The English surname LENG seems almost always to originate from North Yorkshire and County Durham. It is probably a regional spelling variant of LONG, LANG, LING or LAING, and the LENG spelling only became fixed during the nineteenth century, as literacy increased. Even now the name is often mis-spelt, with correspondence being addressed to Mr or Mrs LENG, LING, LUNG, LEVY - even SENG or TENG!

LENG was a common name on the North York Moors, especially in and around the most westerly dale of Bilsdale. LENGs were recorded in and around York as early as the fifteenth century, and different families were located in many villages on and around the Moors, including Danby, Glaisdale, Gillamoor, Lastingham and Hutton Buscel.