Find out how popular the last name Warfield is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Warfield.

Warfield, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Warfield surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Warfield in America

Warfield is the 4758th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Warfield surname appeared 7,443 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 3 people would have the surname Warfield.

We can also compare 2010 data for Warfield to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Warfield

The surname Warfield is of English origin, derived from the Old English words "waer" meaning a weir or small dam, and "feld" meaning an open field or area of land. It is believed to have originated in the early medieval period, possibly as early as the 11th century.

The name is likely derived from a place name, referring to a location near a weir or dam on a river or stream. This could have been a specific village, town, or area where the name first arose and was adopted by those living there.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Warfield can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which documented landowners and property holdings across England after the Norman Conquest. This suggests that the name was established by the late 11th century.

In the 13th century, there are records of a Sir Hugh de Warfield, a knight who held lands in Berkshire, England. This spelling variation, "de Warfield," indicates that the name was still closely associated with a specific place at that time.

During the 14th century, the Warfield family was well-established in various parts of southern England, particularly in counties like Somerset and Wiltshire. Notable individuals from this period include John Warfield, a landowner in Somerset who was recorded in tax records from the late 1300s.

In the 16th century, the spelling of the name began to solidify into its modern form of "Warfield." One notable figure from this time was Sir Benjamin Warfield (1523-1589), a Member of Parliament and landowner in Berkshire.

The 17th century saw the Warfield name spread to other parts of England, as well as to the American colonies. Henry Warfield (1610-1676) was an early settler in Virginia, arriving in the 1630s and establishing a prominent family line in the region.

Other notable individuals with the surname Warfield throughout history include:

1. Benjamin B. Warfield (1851-1921), an influential American Presbyterian theologian and professor at Princeton Seminary.
2. William Warfield (1920-2002), an American opera singer and actor, best known for his portrayal of Porgy in the 1951 production of Porgy and Bess.
3. David Warfield (1866-1951), an American actor who starred in various Broadway productions in the early 20th century.
4. Catherine Warfield (1816-1877), an American writer and abolitionist who published under the pen name "Catharine Warfield."
5. Ralph E. Warfield (1915-2004), an American physicist and engineer who played a key role in the development of radar technology during World War II.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Warfield

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Warfield.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Warfield was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Warfield has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Warfield was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Warfield, please contact us.

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