Hebden Family Genealogy
Family Trees and data for Hebden, Hebdon, Hebdin,
Hibden, Hepton, Ebden. Ebdon and Webden,
Collectively known as The Hebden Clan
Copyright 2018 Hebdens.com
The Hebden Families of today certainly enjoy a rich mixture of bloodlines, Celtic, Anglo Saxon and in the 10th century,
Norsemen from west Scotland. The ancestry of early generations is complicated and incomplete. Variations of the
name include Hebdon, Hebdin, Hepden, Hibdon, Ebden, Ebdon and Epton. What follows is a considerable
simplification of the lineage, but online sources are available and the lines of descent can be traced reasonably
quickly, even if understanding them might take a little longer!
Wild Dog Rose (Rosa Canina) and
the hips containing the seed of the
plant
The name “Hebden” has two components, “Hep” or “Heope” - Old English
for a wild Rosehip, and “Denu” - Old English for a wooded valley. Hence
Hepden, “a valley where Rose-hips grow”. The name “Hebden” is
locational and is linked to Hebden, a village in Wharfedale, North
Yorkshire. The variations of the name (see below) occur largely because
of local accents and recording before standarised spelling became the
norm in the late 19th and early 20th Centuries.
Hebden (the Village) is not the same place as Hebden Bridge, where a
bridge was built to carry a pack-horse trail from Halifax to Burnley across
Hebden Beck. In the 19th and 20th centuries the fast-flowing Hebden
Beck was used to power weaving mills producing Hebden Cord, a strong
and durable cloth used to make trousers. During the Industrial
revolution Hebden Bridge grew steadily, but it is now better known for
tourism, the Arts and as a dormitory town for larger towns on both sides
of the Pennines.
According to taliesin-arlien.net there were 3,873 people with the Hebden surname or one of its derivatives alive in
England, Wales and the Isle of Man in 2002. The total comprised Hebden (1,097), Hebdon (334), Hepden (188), Hepton
(495), Hebdin (less than 4), Ebdon (458), Epton (691), and Ebden (207).
The figures have been adjusted to allow for various statistical factors, but give a reasonable indication of actual
numbers with a particular surname.
See:
www.taliesin-arlein.net/names/search.php
A possible exception to the northern bias of Hebden Clan families can be found in the South-west of England, notably
in Avon, Somerset, Dorset, Devon, Cornwall, and the Channel Islands.
It is not known at this time whether the “Ebdons” of South-West England are related to the “Hebdens” of Northern
England. The “Ebdon” name could be locational and identified with the hamlet of Ebdon, now on the north-east edge
of Weston-Super-Mare (see map and inset below). It seems unlikely that Yorkshire Dales folk would have migrated to
Devon and Cornwall without good reason, but this has yet to be proved.
An early Ebdon baptism is recorded in Ottery St Mary, Devon on the 10th of March 1605. The child was christened Jane
Ebdon - her father’s name was William Ebdon. Between 1605 and 1630 the were 32 Devon births to at least 7 families
in Ottery St. Mary and Colyton. Not all of these children would have survived. This sample perhaps strengthens the
argument that these Ebdons migrated from Somerset rather than Yorkshire. From a northern migration, one would
have expected “Hebden” or other clan family names. A 300 mile trip seems a little unlikely, even if done in stages, and
would the destination have been planned or accidental? On balance, a migration of several families from Weston-
super-Mare seem more likely - but why?
It would be interesting to see if DNA sampling of “Yorkshire” Hebdens and “South West” Ebdons showed genetic
differences. The results might determine whether these two groups are genetically linked or separate family groups.
The South West Ebdon Families
The Hebden name has been linked to the Wharfedale (North Yorkshire) area since earliest times, and over the years
offshoots of the family have grown up in Burnsall, Conistone, Cracoe, Appletreewick, Stalling Busk and many towns
and villages in the area. Most (or All!) Hebdens living today will have some connection to Yorkshire and one of the
early family lines.
Variants of the Hebden name are Hebdon, Hepden, Hepton, Hebdin Ebdon, Ebden, Ebdin, and Webden. Webden
occurs when a hand-written capital ‘H’ is transcribed or copied as a capital ‘W’ and the error was perpetuated in
subsequent documents. In North America a common variant is Hibdon, but is rare on this side of the Atantic.
In this website the collective name referring to all the variants is The Clan.
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The Hamlet of Ebdon, Avon
The Hebden Family: Origins and History
Distribution of the Hebden Clan Name
