AETHELING

also spelled Atheling, or Etheling, in Anglo-Saxon England, generally any person of noble birth. Use of the term was usually restricted to members of a royal family, and in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle it is used almost exclusively for members of the royal house of Wessex. It was occasionally used after the Norman Conquest to designate members of the royal family-e.g., William the Aetheling, son and heir of King Henry I. The earlier part of the word formed part of the name of several Anglo-Saxon kings-e.g., Aethelbert, Aethelwulf, Aethelred-and was used obviously to indicate their noble birth.