Where did the last name of Hamilton originate?

Answer 1

"Hamilton
Originally Hambleton, from the manor of Hambleton, in Buckinghamshire. William, third son of Robert, third Earl of Leicester, took that surname from the place of his birth, as above. He was the founder of the family of that name in Scotland, whither he went about the year 1215. The name is derived from Hamell, a mansion, the seat of a freeholder, and dun, an enclosure, a fortified place, a town."
http://www.last-names.net/surname.asp?Surname=Hamilton

You can find even more information here:

Clan Hamilton Society
http://clanhamilton.acomhosting.com/
(Click on "Hamilton Name" on the left hand menu)

Bill

Answer 2

http://www.ancestry.com/learn/facts/default.aspx?ln=

Hamilton
Scottish and northern Irish: habitational name from what is now a deserted village in the parish of Barkby, Leicestershire. This is named from Old English hamel ‘crooked’ + dun ‘hill’. Hamilton near Glasgow was founded by the Hamiltons and named after them. In Ireland, this name may have replaced Hamill in a few cases. It has also been used as the equivalent of the Irish (Cork) name Ó hUrmholtaigh.

Dictionary of American Family Names, Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-508137-4

Answer 3

Scotland & Northern Ireland