Redfern
An English surname from a place-name meaning “red fen” or “thicket-fen.”
The #9,712 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 92,439 Americans shares it.
Etymology
This surname is generally taken from an English place-name built from Old English elements: either red + fenn (“fen”) or, as one older source suggests, a form related to wridefen, meaning “thicket-fen.” In either case, the basic sense is a marshy place with some reddish feature or dense growth. It began as a habitational name for someone who came from such a place.
History
The name appears in medieval English records in forms such as Redferne and Redfearn, and later became established as a surname, especially in northern and midland English counties. Nineteenth- and early twentieth-century surname writers note strong associations with Derbyshire and Staffordshire. The spelling has varied, but Redfern became the standard modern form.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
One early explanation linked the name to a Warwickshire place recorded in the 14th century as a form of Redfen/Redfern.
From the historical record
“REDFEARN REDFERN REDFERNE There has next name. REDFEN (Eng.) Bel. to Redfen (Warw.), 14th cent. Wridefen = the Thicket-Fen [O.E. wrid, a thicket + fenn, a fen]”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)