Saint Alban is known as the first English martyr. He was executed by the Romans for sheltering a priest, although up until he did so, he himself was not a Christian.
The legend, which comes largely from the account of Saint Bede, is that Alban disguised himself as the priest, and gave himself up for execution in his place. The Roman town Verulamium, where this happened, was renamed St Albans in his honour.1. I’m not sure whether this would be ‘Albion’ or not. Also, there may be some connection with the word albus meaning ‘white’ 2 and then to ‘Albus Dumbledore’ from Harry Potter, and ‘albumen’, meaning the ‘white’ of an egg.
Footnotes
- Catholic Encyclopedia (1913)/St. Alban – Wikisource
The name Alban is believed to be derived from the Latin Albanus meaning ‘from Alba’ Behind the Name: Meaning, Origin and History of the Name Alban [↩]
- Albus – Origin and Meaning of the name Albus at BabyNamesWorld [↩]
