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Lanham History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Suggested Reading Citations

Lanham History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The origins of the Lanham name come from when the Anglo-Saxon tribes ruled over Britain. The name Lanham was originally derived from a family having 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 Lanham family

The surname Lanham 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 Lanham family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Lanham 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 Lanham History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Lanham Spelling Variations

Before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago, spelling variations of names were a common occurrence. Elements of Latin, French and other languages became incorporated into English through the Middle Ages, and name spellings changed even among the literate. The variations of the surname Lanham include Lanham, Landham, Lavenham, Lavingham and others.

Early Notables of the Lanham 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 Lanham Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Lanham Ranking

In the United States, the name Lanham is the 3,124^th most popular surname with an estimated 9,948 people with that name. 6

Lanham migration to the United States +

A great wave of immigration to the New World was the result of the enormous political and religious disarray that struck England at that time. Families left for the New World in extremely large numbers. The long journey was the end of many immigrants and many more arrived sick and starving. Still, those who made it were rewarded with an opportunity far greater than they had known at home in England. These emigrant families went on to make significant contributions to these emerging colonies in which they settled. Some of the first North American settlers carried this name or one of its variants:

Lanham Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Josias Lanham, who arrived in Maryland in 1668 7
John Lanham, who arrived in Maryland in 1678 7

Lanham Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Henry Lanham, who settled in Maryland in 1758

Lanham Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

William Lanham, who settled in Philadelphia in 1820

Lanham migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Lanham Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Benjamin Lanham a baker, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Sir George Grey" in 1864
Eva Lanham, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Ashmore" in 1882
George Lanham, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Ashmore" in 1882

Contemporary Notables of the name Lanham (post 1700) +

Charles C. Lanham (1928-2015), American businessman and politician, Member of the West Virginia Senate from 2004 to 2006
Edwin Lanham (1904-1979), American writer, grandson of S. W. T. Lanham
Major General Charles T. "Buck" Lanham (1902-1978), American soldier, the first American officer to lead a break through the Siegfried Line on September 14, 1944
Samuel Willis Tucker Lanham (1846-1908), American politician, 23rd Governor of Texas (1903-1907)
Henderson Lovelace Lanham (1888-1957), American politician and lawyer, Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Georgia (1947-1957)
Frederick Garland "Fritz" Lanham (1880-1965), American politician, Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas (1919-1947)
Major-General Charles Trueman Lanham (1902-1978), American Deputy Commandant of Armed Forces Staff College (1954) 8
Roy Lanham, American country and western singer
Robert Lanham (b. 1971), American satirist
Joe Lanham (b. 1981), American radio personality
... (Another 8 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

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
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)
Generals of World War II. (Retrieved 2012, April 2) Charles Lanham. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/Lanham/Charles_Trueman/USA.html