Dunham

Etymology

Dunham is a place-name surname taken from one or more English villages called Dunham. The name is generally explained from Old English elements meaning “hill” or “down” plus “homestead” or “village,” so the literal sense is something like “the homestead by the hill.” Historical surname writers also noted that some bearers may have been linked to Norman places of the same name or to Norman usage after 1066.

History

Medieval records show people styling themselves “de Dunham” from counties such as Norfolk, Lincolnshire, Suffolk, and others. The surname was established early in England and later spread more widely as families moved, with later emigrants carrying it to North America. 19th-century writers sometimes discussed possible Norman connections, but the English place-name origin is the main explanation used in modern surname reference works.

Origin

Regions

Variant spellings

Fun fact

There are several English places called Dunham, so the surname can point to more than one original hometown.