Cockfield History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Of all the Anglo-Saxon names to come from Britain, Cockfield is one of the most ancient. The name is a result of the original family having lived in Cockfield, Durham or in Suffolk. Cockfield Hall is in Yoxford, Suffolk and was originally held by the Cokefeud family who had held it since the beginning of the 14th century.

Early Origins of the Cockfield family

The surname Cockfield was first found in Suffolk at Cockfield, a village and civil parish near Lavenham. This village is much older than the aforementioned Durham village at this one dates back to the 10th century when it was listed as Cochanfelde. The first record of the Durham village was in 1223 when it was listed as Kokefeld. 1 There are two possible meaning of the place names: "open land of a man called Cohha" derived from the Old English personal name + feld; and "open land frequented by cocks (of wild birds.)" 1

However, despite all of the above, we must look to Oxfordshire to find the first record of the family. For it is there that Lucia de Kokefled was listed in the Feet of Fines for 1198. A few years later, Robert de Cockfeld was listed in Cheshire in 1236-1247. 2

Early History of the Cockfield family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Cockfield research. Another 128 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1170, 1198, 1275 and 1327 are included under the topic Early Cockfield History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Cockfield Spelling Variations

The first dictionaries that appeared in the last few hundred years did much to standardize the English language. Before that time, spelling variations in names were a common occurrence. The language was changing, incorporating pieces of other languages, and the spelling of names changed with it. Cockfield has been spelled many different ways, including Cockfield, Cocksfield, Cofield, Coefield, Coffield and many more.

Early Notables of the Cockfield family

More information is included under the topic Early Cockfield Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Cockfield migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Cockfield Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

John Cockfield, aged 20, a painter, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Rooparell" in 1874

Contemporary Notables of the name Cockfield (post 1700) +

Maryann Cockfield, American Democratic Party politician, Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Michigan, 1952 3
Sir Francis Arthur Cockfield (1916-2007), Baron Cockfield, English politician, European Commissioner for Internal Market and Services (1985-1989), Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (1983-1984), President of the Board of Trade (1982-1983)
Arthur Cockfield, Canadian member of the Faculty of Law at Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario
Ken Cockfield (b. 1928), former Australian rules footballer who played for St Kilda (1949-1953)
Errol A. Cockfield Jr. (b. 1973), Guyana-born, is the former Press Secretary to Governor of New York Eliot Spitzer and David Paterson
Sir Joseph Cockfield Dimsdale PC, KCVO, Bt, (1849-1912), 1st Baronet, English politician, 573rd Lord Mayor of London (1901–1902) and Member of Parliament for the City of London (1900–1906)

Citations +

Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 4) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html