Utridge

This unusual and interesting name is of Anglo-Saxon origin, deriving from an Olde English pre 7th Century personal name, "Uhtric". The given name is composed of the Olde English elements "uht(e)", twilight, dusk, dawn, with "ric", power, and is a good example of that large group of early Anglo-Saxon names comprised of such disparate elements. Other examples are "Aelfstan", elf-stone, and "saebeorht", sea-bright. That "Uhtric" was a popular given name is borne out by the number of surnames it has generated, ranging from Uttridge, Utteridge and Utridge to Outteridge, Outridge, Oughtright and Outright. Recordings of the surname from English Church Registers include: the christening of Anne Utteritche at Lavenham, Suffolk, on August 20th 1574; the marriage of Nicholas Utteridge and Grace Neate at St. Leonard's, Colchester, Essex, on September 29th 1650; and the marriage of Susan Uttridge and Bircham Skipper, at East Walton, Norfolk, on October 16th 1774. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of John Outrich, which was dated 1333, in the "Medieval Documents relating to the County of Essex", during the reign of King Edward 111, known as "The Father of the Navy", 1327 - 1377. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.