Fulbourn is a village in Cambridgeshire, England, with evidence of settlement dating back to Neolithic times. The village was probably established under its current name by 1200. The waterfowl-frequented stream after which it was named lies in the east, close to the division between arable and fenland.

Fulbourn lies about five miles (8 km) southeast of the centre of Cambridge, separated from the outer city boundary by farmland and the grounds of Fulbourn Hospital. The village itself is fairly compact and roughly in the centre of the administrative parish. North and east of the village the land is flat, drained fen; to the south and southwest the Gog Magog Hills rise to over 200 feet (61 m). Outside the residential area the land is open farmland, with relatively few trees. There is a wooded area, including a nature reserve (Fulbourn Fen) to the east in the Manor grounds. The village is set within the Cambridge Green Belt. The traditional parish boundaries follow the line of a Roman road and the Icknield Way to the southwest and southeast, Fleam Dyke – an ancient defensive earthwork – to the east, and the tributaries of Quy Water that drain to the River Cam.

Fleam Dyke bears the name of the Hundred of Cambridgeshire called Flendish that was known in the time of the Domesday Book by its Saxon name Flamingdike, pointing to the influence of Flemish immigration into the region. Flemish immigration has marked Fulbourn in various ways, with Fulbourn Windmill the most visible link to this influence. East Anglian English also shows such influence.

The parish extends some five miles (8 km) north to south and four miles (6.2 km) east to west.

Archaeological evidence of habitation in the area has been found dating as far back as the Neolithic period, and there have been numerous finds from the Roman and Anglo-Saxon periods. The name has so far been traced back to 991 AD and is thought to derive from the Anglo-Saxon "Fugleburn" or "Fugolburna", meaning "stream frequented by waterfowl". At one time, the village had two ecclesiastical parishes with both churches in the same churchyard, separated by seven feet; All Saints, believed to be the earlier, and St. Vigor's. Some early maps depict "Fulbourn Magna" and "Fulbourn Parva" as separate villages, but a research project conducted by the Fulbourn Village History Society concluded that there was only ever one Fulbourn.

The site at Hall Orchard, a medieval moated site known as Dunmowes, survives as an earthwork and has a water-filled moat when suitable conditions exist. Excavations showed that the moated area had been occupied from at least the early 13th century until the late 17th century. The moat platform and ditch were probably constructed in the late 12th or early 13th century, with the soil and chalk dug out from the ditch being piled into the central area to create a raised platform. A large drainage ditch at the southwest corner and another at the northeast corner meet the moat ditch. These were probably inlet and outlet channels supplying the moat with continuous running water.

Some clues of the relative wealth and importance of Dunmowes Manor are available from the archaeological evidence. Decorative features associated with the building that were above and beyond practical and utilitarian purposes indicate that the owners intended to impress their neighbours and emphasise their own importance.

By the late medieval/early post-medieval period, most, if not all, of the buildings at Hall Orchard, rather than being thatched, may have been covered in relatively expensive stone roofing tiles. These were later replaced by clay peg tiles, with glazed and decorated finials and ridge tiles. Many fragments were very small, suggesting demolition of the house, with any complete tiles possibly being removed for re-use elsewhere.