PETTITT
Recorded variant spellings include Pett Itt
Pettitt is an English surname that originated as a nickname derived from the Middle English word petit, meaning small or little. The name is ultimately rooted in the Old French petit, introduced to England following the Norman conquest of 1066. It was applied to persons of small stature, a diminutive personality, or the younger of two individuals with the same given name.
The earliest known recording of the name appears in the Domesday Book of 1086 under the spelling Aluric Petit, a Hampshire entry made during the reign of King William I, known as the Conqueror. Subsequent medieval documents continued to use a variety of spellings: John le Petit in the 1228 Essex Feet of Fines, Roger Petyt in the 1273 Norfolk Hundred Rolls, and later London church registers such as the christening of Richard, son of William Pettitt, on 4 August 1588 at St. Margaret’s, Westminster, and the marriage of Anne Pettitt and Henry Good on 9 December 1613 at St. Katherine by the Tower.
In heraldry, the Pettitt family was granted a coat of arms depicting three red pierced cinquefoils on a gold chevron between three silver leopards’ faces, all set upon a blue field. This heraldic design illustrates the historical importance and recognition of the family within the English gentry.
Variations of the surname include Pettit, Pettett, Pittet, Pettet, Petit and Petyt, reflecting differences in spelling conventions over the centuries. The surname may also appear as Pytt or Pitt, and is sometimes combined with suffixes such as –ott or –et to form names like Petott or Petet. Related surnames of the same origin are Petting, Pettinger, Petty, Pete and Pettigrew.
Geographically, the name is most common in the United Kingdom, particularly within the southeastern counties of Kent, Norfolk and Suffolk. In Scotland, bearers of the name are primarily found near Kelso in the Borders and on the Isle of Skye. The surname extends beyond Britain; notable concentrations exist in north‑western United States, especially in Washington State and Oregon, where many descendants trace their ancestry to 19th‑century migration from England.
Historical records also document a 17th‑century settler named Robert Pettit who established himself in the Virginia colony. During the American Revolutionary War, members of the Pettitt family received war pensions from the British Empire, a testament to their loyalty to the Crown. These connections underscore the family’s continued presence in its ancestral lands and its diaspora across English‑speaking countries such as Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
Typical given names associated with the Pettitt surname
Male
- Andrew
- Christopher
- David
- James
- John
- Mark
- Michael
- Paul
- Robert
- Simon
- Stephen
Female
- Alison
- Annette
- Diane
- Elizabeth
- Jacqueline
- Janet
- Karen
- Linda
- Margaret
- Mary
- Nicola
- Samantha
- Sarah
- Susan
Similar and related surnames
Related and similar names are generated algorithmically based on the spelling, and may not necessarily share an etymology.
How to communicate the surname Pettitt in...
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Morse
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There are approximately 4,546 people named Pettitt in the UK. That makes it roughly the 2,063rd most common surname in Britain. Around 70 in a million people in Britain are named Pettitt.
Surname type: Nickname
Origin: English
Region of origin: British Isles
Country of origin: England
Religion of origin: Christian
Language of origin: English
Famous people named Pettitt
- Tom Pettitt - Real Tennis player (1859 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.