Farewell History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Etymology of Farewell

What does the name Farewell mean?

The ancestors of the name Farewell date back to the days of the Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. The name is derived from their residence near a pleasant spring or stream. The name Farewell is derived from two Old English elements: fæger, which means fair or beautiful; and well, which was the name for a spring. There is a parish Farewell in Staffordshire, two miles from Lichfield.

Early Origins of the Farewell family

The surname Farewell was first found in Staffordshire at Farewell, a parish, in the union of Lichfield, S. division of the hundred of Offlow. The earliest record of the place was in 1200 when it was listed as Fagerwell. 1

Early History of the Farewell family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Farewell research. Another 66 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Farewell History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Farewell Spelling Variations

Farewell has been spelled many different ways. Before English spelling became standardized over the last few hundred years, spelling variations in names were a common occurrence. As the English language changed in the Middle Ages, absorbing pieces of Latin and French, as well as other languages, the spelling of people's names also changed considerably, even over a single lifetime. Many variations of the name Farewell have been found, including Farewell, Farwell, Fairwell and others.

Early Notables of the Farewell family

Charles Farewell of 'Farewell-with-Charley'

Farewell migration to West Indies +

The British first settled the British West Indies around 1604. They made many attempts but failed in some to establish settlements on the Islands including Saint Lucia and Grenada. By 1627 they had managed to establish settlements on St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Barbados, but by 1641 the Spanish had moved in and destroyed some of these including those at Providence Island. The British continued to expand the settlements including setting the First Federation in the British West Indies by 1674; some of the islands include Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Island, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica and Belize then known as British Honduras. By the 1960's many of the islands became independent after the West Indies Federation which existed from 1958 to 1962 failed due to internal political conflicts. After this a number of Eastern Caribbean islands formed a free association. 2

Farewell Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century

James Farewell, who settled in Barbados in 1680 with his wife and servants

Sources +

Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies