Witter

Witter
This unusual and interesting name, found mainly in Lancashire and the northern counties of England, is of Anglo-Saxon origin, and is an occupational surname with two possible and distinct derivations. Firstly, it may be an occupational name for a bleacher or whitewasher, from the Middle English "whit", white, a development of the Olde English pre 7th Century "hwit", with the agent suffix "-er". The first recording of the surname, below, is from this source, and the variant forms range from Whiter and Whitter to Whitta and Wheater. One Henry le Witere or le Wytter was recorded in the Warwickshire Assize Rolls of 1221. Secondly, the surname Witter may be an occupational name for a white-leather dresser, one who tawed skins into white-leather, derived from the Middle English "whit", white, and "tawyere, towyere", a development of the West Saxon "tawian", to taw, to make skins into leather by steeping them in a solution of alum and salt until white and pliant. The surname from this source is first recorded in the late 12th Century as Ralf Wittauuere, in Northamptonshire, and can also be found as Whittier, Whit(t)ear and Whit(e)hair. The marriage of Thomas Witter and Margaret Thomasson was recorded at St. Nicholas', Liverpool, on June 5th 1606, and Henrye, son of Anthonye Witter, was christened in Waddington, Yorkshire, on November 5th 1617. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of John Witer, which was dated 1181, in the "Cartulary of St. Mary's", Clerkenwell, during the reign of King Henry 11, known as "The Builder of Churches", 1154 - 1189. 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.

Surnames reference. 2013.

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  • Witter — is a surname, and may refer to:;Persons *Cherie Witter (b. 1963), American model and actress; Playboy Playmate 1985 *Dean G. Witter (1887–1969), American businessman; founder of Dean Witter Co. *Jim Witter (b. 1964), Canadian country music and… …   Wikipedia

  • witter — UK [ˈwɪtə(r)] / US [ˈwɪtər] or witter on UK / US verb [intransitive] Word forms witter : present tense I/you/we/they witter he/she/it witters present participle wittering past tense wittered past participle wittered Word forms witter on : present …   English dictionary

  • witter on — witter UK [ˈwɪtə(r)] / US [ˈwɪtər] or witter on UK / US verb [intransitive] Word forms witter : present tense I/you/we/they witter he/she/it witters present participle wittering past tense wittered past participle wittered Word forms witter on :… …   English dictionary

  • Witter — ist der Name von: Ben Witter (1920–1993), deutscher Journalist und Schriftsteller Henning Bernward Witter (1683–1715), Alttestamentler und Pastor in Hildesheim Michael Witter (* 1951), deutscher Diplomat Orte: Witter (Arkansas), Ort in den… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • witter — ► VERB (usu. witter on) Brit. informal ▪ speak at length about trivial matters. ORIGIN probably imitative …   English terms dictionary

  • witter on — variant UK US Main entry: witter …   Useful english dictionary

  • witter — wit|ter [ˈwıtə US ər] v also witter on [i]BrE informal to talk a lot in a boring way or about something unimportant = ↑ramble on witter about ▪ I m sick of her wittering on about her boyfriend …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • witter — [[t]wɪ̱tə(r)[/t]] witters, wittering, wittered VERB (disapproval) If you say that someone is wittering about something, you mean that they are talking a lot about things that you think are silly and boring. [BRIT, INFORMAL] [V about n] They just… …   English dictionary

  • Witter — 1. Aus dem alten deutschen Rufnamen Widher/Wither (widu + heri) entstandener Familienname. 2. Berufname zu mnd. witten »weiß machen, tünchen« für den Tüncher. 3. Berufsübername zu mnd. witten »weiß sieden, den Feingehalt von Gold und Silber… …   Wörterbuch der deutschen familiennamen

  • witter on — Brit. informal speak at length about trivial matters. → witter …   English new terms dictionary

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