Welden

Recorded in several spellings including: Van der Velden, Velden, Vellden, Veldens, Von Welden, Von Welldun, and Welden, this is a Dutch-German surname. It may be locational from a place originally called Welldun, in Zusmarshausen, Germany, or Velden in the Netherlands. More likely it is topographical from residence by a spring on a hill, from the pre 7th century words waella dun, although another proposal is that it describes a person who lives on a hilly veldt or grazing area. The first recording of the surname in any form may be that of Hainrich von Helldun, who was probably the village lord of the manor of Welldun, Germany, in the year 1424. Locational surnames by their nature tend to be either 'from' names. That is to say names given to people after they left their original homes, and moved elsewhere, or as in this case above, they relate to land ownership and nobility. This is particularly so with the Germanic "von", although less so with the Dutch "van" or "van der". Examples of the surname recording taken from surviving church registers of the 18th century from both countries include: Jacobus Veldens, at Issum in the Rheinland, who was christened there on October 24th 1629, and Melte van der Velden, who married Anjke Slof at Aalsmeer, Noord Holland, on September 29th 1711. Another recording is that of Matthias Vellden, the son of Bertrami Vellden, christened at Lohn Katholic church, Rheinland, on September 26th 1727.