Fallanche

This very unusual name appears to be French and this may be so, however the earliest recordings in Britain are of Italian origins as show below. It will also be noted that between 1863 and 1867 the name spelling was altered either deliberately or by accident. The derivation is almost certainly from the French "Fallon" which itself is believed to be a variant of the Gaelic "Fallamhaim" - meaning "The leadon". This certainly suggests a very well travelled name. The name recordings in England include Eugenie Fallanche, the sister of Helen (below), and second daughter of Simon Fallance but recorded like Helen, as Fallanchi (patronymic - son of Fallon) in 1863. Eugenies christening was also at St. Annes church, Westminster on February 24th 1867. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Helen Fallanchi, which was dated February 22nd 1863, christened at St. Annes church, Westminster, during the reign of Queen Victoria, "The Great White Queen", 1837 - 1901. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.