Nutter

Etymology

The most straightforward explanation is that Nutter comes from Old English words for “nut” plus an agent suffix, giving the sense “nut dealer” or “one connected with nuts.” Some 19th-century writers also linked it with place-names built from the old word for a hazel or nut tree, so it may sometimes be locational rather than occupational. A minority view tied it to the Danish personal name Cnut/Canute, but that explanation is less certain for this surname.

History

The name is recorded in England by the 16th century, and later surname scholars treated it as a fairly ordinary English family name. It appears in several English directories and is still found in Britain and the United States, though never among the very common surnames. Older authors debated whether the name usually meant a nut seller or arose from names of places such as Nuthall or Nutfield.

Origin

Regions

Variant spellings

Fun fact

Some early surname books remarked that Nutter may originally have referred to someone associated with hazel trees or nut-growing places, not just a shopkeeper selling nuts.

Related surnames