© Peter Massingham 2019
About
History
The name is tribal and probably Anglo-Saxon, and translates
as the 'hamm' (place or village) of the Maessa (Mass) tribe
(ing). These people are also recorded in Lincoln, as
'Massingberd', the castle (berg) of the Maessa tribe.
Spelling
The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be
that of Walter de Massingham, which was dated 1272, in the
Hundred Rolls of the county of Cambridge, during the reign
of King Edward 1, known as 'The Hammer of the Scots', 1272-
1307. Surnames became necessary when governments
introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as
the Poll tax.
Other examples of the recordings showing the surname
development are those of William Messengham, christened at
Sharrington, Norfolk, on July 1st 1691, and Mary Massingham
who married Thomas Wilson at Norwich Cathedral, on
October 14th 1701, in the reign of William of Orange (1689 -
1702).
Massingham Family History