin, the languages of the court, also influenced spellings. Finally, Medieval scribes generally spelled words according to how they sounded, so one person was often referred to by different spellings in different documents. The name has been spelled Ballenger, Ballinger, Bellinger, Bellenger and others.
Another 28 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Bellanger Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Some of the Bellanger family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. More information about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
To escape the political and religious persecution within England at the time, many English families left for the various British colonies abroad. The voyage was extremely difficult, though, and the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving. But for those who made it, the trip was most often worth it. Many of the families who arrived went on to make valuable contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. An inquiry into the early roots of North American families reveals a number of immigrants bearing the name Bellanger or a variant listed above: