Farnworth

Farnworth is a combination of two words: old-English fearn meaning "fern" and worth, making the full meaning of Farnworth "settlers from a place where ferns are abundant." The oldest known record of the surname was in Farnworth with Kearsley (modern-day Farnworth), Lancashire in 1185. Leinsig de Farnworth, the first chief of the Farnworth family clan, came from Germany and was granted land from King Henry II of England.

Farnworth is of connected origin to the surname Farnsworth.

As of the 1881 British Census, the occurrence of Farnworth was high in Lancashire, Cumbria, Cheshire, and Northumberland, but low in other British counties.