Show ContentsLengel History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The name Lengel comes from a name for a person who was considered long or tall. The name occurs in Old English charters as early as 972 A.D, as Aetheric thes langa. Of the many surnames in England, the surname Lengel is considered among etymologists to be one of the oldest. It belongs to a broad and miscellaneous class of surnames. As a nickname surname Lengel could refer either directly or indirectly to a characteristic of the first person who used the name. They can describe the bearer's favored style of clothing, appearance, habits, or character.

Early Origins of the Lengel family

The surname Lengel was first found in Northumberland where they held a family seat from very ancient times.

Early History of the Lengel family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Lengel research. Another 201 words (14 lines of text) covering the years 1296, 1357, 1394, 1467 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Lengel History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Lengel Spelling Variations

Until quite recently, the English language has lacked a definite system of spelling rules. Consequently, Anglo-Saxon surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. Changes in Anglo-Saxon names were influenced by the evolution of the English language, as it incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other languages. Although Medieval scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded, so it is common to find one person referred to by several different spellings of his surname, even the most literate people varied the spelling of their own names. Variations of the name Lengel include Lang, Lange, Laing, Layng and others.

Early Notables of the Lengel family

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

Ireland Migration of the Lengel family to Ireland

Some of the Lengel family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 57 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 Lengel migration to the United States +

Searching for a better life, many English families migrated to British colonies. Unfortunately, the majority of them traveled under extremely harsh conditions: overcrowding on the ships caused the majority of the immigrants to arrive diseased, famished, and destitute from the long journey across the ocean. For those families that arrived safely, modest prosperity was attainable, and many went on to make invaluable contributions to the development of the cultures of the new colonies. Research into the origins of individual families in North America revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Lengel or a variant listed above:

Lengel Settlers in United States in the 20th Century
  • John A Lengel, aged 70, arrived in New York in 1920 aboard the ship "Noordam" from Rotterdam, Netherlands 1
  • John S. Lengel, aged 40, arrived in New York in 1920 aboard the ship "Allianca" from Cristobal, Canal Zone 1

Contemporary Notables of the name Lengel (post 1700) +

  • Paul L. Lengel, American Democratic Party politician, Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Pennsylvania, 1924 2
  • Guy R. Lengel, American Democratic Party politician, Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Pennsylvania, 1940 2


  1. Ellis Island Search retrieved 15th November 2022. Retrieved from https://heritage.statueofliberty.org/passenger-result
  2. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 7) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


Houseofnames.com on Facebook