Ashfields History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland
Scotland

The ancestors of the Ashfields surname lived among the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture. The name comes from when they lived in Ashfield, which means the open field with ash trees. It is a place-name appearing in Lancashire, and is were the family originated, though they became centered in Suffolk.

Early Origins of the Ashfields family

The surname Ashfields was first found in Suffolk, at Ashfield, which dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086 when it was listed there as Assefelda. 1 Great Ashfield, Suffolk was also listed there as Eascefelda. 2

To complicate matters more, Ashfield is revival of an ancient village originally named Esfeld in 1216. It is now a local government district in western Nottinghamshire formed in 1974.

And today, Ashfield is a suburb in the Inner West of Sydney, in New South Wales, Australia. This latter local was established shortly after the First Fleet arrival in 1788.

Early History of the Ashfields family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Ashfields research. Another 95 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1506, 1559, 1560, 1569, 1570, 1576, 1578, 1599, 1604, 1620, 1660 and 1690 are included under the topic Early Ashfields History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ashfields Spelling Variations

Before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago, spelling variations of names were a common occurrence. Elements of Latin, French and other languages became incorporated into English through the Middle Ages, and name spellings changed even among the literate. The variations of the surname Ashfields include Ashfield, Ashfields and others.

Early Notables of the Ashfields family

Distinguished members of the family include Sir Edmund Ashfield (c. 1506-1578) of Ewelme, Oxfordshire, an English politician, High Sheriff of Berkshire and Oxfordshire (1559-1560), High Sheriff of Bedfordshire and Buckinghamshire (1569-1570.) Edmund Ashfield (1576-c. 1620), was an English Catholic from Tattenhoe in Buckinghamshire. In 1599 he travelled to Edinburgh to meet James VI of Scotland. He was mistakenly kidnapped by the English Ambassador from England in the belief that Ashfield was an agent of James VI and working to further his succession to...
Another 82 words (6 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Ashfields Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Ashfields family to Ireland

Some of the Ashfields family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. More information about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Ashfields family

A great wave of immigration to the New World was the result of the enormous political and religious disarray that struck England at that time. Families left for the New World in extremely large numbers. The long journey was the end of many immigrants and many more arrived sick and starving. Still, those who made it were rewarded with an opportunity far greater than they had known at home in England. These emigrant families went on to make significant contributions to these emerging colonies in which they settled. Some of the first North American settlers carried this name or one of its variants: James Ashfield settled in Virginia in 1636; John Ashfield settled in West New Jersey in 1664; and Henry Ashfield settled in Maryland in 1776.

Citations +

Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)