Lawfield History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Etymology of Lawfield

What does the name Lawfield mean?

The name Lawfield derives its origin from the English "dweller by the lea-field", the pasture, grass-land, as at Leyfield (Nottinghamshire)." 1

Early Origins of the Lawfield family

The surname Lawfield was first found in Nottinghamshire at Leyfield. 1 However, we must look to Yorkshire to find the first listing of the family in early rolls - Hugo Layfield was listed as a Freeman of York in 1442. Later in London, we found William Leyfeld listed in 1484.

Stilton cheese has long been made in Leyfield Forest. Leafield is a village and civil parish about 4 miles (6.4 km) northwest of Witney in West Oxfordshire.

Early History of the Lawfield family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Lawfield research. Another 90 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1442, 1455, 1484, 1487, 1585, 1592, 1603, 1617 and 1639 are included under the topic Early Lawfield History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Lawfield Spelling Variations

Until quite recently, the English language has lacked a definite system of spelling rules. Consequently, Anglo-Saxon surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. Changes in Anglo-Saxon names were influenced by the evolution of the English language, as it incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other languages. Although Medieval scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded, so it is common to find one person referred to by several different spellings of his surname, even the most literate people varied the spelling of their own names. Variations of the name Lawfield include Layfield, Leyfield, Leighfield, Leefield, Leafield, Layfield, Lafield and many more.

Early Notables of the Lawfield family

Distinguished members of the family include John Layfield (also spelled Laifield) (d. 1617), British theologian, fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge. He was educated at Merchant Taylors' School, Northwood before proceeding to Trinity College, Cambridge, where...
Another 35 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Lawfield Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Lawfield migration to the United States +

Searching for a better life, many English families migrated to British colonies. Unfortunately, the majority of them traveled under extremely harsh conditions: overcrowding on the ships caused the majority of the immigrants to arrive diseased, famished, and destitute from the long journey across the ocean. For those families that arrived safely, modest prosperity was attainable, and many went on to make invaluable contributions to the development of the cultures of the new colonies. Research into the origins of individual families in North America revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Lawfield or a variant listed above:

Lawfield Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

John Lawfield, who arrived in Maryland in 1663 2

Sources +

Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)