All Mellanbys that I have researched have roots in the late 17th or early 18th centuries on the borders of the English counties of Durham and North Yorkshire in the vicinity of Middlesbrough. But Mellanby is a locative surname derived from one or more of three Northern English villages called Melmerby. A number of early Mellanby references pre-date the "Middlesbrough" Mellanbys, as do the surnames Melmerby and Melmarby. Are all these folk related or did more than one unrelated men take the name of their birth-place, Melmerby, as their surname?

There are many variant names. The principal ones are Mellanby, Mallenby and Mellenby. The name is sometimes spelled with one "l" and the "n" may be substituted by "m" but these variants may not have survived. Other recorded variations are Malonby or Molanby and similar but these also may no longer exist. Mallaby may be a related name. There may be others - all enquiries are welcome!

The only known Mellanby dna analysed for genealogy reasons, the Project Administrator's, matches very closely that of someone with the surname Allen who has no known family connections with the Mellanby family. Simply put, it is very likely that they have a common ancestor who lived not more than about ten generations ago. Although there is no known family connections it is perfectly plausible that a change of surname occurred as a result of an illegitimate birth or informal adoption. So who has the "correct" Mellanby dna?

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