Hudnall is a name of ancient Norman origin. It arrived in England with the Norman Conquest of 1066. Hudnall is a name that comes from the Norman name Odinet, from which the more commonly known Odo is derived. Apart from the aforementioned patronymic origin, the place name could also mean "pleasant valley," from the Welsh "hawdd" meaning "pleasant" or "peaceful" and "nant," a "glen or valley." [1]
The surname Hudnall was first found in Shropshire at Hodnet, a village and civil parish in the union of Drayton, in the hundred of North Bradford. [2]
The first record of the place name was found in the Domesday Book of 1086 where it was listed as Odenet. [3]
"The Hodnets, or Hodnetts, derive their name from the Shropshire parish of Hodnet. During the 13th century there was a powerful family in the county that took the name of De Hodenet from either the manor or the parish of the name." [4]
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Hudnall research. Another 120 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1116 and 1237 are included under the topic Early Hudnall History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Anglo-Norman names tend to be marked by an enormous number of spelling variations. This is largely due to the fact that Old and Middle English lacked any spelling rules when Norman French was introduced in the 11th century. The languages of the English courts at that time were French and Latin. These various languages mixed quite freely in the evolving social milieu. The final element of this mix is that medieval scribes spelled words according to their sounds rather than any definite rules, so a name was often spelled in as many different ways as the number of documents it appeared in. The name was spelled Hodenet, Hignett, Hignet, Hodnet, Hodnett, Hodenett, Hodinett, Hodinutt, Hodinut, Hodinott, Hodinot, Hoddenett, Hoddinet, Hoddinutt and many more.
More information is included under the topic Early Hudnall Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
In the United States, the name Hudnall is the 7,675th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. [5]
Some of the Hudnall family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 104 words (7 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Because of the political and religious discontent in England, families began to migrate abroad in enormous numbers. Faced with persecution and starvation at home, the open frontiers and generally less oppressive social environment of the New World seemed tantalizing indeed to many English people. The trip was difficult, and not all made it unscathed, but many of those who did get to Canada and the United States made important contributions to the young nations in which they settled. Some of the first North American settlers with Hudnall name or one of its variants: