National Landon Day – March 26, 2027

History of National Landon Day

The surname Landon is of English origin and was originally used as a place name. It has since become popular as a surname in its own right. Landon is one of the oldest surnames still in use today, having been documented for the first time as ‘Langadune’ in the early 11th century. Its origin can be traced back to the old English terms ‘lang’ (which meant ‘long’) and ‘dn’ (which meant ‘hill’), which together form its derivation. It would have been used to denote a settlement that was located on or near a ‘long hill’ (like a ridge), and the surname would have been given to someone who originally came from such a place but later relocated somewhere else (his hometown would have served as a form of identification).

This is how the names of specific locations became popular for use as surnames. There are three different towns in the English counties of Staffordshire, Worcestershire, and Shropshire that all go by the name of Longdon.

In 1936, Landon had a brief period of considerable popularity. It turns out that the year 1936 was a presidential election year when Alf Landon was the Republican contender who campaigned against Franklin D. Roosevelt but eventually lost the election. As a result, between 1935 and 1937, several Republican newborns were given the name Landon.