The present generation of the Eddins family is only the most recent to bear a name that dates back to the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture of Britain. Their name comes from having lived in the region of Eden in Durham. The surname Eddins is a topographic surname, which was given to a person who resided near a physical feature such as a hill, stream, church, or type of tree. Habitation names form the other broad category of surnames that were derived from place-names. They were derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads. Other local names are derived from the names of houses, manors, estates, regions, and entire counties. As a general rule, the greater the distance between an individual and their homeland, the larger the territory they were named after. For example, a person who only moved to another parish would be known by the name of their original village, while people who migrated to a different country were often known by the name of a region or country from which they came.
The surname Eddins was first found in Suffolk. Hellaby Hall in Stainton, in the West Riding of Yorkshire was an ancient mansion on the property of Sir R. J. Eden, but is now a farmhouse. [1]
Some of the family have recently branched to Windleston in Durham. "It comprises by computation 1250 acres, and has been long the property of the Eden family, of whom Sir Robert Johnson Eden, Bart., rebuilt Windleston Hall about twenty years since [(1860s.)] " [1]
West Auckland in Durham also had some early records of the family. "The place gives the title of Baron to the family of Eden, who formerly resided here: the estates now belong to Sir R. J. Eden, Bart." [1]
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Eddins research. Another 92 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1270, 1521, 1576, 1521, 1535, 1544, 1544, 1546 and 1645 are included under the topic Early Eddins History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Until the dictionary, an invention of only the last few hundred years, the English language lacked any comprehensive system of spelling rules. Consequently, spelling variations in names are frequently found in early Anglo-Saxon and later Anglo-Norman documents. One person's name was often spelled several different ways over a lifetime. The recorded variations of Eddins include Eden, Edin, Edden, Edens and others.
Distinguished members of the family include Richard Eden (1521?-1576), English translator, born in Herefordshire about 1521, and studied at Queens' College, Cambridge, 1535-1544, under Sir Thomas Smith; he held...
Another 28 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Eddins Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Some of the Eddins 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.
Thousands of English families boarded ships sailing to the New World in the hope of escaping the unrest found in England at this time. Although the search for opportunity and freedom from persecution abroad took the lives of many because of the cramped conditions and unsanitary nature of the vessels, the opportunity perceived in the growing colonies of North America beckoned. Many of the settlers who survived the journey went on to make important contributions to the transplanted cultures of their adopted countries. The Eddins were among these contributors, for they have been located in early North American records: