Tottie

This very unusual surname recorded in the spellings of Tott, Tutt, Tothe, Tottman, Tottie, Tottey, Tutty and Tuttey, is English but of either Viking or Anglo-Saxon pre 7th century origins. It is believed to derive from the Danish personal name 'Thjod, but it is equally possible that the name is a form of the German "Otto". It is not uncommon for a surname to have several possible origins, however the evidence points to the "Viking" origin, if only because most of the early surviving recordings are to be found in Yorkshire, and York was the ancient capital of Viking England. The early surname development included the following recordings taken from the authentic records, rolls and registers, of the medieval period. Wilhelmus Totty in the 1379 Poll Tax register for Yorkshire, and Robertus Thotte in the same rolls. Later recordings include those of George Tott in the marriage license lists for London in 1577, Anthonie Tuttey whowas a witness at St Botolphs without Aldgate, on January 31st 1618, and John Totman, who was an emigrant to the New England colony of Virginia, in 1632. Another recording is that of Mary Tottey, who in 1789 married John Byrne, at St George's Chapel, Hanover Square, London.. The first recorded spelling of the family name is believed to be that of Beatrix Totty, which was dated 1379 in the Poll Tax rolls of Yorkshire. This was during the reign of King Richard 11, known as "Richard of Bordeaux", where he was born, and who reigned from 1378 to 1399. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.