Norfolk literally means the folk, or people, of the north. This distinguishes it from the neighbouring county of Sufffolk, or people of the south.

Norfolk was in the north of the kingdom of East Anglia, which is where the idea of them being 'northern people' comes from. East Anglia itself was formed when the area, like much of Britain, was invaded in the 5th century after the Romans left. (The area that is now Norfolk was important in Roman times, but not many of the old place names survive.) The Angles were a Germanic people who settled heavily in eastern England, and the names Norfolk and Suffolk will have come into use at some point after the 5th century invasions.

In the 11th century the county town, Norwich, was the biggest city in England, but a lot of it was destroyed after the Norman invasion of 1066.