Fearby
{{Short description|Village and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England}}
{{Distinguish|Firby, North Yorkshire (disambiguation){{!}}Firby, North Yorkshire}}
{{Use British English|date=November 2017}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2017}}
{{Infobox UK place
| country = England
| coordinates = {{coord|54.225|-1.7|display=inline,title}}
| official_name = Fearby
| static_image = Fearby.jpg
| static_image_width = 250px
| static_image_caption = Cottages overlooking the village green at Fearby
| population = 130
| population_ref =
| civil_parish = Fearby
| unitary_england = North Yorkshire
| lieutenancy_england = North Yorkshire
| region = Yorkshire and the Humber
| constituency_westminster = Skipton and Ripon
| post_town = RIPON
| postcode_district = HG4
| postcode_area = HG
| dial_code = 01765
| os_grid_reference = SE195812
}}
Fearby is a village and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. It is located in the valley of the River Burn {{Convert|2|mi|0}} west of Masham. Nearby settlements include Healey, High Ellington and Swinton. The population of the parish was estimated at 130 in 2013.{{cite web|publisher=North Yorkshire County Council|title=Population Estimates|year=2013|url=http://www.northyorks.gov.uk/CHttpHandler.ashx?id=16424&p=0|access-date=11 April 2016|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120113133520/http://www.northyorks.gov.uk/CHttpHandler.ashx?id=16424&p=0|archive-date=13 January 2012}} In the 2011 Census the population of the parish was included with the parish of Ellington High and Low, and not separately counted.
History
The village is first mentioned, as Federbi, in the Domesday Book which records a population of eight villagers and one smallholder.[http://www.domesdaymap.co.uk/place/SE1981/fearby/ Open Domesday website] The toponym is of uncertain derivation. The element -by is of Old Norse origin, meaning "village", and the name could mean either "four villages" or "feather village".{{Citation | contribution = Fearby | year = 2010 | title = The Cambridge Dictionary of English Place-Names | editor-last = Watts | editor-first = Victor | publisher = Cambridge University Press }}
Fearby was historically a township in the large ancient parish of Masham in the North Riding of Yorkshire. It became part of the new ecclesiastical parish of Healey in 1849.{{cite web |url=http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=64761 |title=Parishes: Masham |editor-first=William|editor-last=Page |publisher=Institute of Historical Research |year=1914 |work=A History of the County of York North Riding: Volume 1 |access-date=10 June 2012 }} The civil parish of Fearby was formed in 1866.{{cite web|title=Fearby Tn/CP through time|url=http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/unit/10424501|website=www.visionofbritain.org.uk|access-date=26 December 2017}}
Governance
Until 1974 Fearby was part of Masham Rural District (before 1934 Masham Urban District) in the North Riding of Yorkshire. From 1974 to 2023 it was part of the Borough of Harrogate, it is now administered by the unitary North Yorkshire Council. It lies within the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
The parish now shares a grouped parish council, known as Fearby, Healey and District Parish Council, with Colsterdale, Ellingstring, Healey and Ilton cum Pott.{{cite web|title=The Parish|publisher=Fearby Healey and District Parish Council|url=http://www.fearbyhealeydistrict-pc.org/#!the-parish/c8de|access-date=29 April 2020}}