diff --git a/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/search/fetch/FetchPhase.java b/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/search/fetch/FetchPhase.java
index d41e7e3256b0b..086dff6b1e6ac 100644
--- a/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/search/fetch/FetchPhase.java
+++ b/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/search/fetch/FetchPhase.java
@@ -367,23 +367,23 @@ private Map<String, SearchHitField> getSearchFields(SearchContext context, int n
 
     private InternalSearchHit.InternalNestedIdentity getInternalNestedIdentity(SearchContext context, int nestedSubDocId, AtomicReaderContext subReaderContext, DocumentMapper documentMapper, ObjectMapper nestedObjectMapper) throws IOException {
         int currentParent = nestedSubDocId;
+        StringBuilder objectFieldPrefix = new StringBuilder();
+        ObjectMapper current = nestedObjectMapper;
         ObjectMapper nestedParentObjectMapper;
         InternalSearchHit.InternalNestedIdentity nestedIdentity = null;
         do {
-            String field;
-            Filter parentFilter;
-            nestedParentObjectMapper = documentMapper.findParentObjectMapper(nestedObjectMapper);
+            String field = nestedObjectMapper.name();
+            nestedParentObjectMapper = documentMapper.findParentObjectMapper(current);
+
+            final Filter parentFilter;
             if (nestedParentObjectMapper != null) {
-                field = nestedObjectMapper.name();
                 if (!nestedParentObjectMapper.nested().isNested()) {
-                    nestedObjectMapper = nestedParentObjectMapper;
-                    // all right, the parent is a normal object field, so this is the best identiy we can give for that:
-                    nestedIdentity = new InternalSearchHit.InternalNestedIdentity(field, 0, nestedIdentity);
+                    objectFieldPrefix.append(nestedParentObjectMapper.name()).append('.');
+                    current = nestedParentObjectMapper;
                     continue;
                 }
                 parentFilter = nestedParentObjectMapper.nestedTypeFilter();
             } else {
-                field = nestedObjectMapper.fullPath();
                 parentFilter = NonNestedDocsFilter.INSTANCE;
             }
 
@@ -395,7 +395,11 @@ private InternalSearchHit.InternalNestedIdentity getInternalNestedIdentity(Searc
                 offset++;
             }
             currentParent = nextParent;
-            nestedObjectMapper = nestedParentObjectMapper;
+            nestedObjectMapper = current = nestedParentObjectMapper;
+            if (objectFieldPrefix.length() > 0) {
+                field = objectFieldPrefix.append(field).toString();
+                objectFieldPrefix = new StringBuilder();
+            }
             nestedIdentity = new InternalSearchHit.InternalNestedIdentity(field, offset, nestedIdentity);
         } while (nestedParentObjectMapper != null);
         return nestedIdentity;
diff --git a/src/test/java/org/elasticsearch/search/innerhits/InnerHitsTests.java b/src/test/java/org/elasticsearch/search/innerhits/InnerHitsTests.java
index 7300331cab265..ed55c4e94f9a9 100644
--- a/src/test/java/org/elasticsearch/search/innerhits/InnerHitsTests.java
+++ b/src/test/java/org/elasticsearch/search/innerhits/InnerHitsTests.java
@@ -851,13 +851,13 @@ public void testInnerHitsWithObjectFieldThatHasANestedField() throws Exception {
         assertAcked(prepareCreate("articles")
                         .addMapping("article", jsonBuilder().startObject()
                                         .startObject("properties")
-                                            .startObject("comments")
-                                                .field("type", "object")
-                                                .startObject("properties")
-                                                    .startObject("messages").field("type", "nested").endObject()
-                                                .endObject()
-                                                .endObject()
-                                            .endObject()
+                                        .startObject("comments")
+                                        .field("type", "object")
+                                        .startObject("properties")
+                                        .startObject("messages").field("type", "nested").endObject()
+                                        .endObject()
+                                        .endObject()
+                                        .endObject()
                                         .endObject()
                         )
         );
@@ -865,7 +865,12 @@ public void testInnerHitsWithObjectFieldThatHasANestedField() throws Exception {
         List<IndexRequestBuilder> requests = new ArrayList<>();
         requests.add(client().prepareIndex("articles", "article", "1").setSource(jsonBuilder().startObject()
                 .field("title", "quick brown fox")
-                .startObject("comments").startObject("messages").field("message", "fox eat quick").endObject().endObject()
+                .startObject("comments")
+                    .startArray("messages")
+                        .startObject().field("message", "fox eat quick").endObject()
+                        .startObject().field("message", "bear eat quick").endObject()
+                    .endArray()
+                .endObject()
                 .endObject()));
         indexRandom(true, requests);
 
@@ -877,11 +882,21 @@ public void testInnerHitsWithObjectFieldThatHasANestedField() throws Exception {
         assertThat(response.getHits().getAt(0).id(), equalTo("1"));
         assertThat(response.getHits().getAt(0).getInnerHits().get("comments.messages").getTotalHits(), equalTo(1l));
         assertThat(response.getHits().getAt(0).getInnerHits().get("comments.messages").getAt(0).id(), equalTo("1"));
-        assertThat(response.getHits().getAt(0).getInnerHits().get("comments.messages").getAt(0).getNestedIdentity().getField().string(), equalTo("comments"));
+        assertThat(response.getHits().getAt(0).getInnerHits().get("comments.messages").getAt(0).getNestedIdentity().getField().string(), equalTo("comments.messages"));
         assertThat(response.getHits().getAt(0).getInnerHits().get("comments.messages").getAt(0).getNestedIdentity().getOffset(), equalTo(0));
-        assertThat(response.getHits().getAt(0).getInnerHits().get("comments.messages").getAt(0).getNestedIdentity().getChild().getField().string(), equalTo("messages"));
-        assertThat(response.getHits().getAt(0).getInnerHits().get("comments.messages").getAt(0).getNestedIdentity().getChild().getOffset(), equalTo(0));
-        assertThat(response.getHits().getAt(0).getInnerHits().get("comments.messages").getAt(0).getNestedIdentity().getChild().getChild(), nullValue());
+        assertThat(response.getHits().getAt(0).getInnerHits().get("comments.messages").getAt(0).getNestedIdentity().getChild(), nullValue());
+
+        response = client().prepareSearch("articles")
+                .setQuery(nestedQuery("comments.messages", matchQuery("comments.messages.message", "bear")).innerHit(new QueryInnerHitBuilder()))
+                .get();
+        assertNoFailures(response);
+        assertHitCount(response, 1);
+        assertThat(response.getHits().getAt(0).id(), equalTo("1"));
+        assertThat(response.getHits().getAt(0).getInnerHits().get("comments.messages").getTotalHits(), equalTo(1l));
+        assertThat(response.getHits().getAt(0).getInnerHits().get("comments.messages").getAt(0).id(), equalTo("1"));
+        assertThat(response.getHits().getAt(0).getInnerHits().get("comments.messages").getAt(0).getNestedIdentity().getField().string(), equalTo("comments.messages"));
+        assertThat(response.getHits().getAt(0).getInnerHits().get("comments.messages").getAt(0).getNestedIdentity().getOffset(), equalTo(1));
+        assertThat(response.getHits().getAt(0).getInnerHits().get("comments.messages").getAt(0).getNestedIdentity().getChild(), nullValue());
     }
 
 }