Fitz

[fɪts]

Meaning

short form of names from the Norman French fitz, "son of"

Background Story

Fitz is a short form of various given names that are derived from surnames beginning with the Norman French fitz, such as Fitzroy. In Anglo-Norman England fitz was a patronymic indicator meaning "son of", placed before the father's forename or, less commonly, a title held by the father, and in rare cases used to associate the bearer with a more prominent mother. In the original Norman French documentation the word appears as fiz, filz or similar forms, from the Old French noun filz, fiz and ultimately from Latin filius. Its use during the period of English surname adoption after the Norman conquest led to its incorporation into patronymic surnames, and it was later adopted by English kings for the surnames given to some of their recognised illegitimate children and by Irish families anglicising their Gaelic patronymic surnames.