Allen


Select Allen Surname Genealogy

Alan was originally a Breton name  St. Alan was a 5th century bishop in Quimper who had become a cult figure in medieval Brittany; and St. Alan was a 6th century Breton saint in Cornwall.  The Bretons who came with William the Conqueror spread the name in England.  It was being widely used in Lincolnshire in the late 12th century.  One Allen branch, later to be found in Portugal, originated from Alanus de Buckenhall in Staffordshire. 

The Scottish variant of Allen is Allan, from the Gaelic MacAileain.   There is a village in Berwickshire called Allan from which Allans came.

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Thomas Allen,from Staffordshire, was a 16th century mathematician.
Richard Allen, born a slave, was the founder of the African Methodist Episcopal Church in 1784.
Gracie Allen was an American comedienne who was the zany partner and comic foil for her husband George Burns.
Harry Allen was Britain's last hangman, officiating from 1941 to 1964.
Woody Allen, born Allan Konigsberg in Jewish Brooklyn, is the well-known American comedian, writer, and film director.
Paul Allen was co-founder, with Bill Gates, of Microsoft.

Select Allens Today
  • 113,000 in the UK (most numerous in Hertfordshire)
  • 146,000 in America (most numerous in Texas)
  • 83,000 elsewhere (most numerous in Canada)