NUTT
Nutt is a surname of English origin, first emerging in the Anglo‑Saxon period. The name is derived from the Old English word hnutu, meaning “nut”. In the medieval naming convention a patronymic or descriptive sobriquet would often be adopted as a family name, and the term “nut” was employed either as a nickname for an individual of round or small stature, or as a comparative reference to the hardness and resilience of a nut, thus describing a person as a “hard man”. The name may also have a topographical origin, applied to someone dwelling near a prominent oak or walnut grove, or an occupational designation for a person engaged in the gathering, trading or processing of nuts, a foodstuffs that were essential to the winter diet of early English society.
The earliest attested form of the surname is William Nute, recorded in the Pipe Rolls of Northamptonshire in 1181-1189 during the reign of King Henry XI. By the late thirteenth century the name appears in a variety of spellings, including Nutt, Nott, Notte, Nutten, Nutting, Nottey and Nuttey. Notable early instances comprise Adam Notekyn of Essex in the Hundred Rolls of 1273, Hugh le Notte of Buckinghamshire in the same year, miller John Nutkins in Essex in 1666, and the marriage of Matthew Nutte to Ann Pullen at St Mary Abchurch, London, on 19 July 1738. The multiplicity of spellings reflects the low level of literacy and the regional pronunciation variations that characterised medieval England.
In addition to the Anglo‑Saxon derivation there is evidence of a separate occupational form. The Old English word cnut (12th century) and its later form hnut were used to denote a person who specialised in the procurement or sale of nuts. Thus the surname could have been adopted by merchants or farmers whose livelihood depended upon this commodity. The variant Knott is also recorded, but is usually distinguished as a separate locational or descriptive surname in its own right.
Geographically, the surname Nutt has remained relatively uncommon in the United Kingdom. Contemporary records show a higher concentration in the counties of Surrey and Dorset, areas with a long history of nut cultivation. In the United States the name is more frequently encountered, notably in the northeastern states of Pennsylvania, New York and Massachusetts; the 1920 census indicates that roughly 44 % of all families bearing the surname in the United States resided in Pennsylvania. Outside North America the name is occasionally found in Australia and Canada but at a very low frequency. In all regions the surname continues to be uncommon worldwide, and its bearers are overwhelmingly of white descent, consistent with its Anglo‑Saxon heritage.
There are numerous orthographic variants of the name, the most common being Nuttall, Knott and Nute. These variations arose from differences in regional dialect, scribal interpretation and the natural evolution of spelling over centuries of migration and assimilation. In scholarly genealogical work, the appropriate interpretation of a particular lineage requires careful examination of primary documents, as the surname alone offers only a broad indication of origin.
Typical given names associated with the Nutt surname
Male
- Andrew
- Christopher
- David
- Ian
- James
- John
- Jonathan
- Michael
- Richard
- Robert
- Thomas
- William
Female
- Amanda
- Christine
- Claire
- Diane
- Elizabeth
- Emma
- Joanne
- Kathleen
- Margaret
- Mary
- Rebecca
- Sarah
- Susan
Similar and related surnames
Related and similar names are generated algorithmically based on the spelling, and may not necessarily share an etymology.
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There are approximately 3,434 people named Nutt in the UK. That makes it roughly the 2,664th most common surname in Britain. Around 53 in a million people in Britain are named Nutt.
Origin: English
Region of origin: British Isles
Country of origin: England
Religion of origin: Christian
Language of origin: English
Famous people named Nutt
- David Nutt - Psychiatrist, neuropsychopharmacologist
- Michael Nutt -
- Arthur Charles Rothery Nutt - Army officer (1873 to 1946)
Names and descriptions courtesy of Wikipedia, and may contain errors. This is not intended to be an exhaustive list of every famous person with this name.