Farthing Family History

English:: from the Middle English personal name Farthein Farthing Ferthing (Old Norse Farthegn late Old English Færthegn) composed of the elements far ‘ship passage’ + thegn ‘warrior nobleman or retainer’. habitational name from a place called in Middle English with ferthing (Old English fēorthing ‘fourth part quarter’).

Until 1960 when it was withdrawn this was the name of the smallest British coin worth one quarter of a penny. The same word was also used to denote a measure of land normally one quarter of a virgate or other larger unit.

The term is frequent in minor placenames in Sussex and is also found in Somerset and Devon.