Fairway History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Early Origins and Etymology of Fairway

The surname Fairway was first found in Warwickshire. The Saxon influence of English history diminished after the Battle of Hastings in 1066. The language of the courts was French for the next three centuries and the Norman ambience prevailed. But Saxon surnames survived and the family name was first referenced in the year 1212 by Robert Hanlee who held lands in that area at that time. Farway, Devon is another possible origin of the surname as Farway dates back to the Domesday Book where it was listed as Farewai and probably meant "place at the road way" from the Old English words faer + weg. 1 At that time, Farway was held by the Bishop of Coutances and had enough land for four ploughs. It had 5 acres of meadows and 40 acres of pasture land. 2

Early History of the Fairway family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Fairway research. Another 75 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1455 and 1487 are included under the topic Early Fairway History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Fairway Spelling Variations

The English language only became standardized in the last few centuries; therefore,spelling variations are common among early Anglo-Saxon names. As the form of the English language changed, even the spelling of literate people's names evolved. Fairway has been recorded under many different variations, including Fairway, Fairwin, Fairxwood, Fairwyn and others.

Early Notables of the Fairway family

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

Migration of the Fairway family

For many English families, the political and religious disarray that shrouded England made the far away New World an attractive prospect. On cramped disease-ridden ships, thousands migrated to those British colonies that would eventually become Canada and the United States. Those hardy settlers that survived the journey often went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Analysis of immigration records indicates that some of the first North American immigrants bore the name Fairway or a variant listed above: the name represented in many forms and recorded from the mid 17th century in the great migration from Europe. Migrants settled in the eastern seaboard from Newfoundland, to Maine, to Virginia, the Carolinas, and to the islands..

Sources +

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