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Lanning History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Citations

Lanning History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The illustrious surname Lanning is classified as a habitation surname, which was originally derived from a place-name, and is one form of surname belonging to a broader group called hereditary surnames. Habitation names were derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads. Topographic names, form the other broad category of surnames that was given to a person who resided near a physical feature such as a hill, stream, church, or type of tree.

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. Lanning is a place-name from in Lanyon, in Cornwall. This makes it a habitational name, which is a type of and is derived from an already existing place-name. There is little doubt that this family had their origin in Brittany; however, the Cornish place-name was in place long before this family came to England. However, it is quite possible that the place-name has similar roots in both Brittany and Cornwall, as the Cornish and Breton languages are quite similar.

Early Origins of the Lanning family

The surname Lanning was first found in Cornwall where they settled in Lanyon. They entered England with Queen Isabella, King Edward II's bride, from Brittany where they also held the lands of Lanyon. Another source claims that the name was in fact Norman having derived from the town of Lannion in Brittany. 1 In this case, they must have settled during the time of Edward II. Their estate was also named Lanyon.

"Another barton called Lanyon, [in the parish of Gwinear, Cornwall] took its name from a branch of an ancient family so called, and who continued to possess it from the reign of Edward II. until within a few years past. Hals, speaking of the family of Lanyon, says, that 'they came first into England with Isabel wife of Edward II. and settled themselves in those parts; among which, Lanyon's posterity have ever since flourished in genteel degree, between a justice of the peace, and a hundred constable.' About the year 1785, Lanyon was sold to the late John Thomas, Esq. of Tregolls. by whose sister it was carried in marriage to Admiral Spry, whose property it still remains. The elder branch of the Lanyon family is become extinct; but the descendants of the younger still continue. Of this younger branch Mr. Tobias Lanyon, surgeon of Camborne, is the present representative; by whose younger brothers the estate is still occupied." 2

Early History of the Lanning family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Lanning research. Another 156 words (11 lines of text) covering the year 1765 is included under the topic Early Lanning History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Lanning Spelling Variations

Since the Old and Middle English languages lacked definite spelling rules, Breton surnames have many spelling variations. Latin and French, which were the official court languages, were also influential on the spelling of surnames. The spelling of surnames was rarely consistent in medieval times, and scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded rather than adhering to any specific spelling rules. Therefore, it was common to find the same individual referred to with different spellings of their surname in the ancient chronicles. Moreover, a large number of foreign names were brought into England after the Norman Conquest, which accelerated and accentuated the alterations to the spelling of various surnames. The name has been spelled Lannyon, Lanyon, Lanyan, Lannyan, Lanion, Lannion, Lanine and many more.

Early Notables of the Lanning family

More information is included under the topic Early Lanning Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Lanning Ranking

In the United States, the name Lanning is the 4,554^th most popular surname with an estimated 7,461 people with that name. 3

Lanning migration to the United States +

Some of the first immigrants to cross the Atlantic and come to North America carried the name Lanning, or a variant listed above:

Lanning Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Franz Lanning, aged 42, who landed in Missouri in 1841 4
Hermann Leopold Lanning, aged 30, who arrived in Missouri in 1841 4
Jantje Lanning, aged 11, who landed in New York, NY in 1847 4
Mann Lanning, aged 22, who arrived in New York, NY in 1847 4
Al Lanning, aged 29, who landed in New York, NY in 1847 4
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Lanning migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Lanning Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Dennis Lanning, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Aden" in 1849 5

Lanning 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:

Lanning Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Edward A. Lanning, aged 20, a smith, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Collingwood" in 1875

Contemporary Notables of the name Lanning (post 1700) +

Lester Alfred "Red" Lanning (1895-1962), American Major League Baseball pitcher and outfielder who played for the Philadelphia Athletics during the 1916 season
Howard Lanning, American astronomer, eponym of 61913 Lanning, a main-belt minor planet
Lorne Lanning, American game designer, director, writer and voice actor
John Young Lanning (1910-1989), American Major League Baseball pitcher from 1936 to 1947
Frank Lanning (1872-1945), American silent film actor who appeared in 84 films between 1910 and 1934
William Mershon Lanning (1849-1912), American Republican Party politician, Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New Jersey (1903-1904)
Lauren Chandler Lanning (b. 1983), American beauty queen from Houston, Texas, Miss Texas USA (2006) Miss USA 2006 pageant contestant
Spencer Davis Lanning (b. 1988), American football punter for the Cleveland Browns
Justin Lanning, American singer and songwriter, best known for his single Take My Breath Away in 2008
Dave Lanning (1938-2016), English sports commentator and journalist, former commentator for Sky Sports' coverage of the Professional Darts Corporation tournaments
... (Another 3 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Citations +

Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Hutchins, Fortescue, The History of Cornwall, from the Earliest Records and Traditions to the Present Time. London: William Penaluna, 1824. 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)
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) Aden from London via Plymouth Adealide Arriving September 12th 1849. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1849AdenRegister.htm