[#10682] Tracing Family surname Hannah

[Gjest Phil Hannah]

I am trying to solve a big gap in my family History. legend has it that my ancestors fled from Scotland to Norway possibly in the 16th Century. My Grandfather, Robert Hannah spoke Fluent Norwegian (as did my Father)his family having emigrated back to Hull, England in the 19th century. If any one can help, thank you.

[Gjest per helge seglsten]

Well, you didn't give us much to go on here, but there are two farms in Norway named Hanna. One of them is also called Skotterud, which indicates that the farm has once upon a time been cleared by a person from Scotland. I couldn't find any Robert at the farm in the 1900 census though. Do you have more information? Here is the farm in 1900: Lenke

[Gjest Phil Hannah]

Thank you for that- I dont have much to go on because my Norwegian Grandfathers history is mysterious to us! I do know Grandfather was a Master mariner. He was lost at sea in 1921 believed his ship hit a mine from the Great War because no trace of his ship or crew was ever found. My father did not talk about him much,so we dont know a lot.

[Gjest Phil Hannah]

Some further info-My sister now tells me that she remembered Father telling her that his Father came from a small Island off the coast of Norway- and that he or his forefather had been a Jarl/Yarl (I am not sure of the exact meaning of this) Then again trying to sort out fact from Family Legend is quite difficult!

[Gjest Marianne Hella]

The link above is to a farm in Eidskogen, which is not, I think, on any coast. Maybe someone else can help you along with this - I don't know exactly where it is.But I thought I'd tell you that a jarl (pronounced yarl) is the same title as the English Earl. However, the Norwegian Earls date from ancient times, as our aristocracy all but disappeared after the Black Death. When Denmark seized Norway sometime in the 15th century, it was the end for all the Earls. My recollection of our history is regrettably a little hazy, but the story of the forefather Earl must be a legend, and not something anyone can be sure of, since it lies so far back in time....I'm sure some of the incredibly knowledgable people who frequents these web pages can give you more information on these themes. Good luck!

[Gjest N B Macdonald]

Hello Phil,How about some more names and (approx.) dates? When was your grandfather Robert born? Was he born in Norway? Do you know his father's first name? Did Robert ever use a middle initial? Was his wife Norwegian; if so, what was her name? (And, if not, how did Robert manage to teach his son fluent Norwegian? (-: You don't happen to have a tape recording of one of them speaking Norwegian, do you? Even something written in Norwegian by one of them may give a hint as to the dialect they spoke.) Might Robert have named a son after his father?When did he/they emigrate to England?Did Robert disappear off the coast of Norway and/or was the ship Norwegian? There are people who are interested in shipwrecks - do you know the name of the ship? Since you know the year, maybe even the time of year, this may be a good avenue to pursue.While ancestors who were jarls are probably legendary, the given names Jarl and Jarle are not uncommon. Could that be something to consider?Hope something here might lead you to a clue.--Beth

[Gjest Berit Knudsen]

There is a farm, I belive, in Høyland(Sandnes) in Rogaland. Around 1850 there is a lot of people named Hana. Some of them are seamen. Ola Aurenes has written a book about the families Øglænd, Svendsen and Lunde from Sandnes and Høyland in Rogaland. As far as I can understand the Hana fam. should be mentioned in this book. I have not had time to read the book yet, but maybe someone else knows more about it.

[Gjest Geir Eide]

There are Hana farm/place in Bruvik just east of Bergen as well. However the -Hana places- we have been dealing with so far, are not what we would call off coast, or situated on an island.There are not that many places on islands off the coast that matches -Hannah- .What about -Hanø or Hanøen- ? If we try writing -Hanø- the way it would have been pronounced in UK, I don`t think -Hanø- is a bad guess.In Hordaland there are two place named -Hanø- according to 1865 census :One in Fitje and another one at Askøy . I`ll admit Askøy is not that much off the coast .Geir

[Gjest Phil Hannah]

Thank you for all your info. Since my first message, I wrote to the 'Hull Daily Mail' regarding my Grandfather. My phone has not stopped ringing since then! I have learned out of the blue that my Grandfather was orphaned at the age of 10 (around 1889). It is believed his Father was called Walter HANNAR (as said) but we cannot find any record of this man. It is known however that my Grandfather at the age of 10 spoke Norwegian as his first language. He was adopted by a man called Collins in Grimsby, Lincolnshire but my Grandfather hated him and ran away to sea at the age of 14. He changed his name back to Hannar after this but modified the name to Hannah. I can find a Robert Hannah in the 1901 UK census as a Seaman on board Her Majesties Ship 'Wildfire'. His age ties in with his date of Birth. He taught my father Norwegian almost before he learned English!! The Norwegian Language came in very handy for my Father, who saw action against the Germans in Norway in 1940. Once again thank you all for your help I hope eventually I will find the answer .

[Gjest Berit Knudsen]

In the 1900 census, All country, ship crew, you will find the ship Hydro and Georg Hannah born in Hull in 1867.