The Henderson name has it's beginnings as a patrynomic name - the first Henderson in each of the primary lines is the son of a Henry. These patrynomic naming patterns were very common leading up through the late 18th century, and it is my impression that this is especially true in the Nordic countries like Denmark. There are four primary, unrelated lines of Hendersons. Naturally, most Hendersons may have heard of the Glencoe branch, the original MacEanruigs, maybe the oldest of the Henderson lines. They are generally traced back to Pictish origins, and were present at the Battle of Bannockburn. You may have heard of the Fordell branch (the one with the big fancy castle), and there were quite a few famous Hendersons coming from this line. There are also quite a few Hendersons that originate in Caithness, stemming from a Gunn separating himself from clan battling in the mid-15th century. There is also a branch identified with Liddlesdale, one that is currently seeing a lot of genealogical effort to identify it's place in history. The fourth line is based in the Shetland Islands, and that is the branch that has the Denmark connections. I have not done any research in Denmark itself, but there is apparently a substantial connection between the Hendersons and the Nordic countries. I've been working on Hendersons in the Shetland Islands (where my Hendersons come from), and apparently the Henderson line started there with William Magnusson. There is this entry in Shetlands Family Histories, a book which is also available on microfilm through the LDS: (this information was obtained from the Shetland List Hostess, who posted this two weeks ago). HENDERSON OF BUNESS. IN THE PARISH OF UNST. 1. WILLIAM MAGNUSSON of Buness and Gardie, probably identical with William Magnusson of the Island of Unst, who was a complainer against Cultmatindie in 1575, said to be descended from Hendrich Hendrichson, Great Foude, Lawman, and Chancellor of Zetland, whose commission granted by King Christian I. of Denmark and written in the Danish language, is said to have been in the possession of and to have been presented by Thomas Mouat of Garth, along with the old papers of the family, to a Swedish knight in 1792. He was underfoude of Unst in 1582, bailie of the same in 1598, was a witness to the schynd bill of Erasmus Polson in 1616, and died soon afterwards. He was father of II. HENRY WILLIAMSON of Buness and Gardie had a charter Of 4 merks, 2 ures land in Bowaness, from James Strang of Voesgarth, on 3rd January, 1627, and died in May, 1632. He married Elizabeth Mudie, who survived him, and had issue, all mentioned in their father's testament : 1. Magnus, his heir, 2. Andrew, 3. William, 4. Gilbert, 5. James, 6. Robert, 7 Hew, 8 John, 9 Margaret. III. MAGNUS HENRYSON OR HENDERSON of Buness, styled eldest son of his father in a sasine, dated 30th January, 1627, had a charter to him and Katherine Neven, his spouse, of 8 merks land in Burrafirth, from David son to John Swannieson, portioner of Windhouse, 1st September, 1633,and of 23 merks land in Cunningsetter, from Peter Nisbet, son to James Nisbet, on 26th December,1627. From Alexander Douglas of Spynie, commissioner for the Earldom, he had a charter of his 69 merks 2 ures land in Unst, 51½ in Yell, and 17½ in Fetlar, on 10th August 1664. He married Katherine Neven, and had issue- 1.Ninian,his heir. 2.William of Gloup,aftermentioned. 3.John of Pettister,aftermentioned. 4.Gilbert of Midgarth,aftermentioned. 5.Janet, married William Craigie, merchant, Lerwick and had issue. She was dead in 1706. He is also said to have issue. 6.Ursula,married John Craigie. 7,Barbara,married Magnus Norie. 8.Nans 9,Sara Now Unst is the northernmost island in the Shetland Island chain with any population of substance, and it is noted for it's Viking archaeology. So, as we can see, there is quite a bit of Danish/Norse connection here. In addition, it should be noted that there has been some discussion as of late on the Shetland list (in which I participate) concerning certain Shetlanders who found themselves moving from the Shetlands to Norway (or Denmark, I can't remember for sure, would have to check the message archives). The persons in question were not Hendersons themselves, but it just shows that it is also possible for Scottish Hendersons to have found their way into Denmark on a permanent basis, especially given the closeness of geography and the Shetlands Danish past. Now, if you find yourself trying to trace Peter Henderson from Denmark to Scotland, that may be somewhat difficult. Recordkeeping was spotty prior to 1840 or thereabouts, when London started paying more attention to the manner of census and birth, marriage and death information keeping. I personally have had some good luck with my lines, being able to go back to about 1740-1760. But I also have not been going after hard copy certificates up to now, satisfying myself with IGI information that I've found in the LDS database. It may be somewhat difficult to get actual hardcopy evidence. Naturally, that is what I'm trying to do for my line. I am presently considering working on what may become a Henderson index for the Shetlands, as various Henderson lines there get confusing, and I need to improve the quality of the information that I've been getting. I'm hoping that by indexing these people, I can clear up some of the confusion. Let me know how it goes with your search. Good luck. -- Douglas Flummer Carbondale, Illinois "You will ever remember that all the end of study is to make you a good man and a useful citizen. This will ever be the sum total of the advice of your affectionate father." -- John Adams, in a letter to John Quincy Adams, 1781