POTT
Pott is a surname of English provenance, deriving from the Middle English word pott, which denotes a pot or vessel. The term was traditionally applied as an occupational surname to a potter, a dealer in pots or a craftsman associated with the pottery trade, and it may also have functioned as a nickname for an individual bearing a pot‑shaped trait or known by a local pot.
Alternate origins are recorded. One theory links the name to the pre‑7th century Old English word polt, meaning a dweller in a hollow or near a pit, implying a locational surname. A further possibility, though considered less probable, suggests that Pott arose as a truncation of Philpott, itself a form of the Greek personal name Philip, meaning “the horse lover”. Historical attestations include Roger Potte of 1311 in Colchester, William Pottes of 1540 in Whitby, and Joseph Poate of Astan Flamville in 1748.
The earliest documentary reference is found in the Pipe Rolls of 1115, where a Richard Pot is recorded in Winton, Hampshire, during the reign of King Henry I, the Administrator (1100‑1135). Subsequent entries include Walter del Potte mentioned in 1321 in a Kentian record, and Thomas Pot documented in 1545 in Dunbar, East Lothian, Scotland.
In England, the surname is common in Norfolk, Cambridgeshire, Lincolnshire, Essex and Yorkshire, with additional occurrences in Lancashire, Northumberland, Gloucestershire and Derbyshire. It has been documented in Northern Ireland mainly in Ulster since the late eighteenth century. Internationally, Pott can be found in Australia, Canada, the United States and in various parts of Europe, notably Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Hungary, Romania and Poland, where the name was first inherited in Lower Saxony and later spread throughout the country.
Variant spellings are numerous. These include Poate, Pote, Potte, Potts, Pottes, Potes, Pot, Potter, Patt, Patten and Pattinson. The plural form Potts may signify “son of Pot”, reflecting a patronymic development.
Because the surname Pott is intrinsically linked to the craft of pottery, it stands as a linguistic testament to the long‑standing tradition of ceramic workmanship in Britain. Its persistence across centuries and across continents underscores the enduring nature of occupational surnames within the English‑speaking world.
Typical given names associated with the Pott surname
Male
- Adam
- Andrew
- Christopher
- Daniel
- David
- John
- Jonathan
- Michael
- Richard
- Robert
- Simon
Female
- Carina
- Carol
- Christine
- Emma
- Helen
- Jean
- Julie
- Karen
- Margaret
- Nicola
- Rachel
- Sarah
- Susan
- Virginia
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 Pott in...
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There are approximately 503 people named Pott in the UK. That makes it one of Britain's least common surnames. Only around eight in a million people in Britain are named Pott.
Origin: English
Region of origin: British Isles
Country of origin: England
Religion of origin: Christian
Language of origin: English
Famous people named Pott
- Joel Pott - Musician
- Francis Pott - Composer, pianist, senior academic and university administrator
- Herbert Pott - Diver (1883 to 1953)
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.