FIFIELD
Origin and etymology of the surname Fifield can be traced to the English language and its Old English roots. The composite elements fif (meaning “five”) and feld (meaning “field”) suggest a direct reference to a land division or an estate characterised by the number five. Over centuries, this locational designation evolved into a hereditary family name.
The name is first recorded as a locational surname in the London area from the mid‑sixteenth century. It is linked to the village of Fyfield in Berkshire, an ancient settlement referenced in the Anglo‑Saxon Chronicles of 956 A.D. and in the Domesday Book of 1086 as “Fivehide.” The Domesday entry interprets Fivehide as “a place of five hides,” where a “hide” was a unit of land sufficient to support a free family, ranging from fifteen to thirty acres. This measurement indicates the estate's size and status, equating it to a Norman knight’s landholding in later times.
In the twentieth century, the modern spelling of the village as “Fyfield” emerged around 1500, and the surname was widely documented in that region. One early example is the witness record of Robert Fifield at St. Giles Cripplegate on 24 March 1638, during the reign of Charles I. Another pertinent record is that of Ann Fifeld, who was christened at St. Mary Whitechapel, Stepney, London, on 18 October 1575 in the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.
These documentary attestations confirm that the surname Fifield had become an established family name by the late‑seventeenth century, carried through generations of English society. Its persistent appearance in parish registers and witness lists indicates both its geographic concentration and its integration into the social fabric of Christian England.
Today, when one encounters the surname Fifield, one is reminded of the enduring link between family identity and the land in which early bearers once lived, worked, or held ownership. The name stands as a linguistic artefact of English heritage, reflecting both a quantitative land division and a place name that has survived into the present day.
Typical given names associated with the Fifield surname
Male
- Andrew
- Christopher
- Daniel
- David
- John
- Mark
- Paul
- Peter
- Richard
- Robert
- Stephen
Female
- Alison
- Emma
- Evelyn
- Frances
- Jane
- Jennifer
- Lucy
- Margaret
- Mary
- Paula
- Rebecca
- Sarah
- Sharon
- Susan
- Victoria
Similar and related surnames
Related and similar names are generated algorithmically based on the spelling, and may not necessarily share an etymology.
How to communicate the surname Fifield in...
Braille
⠋⠊⠋⠊⠑⠇⠙
Morse
..-.....-.....-..-..
Semaphore
Did you know?
According to a survey carried out by Democracy Club, politicians and candidates with the surname Fifield are most likely to say that their favourite biscuit is a Ginger Nut.
There are approximately 1,075 people named Fifield in the UK. That makes it roughly the 6,984th most common surname in Britain. Around 17 in a million people in Britain are named Fifield.
Surname type: Location or geographical feature
Origin: English
Region of origin: British Isles
Country of origin: England
Religion of origin: Christian
Language of origin: English
Famous people named Fifield
- Christopher Fifield - Conductor and music historian
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.