Edmund

This name derives from the Old English (Anglo-Saxon) name “Eadmund,” composed of two elements: “ead / ēad” (prosperity, fortune, riches, wealth) plus “mund” (protector, protection, tutelage, guardianship). In turn, the name means “rich protector, protector of prosperity, who defends his heritage.” 1) Edmund I (921–946) was King of the English from 939 until his death. He was a son of Edward the Elder and half-brother of Æthelstan. Æthelstan died on October 27, 939, and Edmund succeeded him as king. His kingdom was devastated by Vikings, who destroyed any contemporary evidence of his reign. The feast day is traditionally celebrated on November 20. 2) Edmund the Martyr († 869) was king of East Anglia from about 855 until his death. Almost nothing is known about Edmund. He is thought to have been of East Anglian origin and was first mentioned in an annual of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, written some years after his death.