Landham History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The name Landham has a long Anglo-Saxon heritage. The name comes from when a family lived in the region of Langham in various counties throughout England. 1

"There are places called Langham in cos. Essex, Suffolk, Norfolk, and Rutland. The baronet's family originated in the last-mentioned county. In 10. Edward I. Henry de Langham held three carucates of land in Langham, and from him the pedigree is regularly deduced." 2

Early Origins of the Landham family

The surname Landham was first found in Dorset where Walter de Langham was recorded in the Pipe Rolls fore 1201. Later, William de Langham was recorded in 1327 in the Subsidy Rolls for Leicestershire. 3

The Hundredorum Rolls for 1273 included: William de Langham, Suffolk; Henry de Longeham, Lincolnshire; and Dionis de Langham, Norfolk. 4

Over in Suffolk, Lambert de Langham was found there in the Subsidy Rolls for 1283. 3

Simon Langham (d. 1376), Archbishop of Canterbury, Chancellor of England, and Cardinal; "was born at Langham in Rutland. To judge from the wealth which he seems to have possessed, he was probably a man of good birth. He became a monk at St. Peter's, Westminster, possibly about 1335, but is not mentioned until 1346, when he represented his house in the triennial chapter of the Benedictines held at Northampton. In April 1349 he was made prior of Westminster, and on the death of Abbot Byrcheston on 15 May following succeeded him as abbot." (Nbio)

Early History of the Landham family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Landham research. Another 118 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1380, 1381, 1383, 1384, 1401, 1410, 1557, 1575, 1621 and 1647 are included under the topic Early Landham History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Landham Spelling Variations

Spelling variations in names were a common occurrence before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago. In the Middle Ages, even the literate spelled their names differently as the English language incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other European languages. Many variations of the name Landham have been found, including Lanham, Landham, Lavenham, Lavingham and others.

Early Notables of the Landham family

Notables of this surname at this time include: Richard Lavenham or Lavyngham (fl. 1380), Carmelite, was "born at Lavenham, Suffolk, and, after becoming a Carmelite friar at Ipswich, studied at Oxford, where he is said to have graduated D.D.; but in the colophon to his tract against John Purvey he is called simply 'magister' (Fasciculi Zizaniorum, p. 399, Rolls Ser.). Lavenham was afterwards prior of the Carmelite house at Bristol. He was confessor to Richard II, and a friend of Simon Sudbury, archbishop of Canterbury. De Villiers, on the authority of a reference in Polydore Vergil (p. 403, ed. 1557) to...
Another 166 words (12 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Landham Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Landham family

Families began migrating abroad in enormous numbers because of the political and religious discontent in England. Often faced with persecution and starvation in England, the possibilities of the New World attracted many English people. Although the ocean trips took many lives, those who did get to North America were instrumental in building the necessary groundwork for what would become for new powerful nations. Some of the first immigrants to cross the Atlantic and come to North America bore the name Landham, or a variant listed above: Henry Lanham settled in Maryland in 1758; William Lanham settled in Philadelphia in 1820.

Contemporary Notables of the name Landham (post 1700) +

Sonny Landham (1941-2017), American film actor and stunt man, best known for his role as tracker Billy Sole in Predator
Byron Landham, American jazz drummer

Citations +

Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print