Ditchfield Family Crest, Coat of Arms and Name History

Ditchfield Origin:

England

Origins of Ditchfield:

This very unusual surname is of Anglo-Saxon origin and is locational from a village so called near Widnes, Lancashire. The placename acquires from the Olde English pre 7th Century “dic,” which means a ditch or dyke (usually formed for purposes of explanation rather than waste), and “feld,” meadow or open country. So, “defensive earthwork on cleared land.” Locational surnames, like this, were usually derived by a local landholder, or by the lord of the estate, and particularly by those old residents of a place who had moved to another area, and best distinguished by the name of their mother town. The surname from this source was first noted in the early half of the 14th Century. One William Ditchfield of Ditton shows in the Wills Recordings at Chester in 1567, and in January 1581, Ann Ditchfield and Richard Wally married in Prescot, Lancashire. One John Ditchfield, aged 22 yrs., was an early traveler to the New World Colonies, departing from London on the “William and John,” bound for the Church of St. Christopher, in the Barbadoes, in September 1635.

Variations:

More common variations are: Ditchfild, Deitchfield, Titchfield, Dutchfield, Tischfield, Dashfield, Tishfield, Tischfeld.

England:

The surname Ditchfield first appeared in Lancashire where they held a family seat from very ancient times. Some say well before the Norman Invasion and the arrival of Duke William at Hastings in 1066 AD.

The very first recorded spelling of the family was shown to be that of John de Dychefeld, dated about 1332, in the “Lay Subsidy Rolls of Lancashire.” It was during the time of King Edward III who was known to be the “The Father of the Navy,” dated 1327 – 1377. The origin of surnames during this period became a necessity with the introduction of personal taxation. It came to be known as Poll Tax in England.

Ireland:

Many of the people with surname Ditchfield had moved to Ireland during the 17th century.

United States of America:

Individuals with the surname Ditchfield landed in the United States in two different centuries respectively in the 17th and 20th. Some of the people with the name Ditchfield who arrived in the United States in the 17th century included Joe Ditchfield settled in St. Christopher in 1635. Jo Ditchfield, aged 22, arrived in St Christopher in 1635.

The following century saw more Ditchfield surnames arrive. Some of the people with the surname Ditchfield who arrived in the United States in the 20th century included James Ditchfield, aged 30, arrived in New York in 1919 aboard the ship “Vernonia” from London, England. Horace Leonard Ditchfield originally from Ilford, England, arrived in New York in 1920 aboard the ship Mauretania” from Southampton, England.

Here is the population distribution of the last name Ditchfield: England 1,027; South Africa 438; Australia 316; United States 237; Canada 224; France 49; New Zealand 47; Scotland 46; Spain 17; Wales 3

Notable People:

Andy Ditchfield was the founder of English rock band DeeExpus.

Jimmy Ditchfield was a 19th-century football player for Burslem Port Vale F.C.

Blazons & Genealogy Notes

1) (Ditton). Ar. three bears sa.
2) (Ditton, co. Lancaster. Visit. 1567). Az. three pine-apples or, stalked gu.