Show ContentsLam History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Lam family

The surname Lam was first found in Northumberland, where they were Lords of the manor of West Denton. The earliest record of this name in Scotland appears to be of Adam Lamb of Sympering, who witnessed a charter of lands in Grayden in c. 1288. Adam Lamb and Lambe fiz Austyn de Nibreim (Austin Lamb) both rendered homage in 1296 to King Edward I of England on his brief conquest of Scotland. Thomas Lambe was a tenant in Dumfriesshire in 1376. John Lambe of Scotland received twenty pounds from Richard II of England for killing Oweyn of Wales, "the King's enemy in France." Duncan Lam held a tenement in Edinburgh in 1392. A master Archibald Lame taught young monks at the Abbey of Arbroath in 1486. 1

Early History of the Lam family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Lam research. Another 113 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1279, 1391, 1398, 1420, 1423, 1565, 1607, 1619, 1634 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Lam History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Lam Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Lamb, Lambe, Lam, Mclamb and others.

Early Notables of the Lam family

Notable amongst the family name during their early history was

  • Andrew Lamb (1565?-1634), Scottish clergyman, Bishop of Brechin (1607-1619), and Bishop of Galloway (1619-1634.)...

Lam World Ranking

In the United States, the name Lam is the 1,217th most popular surname with an estimated 24,870 people with that name. 2 However, in Canada, the name Lam is ranked the 168th most popular surname with an estimated 20,902 people with that name. 3 And in Quebec, Canada, the name Lam is the 988th popular surname. 4 France ranks Lam as 1,962nd with 3,165 people. 5 Australia ranks Lam as 395th with 9,393 people. 6 Netherlands ranks Lam as 683rd with 2,726 people. 7

Ireland Migration of the Lam family to Ireland

Some of the Lam family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 50 words (4 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


United States Lam migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Lam Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • Rachel Lam, who settled in Virginia in 1635
Lam Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Johannes Lam, aged 6, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1748 8
Lam Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Peter T Lam, who landed in Baltimore, Maryland in 1847 8
  • Pietje T Lam, who arrived in Baltimore, Maryland in 1847 8
  • Adrianus T Lam, who arrived in Baltimore, Maryland in 1847 8
  • Cornelius T Lam, who landed in Baltimore, Maryland in 1847 8
  • Danl Lam, aged 24, who arrived in New York in 1854 8

Canada Lam migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Lam Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century
  • James Lam, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1823

Contemporary Notables of the name Lam (post 1700) +

  • Mrs. Teresa Christine Lam B.E.M., British Family Liaison Lead for Greater Manchester Police, was appointed Medallist of the British Empire Medal 29th December 2018 for services to Policing and to the community in Manchester 9
  • Sam Lam (b. 1987), Canadian soccer player
  • Patrick Richard Lam (b. 1968), retired New Zealand rugby union footballer
  • Adrian Lam (b. 1970), Australian rugby league football coach and former international player
  • Wilfedo Lam (1902-1982), Cuban painter
  • Peter Lam Both (b. 1972), Sudanese diplomat of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement

RMS Titanic
  • Mr. Ali Lam, aged 37, Chinese Third Class passenger from Hong Kong who sailed aboard the RMS Titanic and survived the sinking in collapsible C 10
  • Mr. Len Lam (d. 1912), aged 23, Chinese Third Class passenger from Hong Kong who sailed aboard the RMS Titanic and died in the sinking 10


The Lam Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Palma non sine pulvere
Motto Translation: The palm is not obtained without labour.


  1. Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
  2. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  3. "Surnames Meanings, Origins & Distribution Maps - Forebears." Forebears, https://forebears.io/surnames
  4. "The first 1,000 family names by rank, Quebec (in French only)" Institut de la statistique du Quebec, https://statistique.quebec.ca/en/document/family-names-in-quebec/tableau/the-first-1000-family-names-by-rank-quebec
  5. http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/nom/
  6. "Most Common Last Names in Australia." Forebears, https://forebears.io/australia/surnames
  7. "Most Common Last Names in Netherlands." Forebears, https://forebears.io/netherlands/surnames
  8. Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
  9. "Birthday and New Year Honours Lists (1940 to 2019)." Issue 62507, 28 December 2018 | London Gazette, The Gazette, Dec. 2018, www.thegazette.co.uk/honours-lists
  10. Titanic Passenger List - Titanic Facts. (Retrieved 2016, July 13) . Retrieved from http://www.titanicfacts.net/titanic-passenger-list.html


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