Wilt
A surname most likely from a medieval short form of William, though in some cases it may also reflect the place-name Wiltshire or a similar local association.
The #4,348 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 37,813 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Wilt is usually understood as a reduced medieval form of the personal name William, which came into English through Old French and became one of the most common given names after the Norman Conquest. In surname use, a short pet-form like Wilt could easily become hereditary. There is also a weaker possibility of local influence from place-names such as Wiltshire, but the personal-name explanation is the safest general reading.
History
The name fits a broad English pattern in which common given names were shortened and then inherited as surnames. Its survival in a relatively small number of bearers suggests it was never among the major English surname groups. Historical surname books also show that short forms and spelling variants around Wil- names were common and fluid.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Because medieval spelling was so flexible, Wilt could appear beside a cluster of very similar Wil- surnames without any fixed spelling for centuries.
From the historical record
“widow of Thomas Bljoikyensope, of Blynkkensope, received a general pardon ' (Hodgson's Northumberland, iii. 130). Here are four variations within two lines written by the same hand. This wilt give the casual reader an idea of the v^aries in spelling. Many of these names, like our dictionary words, attained one…”
— A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with special American instances