FIELDS
The surname Fields is of English origin and can be classified as a topographical name, signifying a person who resided in or near an area of land that had been cleared of forest but had not yet been cultivated.
Its roots lie in the Old English word feld, which meant an open country, a pasture or an expanse of land available for settlement or agriculture. The name therefore denotes a geographical association with fields, implying a connection to farming or land cultivation.
Records of the name date back to the late twelfth century. The earliest documented spelling, Matthew de Felde, appears in the Knights Templars Records of Gloucestershire in 1185, during the reign of King Henry I, who was known for his patronage of church building. Subsequent medieval entries include Hugo de la Felde in the Bedfordshire Pipe Rolls of 1188, John del Feld in the Suffolk returns of 1190, and James atte Felde in the Sussex Subsidy Rolls of 1296. The spelling evolved over time, with variations such as Fyeld, Feild, de la Feld and Delafield being recorded in parish registers and court rolls.
In London Church records, a marriage between George Henrick and Margarett Feilde at St. Martin Orgar and St. Clement Eastcheap is dated 6 June 1546, while William Field married Agnes Smith at Stepney on 10 October 1586. These entries illustrate the continued use of the surname in the early modern period and confirm that the plural form ‘Fields’ was adopted by families residing in or owning multiple plots of land.
An especially prominent bear of the name was Nathaniel Field, born in 1587 and deceased in 1633, who was a celebrated actor and dramatist. He performed in several plays by Shakespeare and Ben Jonson, and his skill earned him the distinction of “best actor” in Jonas Jonson’s comedy Bartholomew Fair (1614).
The surname Fields remains a common English family name today, recognised for its clear origin as a descriptor of a person’s environmental setting. Its usage reflects the medieval practice of identifying individuals by notable physical features of their homeland rather than by personal lineage alone.
Typical given names associated with the Fields surname
Male
- Andrew
- Anthony
- Christopher
- David
- James
- John
- Michael
- Paul
- Peter
- Robert
- Stephen
Female
- Amanda
- Angela
- Carol
- Elizabeth
- Emma
- Jennifer
- Joanne
- Karen
- Laura
- Lisa
- Margaret
- Mary
- Michelle
- Sarah
Similar and related surnames
- Feilds
- Feild
- Feld
- Feildes
- Falds
- Faldes
- Fileds
- Field
- Fald
- Faltus
- Faulds
- Fawlds
- Felda
- Feldes
- Feltes
- Feltis
- Felts
- Feltus
- Feltz
- Ffield
- Fielde
- Fieldea
- Fielders
- Fieldes
- Fieldew
- Fieldson
- Fieldus
- Filaitis
- Fildas
- Fildes
- Fildis
- Filds
- Filts
- Flatass
- Flatts
- Fletes
- Floods
- Floyds
- Foldes
- Foldesi
- Folds
- Foldys
- Foliadis
- Folts
- Foltz
- Fouldes
- Foulds
- Fowlds
- Fulds
- Fultz
- Fyldes
- Valadas
- Valadez
- Valaitis
- Valdes
- Valdez
- Valdis
- Valdus
- Valtas
- Veld
- Velde
- Veltze
- Vialettes
- Villiotis
- Vilutis
- Vlitos
- Voliotis
- Voltz
Related and similar names are generated algorithmically based on the spelling, and may not necessarily share an etymology.
How to communicate the surname Fields in...
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There are approximately 3,159 people named Fields in the UK. That makes it roughly the 2,858th most common surname in Britain. Around 49 in a million people in Britain are named Fields.
Origin: English
Region of origin: British Isles
Country of origin: England
Religion of origin: Christian
Language of origin: English
Famous people named Fields
- Gracie Fields - Singer and comedienne (1898 to 1979)
- Justin Fields - College football quarterback
- Terry Fields - Politician (1937 to 2008)
- Alf Fields - Professional football player (1918 to 2011)
- Mike Fields - Football player (1935 to 2014)
Names and descriptions courtesy of Wikipedia, and may contain errors. This is not intended to be an exhaustive list of every famous person with this name.