Lethaby History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

The name Lethaby sprang from the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture of Britain. It comes from when the family lived in the region of Lathbury near Newport. Lethaby is a habitation name from the broad category of surnames that were derived from place-names. They were derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads. Other local names are derived from the names of houses, manors, estates, regions, and entire counties.

Early Origins of the Lethaby family

The surname Lethaby was first found in Buckinghamshire at Lathbury, a village and civil parish in the Borough of Milton Keynes, in the union of Newport-Pagnell, hundred of Newport. This parish which is almost surrounded by the river Ouse, comprises about 1,200 acres. The place dates back to the Domesday Book where it was listed as Lateberie and literally meant "fortification built with laths or beams" having derived from the Old English words laett + burh. 1

There is a grand manor house which dates back to at least 1272. Later, some of the family were found at Egginton in Derbyshire. "The manor [of Egginton] afterwards vested in the family of Lathbury, of whom a coheiress brought a moiety to the Leighs; and on the death of Sir Henry Leigh in the reign of James I., the estate passed to his daughter Anne." 2

Early History of the Lethaby family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Lethaby research. Another 224 words (16 lines of text) covering the years 1086, 1093, 1153, 1273, 1510, 1537, 1578, 1579, 1600, 1609 and 1798 are included under the topic Early Lethaby History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Lethaby 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 Lethaby include Lathbury, Lathebury, Lathbiry, Lathebyr, Lathebyre, Lathburye, Lathburie and many more.

Early Notables of the Lethaby family

Another 27 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Lethaby Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Lethaby 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:

Lethaby Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mr. John Lethaby, (b. 1830), aged 49, British settler travelling from Plymouth aboard the ship "Stad Haarlem" arriving in Lyttleton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 14th April 1879 3
Mr. Thomas Lethaby, (b. 1862), aged 17, British settler travelling from Plymouth aboard the ship "Stad Haarlem" arriving in Lyttleton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 14th April 1879 3
Miss Charlotte Lethaby, (b. 1866), aged 13, British settler travelling from Plymouth aboard the ship "Stad Haarlem" arriving in Lyttleton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 14th April 1879 3

Contemporary Notables of the name Lethaby (post 1700) +

William Richard Lethaby (1857-1931), English architect

Citations +

Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html