View source for Neufeld (Neufeldt, Nifeld, Nyfelt, Neuenfeld, Nieufelt, Newfield) family

Neufeld, a Mennonite family name, appeared for the first time in the [[Danzig Mennonite Church (Gdansk, Poland)|Danzig Mennonite]] [[Church Records|church records]] in 1694. According to Reimer, the name originally referred to land reclaimed from the sea. The name was common among the Mennonite congregations of Danzig, Prussia and [[Russia|Russia]], from where it spread to the [[United States of America|United States]], [[Canada|Canada]] and [[South America|South America]]. The <em>Universal Biography </em>lists two teachers of philosophy at Danzig: George H. Neufeld (d. 1673) and Konrad N. Neufeld (d. 1656), both sons of George N. Neufeld. C. Henry Smith refers to a 1912 study of Mennonite names in Prussia, which lists 161 Neufelds.

Among the Mennonites of Russia the name Neufeld was very common. A. A. Neufeld was an outstanding educator. [[Neufeld, Peter P. (1875-1927)|Peter Neufeld]] was elder of the [[Chortitza Mennonite Church (Chortitza, Chortitza Mennonite Settlement, Zaporizhia Oblast, Ukraine)|Chortitza Mennonite Church]]. Isaak Neufeld of Waldheim, Molotschna was a manufacturer of agricultural machinery. David P. Neufeld, son of Peter Neufeld, a minister of the Ohrloff Mennonite Church, was an educator. Gerhard J. Neufeld was a physician at [[Davlekanovo (Ufa, Bashkortostan, Russia)|Davlekanovo]], [[Ufa (Bashkortostan, Russia)|Ufa]]. Wilhelm P. Neufeld was minister of the [[Schönsee Mennonite Church (Molotschna Mennonite Settlement, Zaporizhia Oblast, Ukraine)|Schönsee Mennonite Church]] and perished in exile. Heinrich D. Neufeld, founder of the secondary school at Ohrloff, [[Zagradovka Mennonite Settlement (Kherson Oblast, Ukraine)|Zagradovka]], was murdered by the [[Makhno, Nestor (1888-1934)|Makhno]] bandits. [[Neufeld, Kornelius Gerhard (1871-1946)|Cornelius G. Neufeld]], an educator, died in Shafter, CA.

The name has been found quite frequently in central [[Kansas (USA)|Kansas]], where Mennonites from Russia settled in 1874 and the years following. As of 1957, 61 of the 330 members of the [[Bethel Mennonite Church (Inman, Kansas, USA)|Bethel Mennonite Church]] of [[Inman (Kansas, USA)|Inman]], KS were Neufelds. The name appeared more frequently than any other in the Inman telephone directory, 29 times in all. The name is also found in other places. The General Conference <em>Handbook of Information </em>of 1954 lists fifteen ministers by that name for Canada and six for the United States. There are twelve Neufelds listed in the <em>[[Civilian Public Service|Civilian Public Service]] Directory</em>, nine from Kansas, two from [[California (USA)|California]], and one from [[Oklahoma (USA)|Oklahoma]]. G. B. Neufeld was a missionary in the Congo, and Jacob H. Neufeld was a missionary in the [[Chaco (South America)|Chaco]], Paraguay.

<em>Who's Who Among the Mennonites (1943) </em> lists the following: Harry Neufeld, missionary, Los Ebanos, Texas; Herman H. Neufeld, former editor and publisher of <em>[[Mennonitische Rundschau, Die (Periodical)|Mennonitische Rundschau]]; </em>N<em>.</em>J. Neufeld, physician, Winnipeg; and Peter T. Neufeld, pastor of Bethel Mennonite Church, Inman, KS. Peter T. Neufeld's grandfather, Peter Neufeld, came to Kansas in 1875. The latter's grandfather, Hermann Neufeld, had immigrated to [[Russia|Russia]] from Prussia in 1803. [[Neufeld, Kornelius H. (1892-1957)|Kornelius H. Neufeld]], a musician, was another well-known member of the family. In 1952, J. G. Rempel listed the following General Conference ministers of Canada: A. Neufeld, New Westminster, BC; A. J. Neufeld, Lena, MB; B. G. Neufeld, Manitou, MB; Gerhard Neufeld, Oliver, BC; H. H. Neufeld, Abbotsford, BC; J. G. Neufeld, [[Didsbury (Alberta, Canada)|Didsbury]], AB; J. H. Neufeld, Gem, AB; Johann Neufeld, [[Tofield (Alberta, Canada)|Tofield]], AB; Abram G. Neufeld, Whitewater, MB; Cornelius G. Neufeld (elder); [[Neufeld, David P. (1919-1982)|David P. Neufeld]]; Gerhard G. Neufeld (elder).


= Bibliography =
<em>The General Conference Mennonite Church Handbook of Information, 1954.</em> Newton, KS: The General Conference Mennonite Church, 1954.

Reimer, Gustav E. <em>Die Familiennamen der westpreussischen Mennoniten. </em>Weierhof, 1940.

Rempel, J. G. <em>Fünfzig Jahre Konferenzebestrebungen, 1902-1952</em> I and II. Steinbach, MB, 1952.

Töws, A. A. <em>Mennonitische Märtyrer</em> I and II. N. Clearbrook, 1949 and 1954.

Warkentin, A. and Melvin Gingerich, eds. <em>Who's Who Among the Mennonites.</em> North Newton, KS: Bethel College Press, 1943.


{{GAMEO_footer|hp=Vol. 3, pp. 848-849|date=1957|a1_last=Neufeld|a1_first=Peter T.|a2_last=Krahn|a2_first=Cornelius}}