Contents [hide]

Wallen History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Motto Suggested Reading Citations

Wallen History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Sweden
Wales

The Wallen surname comes from the Anglo-Norman personal name Walweyn, the Old German forename Waldwin, or the Old English personal name Wealdwine, which means power-friend. 1

Early Origins of the Wallen family

The surname Wallen was first found in Pembrokeshire (Welsh: Sir Benfro), a county in south-west Wales, anciently part of the Welsh kingdom of Deheubarth, where the family claim descent from Gualgnain or Gwalwynne, who was King Arthur's sister's son, as attested by historians William of Malmesbury, and Robert of Gloucester. The name traces its roots to Normandy where Geoffry Wawein was listed there in 1198. 2

The Domesday Book lists the name as Walduinus in Staffordshire. 1 Later in 1205, Welwin was listed in Essex.

John Wallensis, Walensis or Galensis (fl. 1215) was a Welsh canon lawyer who taught at Bologna, and wrote glosses and another John Wallensis or Waleys (fl. 1283), was a Franciscan, described as 'of Worcester' in a manuscript of his 'Summa Collectionum' at Peterhouse. 3

Thomas Wallensis or Gualensis (d. 1255), was a Welsh divine, Bishop of St. David's, former a canon of Lincoln in 1235. 3

Early History of the Wallen family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Wallen research. Another 140 words (10 lines of text) covering the years 1066, 1336, 1342, 1343, 1379, 1389, 1600, 1647 and 1681 are included under the topic Early Wallen History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Wallen Spelling Variations

The Welsh have an extremely large amount of spelling variations of their native surnames to their credit. It was up to the priest or the scribe taking the official records to determine how the spoken name was to be made literal. As time progressed, the old Brythonic names of Wales were recorded in English, which was especially problematic since the English language had extreme difficulty recording the highly inflected sounds of Cymraeg. Spelling variations were, however, also carried out according to an individual's design: a branch loyalty within the family, a religious adherence, or even patriotic affiliations could be indicated by spelling variations of one's name. The spelling variations of the name Wallen have included Walwyn, Wallwyn, Wallin, Walwin and others.

Early Notables of the Wallen family

Prominent amongst the family during the late Middle Ages was Richard Walwayn, High Sheriff of Herefordshire (1336-1342), John Walwayn, High Sheriff of Herefordshire in 1343; John Walwayne, High Sheriff of Herefordshire in 1379; Sir Malcolm Walwyn of Ledbury and William Walwyn (c. 1600-1681), an English...
Another 45 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Wallen Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Wallen Ranking

In the United States, the name Wallen is the 4,322^nd most popular surname with an estimated 7,461 people with that name. 4

Wallen migration to the United States +

Many Welsh families joined their Scottish and Irish neighbors during the late 1800s and early 1900s in seeking refuge in North America. Like the Irish and Scottish, many Welsh anxiously awaited the work, freedom, and opportunities that they believed lay in North America. Those who did journey over to the United States and what became known as Canada often realized those dreams, but only through much toil and perseverance. Whenever and however these Welsh immigrants arrived in North America, they were instrumental in the creation of the industry, commerce, and cultural heritage within those two developing nations. In the immigration and passenger lists a number of early immigrants bearing the name Wallen were found:

Wallen Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Mr. Ralph Wallen who arrived in Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1623 aboard the ship "Anne" 5
Mrs. Joyce Wallen who arrived in Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1623 aboard the ship "Anne" 5
Ralph Wallen, who landed in Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1638 6

Wallen Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Elias Wallen, aged 28, who landed in Georgia in 1812 6
Joseph Wallen, aged 22, who landed in Georgia in 1812 6
Knud Danielson Wallen, aged 36, who arrived in New York, NY in 1837 6
J Wallen, aged 22, who arrived in Mobile, Ala in 1851 6
William Wallen, who arrived in Mobile, Ala in 1860 6

Wallen migration to Australia +

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

Wallen Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. William Wallen, British convict who was convicted in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Competitor" 18th March 1823, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 7
Mr. James Wallen, English convict who was convicted in Surrey, England for 14 years, transported aboard the "Aurora" on 3rd November 1833, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 8
William Henry Wallen, aged 29, who arrived in South Australia in 1851 aboard the ship "Catherine" 9
William Henry Wallen, aged 29, a carpenter, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Catherine" in 1851 9

Contemporary Notables of the name Wallen (post 1700) +

Morgan Cole Wallen (b. 1993), American country music singer and songwriter who competed in the sixth season of The Voice
Norman "Norm" Edward Wallen (1918-1994), born Norman Edward Walentowski, American Major League Baseball player
Dick Wallen (b. 1936), former American football player
Shade Wallen, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Oklahoma, 1936 10
S. E. Wallen, American Republican politician, Delegate to Republican National Convention from Oklahoma, 1920 10
Robert Y. Wallen, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Delaware, 1912 10
Jesse Wallen, American politician, Member of North Carolina House of Commons from Madison County, 1862-63 10
August Wallen, American politician, Dry Candidate for Delegate to Michigan convention to ratify 21st amendment from Ontonagon District, 1933 10
Gary Wallen (b. 1955), former English cricketer
Ashley Wallen, Australian choreographer
... (Another 1 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

The Wallen Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Drwy rynwedd gward
Motto Translation: In this cause I would bleed.

Citations +

Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
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/
Pilgrim Ship's of 1600's. Retrieved January 6th 2023 from https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/shiplist.htm
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)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 5th March 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/competitor
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 20th August 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/aurora
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) CATHERINE 1851. Retrieved http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1851Catherine.htm
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, December 11) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html