 The name "Kirk Ella" is thought to derive from the Old English, and mean "Aelf(a)'s Woodland Clearing with a Church".Kirk Ella appears in the 11th century Domesday survey as "Aluengi" (Ella).There is some evidence for human activity in the area as far back as the Bronze Age – bronze axes have been discovered in the area, pottery from the Roman period has also been found, and an Iron Age enclosure visible as cropmarks has been found halfway between the village and Swanland.