Family name origins & meanings
- English : from Old English æ{dh}eling ‘prince’, a derivative of æ{dh}el ‘noble’. This word was commonly used as a byname among Anglo-Saxons before and after the Norman Conquest, and was in use for a time as a personal name. The surname derives from this use rather than from a nickname; still less does it denote descent from noble Anglo-Saxon blood.