Fairfax

IPA/fˈeəfaks/
KK[fˈɛrfˌæks]IPA/fˈɛrfˌæks/

Fairfax — biographical name

1. Baron Thomas Fairfax (1612–1671), the commander-in-chief of the Parliamentary Ne

1.biographical name
Definition

Baron Thomas Fairfax (1612–1671), the commander-in-chief of the Parliamentary New Model Army during the English Civil War, noted for leading the decisive victory at the Battle of Naseby in 1645.

Example

Fairfax led the New Model Army to a decisive victory at Naseby in 1645.

led + New Model Army for commanding in battle

After Naseby, Fairfax led the army west and captured the royalist stronghold of Bristol in 1645.

led + captured for successive military campaign actions

2. Baron Thomas Fairfax (1692–1782), the only British peer residing in colonial Ame

2.biographical name
Definition

Baron Thomas Fairfax (1692–1782), the only British peer residing in colonial America, who owned the vast Northern Neck Proprietary in Virginia — over five million acres of land between the Potomac and Rappahannock rivers.

Example

Fairfax inherited the Northern Neck, a vast stretch of land in Virginia.

inherited + vast stretch of land for receiving large property

A young George Washington once surveyed lands owned by Lord Fairfax.

Etymology

Old EnglishMiddle EnglishEnglish

Fairfax comes from the Old English phrase 'fæger feax', meaning 'fair hair' — a personal nickname that became a surname. The name was brought to England by Norman settlers and is first recorded in Yorkshire in the 13th century. Two historical figures, an English general and a Virginia landowner, both bore the same family title centuries apart.