Danan History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Danan is a name whose history is connected to the ancient Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. The name is derived from when the Danan family once lived in Dinham, a hamlet in the county Monmouthshire. 1

Early Origins of the Danan family

The surname Danan was first found in Monmouthshire. However, another source points to Devon and Cornwall as the origin of the family. In this case, Barons Dinham, and De Dinant, claim descent from the Viscounts Dinant of Bretagne, France. 2

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 has two listings in Devon: Oliver de Dynham; and Robert de Dyncham as both holding lands there at that time. 1

The manor of Bodarle or Bodardle, in the parish of Lanlivery, Cornwall belonged in the reign of Richard I. In 1259, it was conveyed by Isolda de Cardinham to Oliver de Dinan, in whose posterity it continued for several generations. 3

Early History of the Danan family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Danan research. Another 78 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1295, 1320, 1433, 1460, 1486, 1501, 1765 and 1784 are included under the topic Early Danan History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Danan Spelling Variations

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 Danan family name include Dynham, Dinan, Dinham, Dinat, Dyneham and others.

Early Notables of the Danan family

Distinguished members of the family include Sir John Dynham, 1st Baron Dynham, (c. 1433-1501) was made High Sheriff of Devon and Lord Chancellor of Ireland in 1460, Lord High Treasurer of England in 1486, an English peer and politician, served as councillor to Edward IV, Richard III and Henry VII. Charles Dignum, son of a master tailor, was born at Rotherhithe in 1765. His father, being a Roman Catholic, placed him when a boy in the choir of the Sardinian ambassador's chapel in Duke Street, Lincoln's Inn Fields, where his fine voice attracted the attention of Samuel Webbe, the glee composer...
Another 131 words (9 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Danan Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Danan family

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 Danan surname or a spelling variation of the name include: Thomas Dinham, who came to Virginia in 1731; George Dinham, who arrived in New England in 1763; as well as Daniel, James, Michael, and Thomas Dinan, who all settled in Philadelphia between 1840 and 1860..

Citations +

Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
Hutchins, Fortescue, The History of Cornwall, from the Earliest Records and Traditions to the Present Time. London: William Penaluna, 1824. Print