Dalton Surname Meaning & Origin
What the Dalton last name means, where the surname began and how it spread.
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Meaning and origin of the Dalton last name
Meaning of the Dalton last name: valley settlement. Dalton is a surname from places in northern England meaning "valley settlement". In Ireland the last name came with the Anglo-Normans, and the Daltons, often written D'Alton, became lords of a district in Westmeath once called Dalton's Country. The surname is common in Ireland, Lancashire and Yorkshire. A curious detail: the apostrophe in D'Alton was a later flourish, added to make the name look more French.
Arms associated with the Dalton name
In Gaelic Ireland heraldry was often linked with a whole sept rather than one person, and the coat of arms associated with the Dalton name grew in that custom.
Get your full Dalton family history
This is only a glimpse of the Dalton story. The full Dalton history report goes much deeper into where the name began, who carried it and how the family spread, and it comes with a museum-style painted Dalton coat of arms. Get the full Dalton report.
Dalton name FAQ
What does the Dalton name mean?
Valley settlement. Common variants include D'Alton, Daulton, Dolton.
Where does the Dalton surname come from?
It originates in Ireland, and is also found in the United States, England and Australia.
Is there a Dalton coat of arms?
Arms were granted to individuals rather than to everyone with a surname. Herald Lab paints a personalized Dalton coat of arms in museum style, based on historic heraldry.
Sources: Reaney & Wilson, Dictionary of English Surnames; Patrick Woulfe, Sloinnte Gaedheal is Gall: Irish Names and Surnames (1923); MacLysaght, The Surnames of Ireland.