A member of the royal or noble family in Anglo-Saxon England, particularly a prince or young nobleman of royal birth.
From Old English æðeling, derived from æðel (noble) plus the diminutive suffix -ing. The word literally meant 'little noble' or descendant of nobility.
Anglo-Saxon kings surrounded themselves with atheling relatives—younger princes and cousins who could either support their rule or challenge it, making medieval royal courts lethal places where siblings plotted against each other.
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