This surname is derived from the name of an ancestor. 'the son of Bennet,' i.e. Benedict, which see. Bennet was the usual English form. While Furness Abbey was administrated under the Benedictine Order, Bennet was one of the commonest of baptismal names in the surrounding district (v. Benn). West, in his History of Furness (pp. 188, 60, 29), records, amongst the benefactors of the Abbey and Conishead Priory, 'Benet, son of Alan,' 'Benet Penington' (1290) 'Benet de Rotington' (1256), and 'Benet, son of William' (1256). These were all living in the immediate neighbourhood of the Abbey. Indeed, it will be found that Bennet and Benson are still common surnames in districts where the Benedictines have had foundations.

Benedict, or Benett de Hankeston, Cambridgeshire, 1273. Hundred Rolls.Stolen from Fore-bears

Beneyt Mercator, Cambridgeshire, ibid.

Nicholas Beneit, Oxfordshire, ibid.

Reginald fil. Beneyt, Huntingdonshire, ibid.

Robert He-net, Somerset, 1 Edward III: Kirby's Quest.

Joanna Benet, doghter, 1379: Poll Tax of Yorkshire.

1581. Baptised — Thomas, s. Bennett Calwaye: St. Columb Major (Cornwall).

The feminine Benedicta was also familiarly Bennet.

1561. Baptised — Bennet, d. Robert Garret: St. Thomas the Apostle (London).

1575. — Bennet, d. James Blower: ibid.

1577-8. William Stitche and Bennett Bennett, widow: Marriage Lic. (London).

1578. Baptised — John, s. Thomas Bennett: St. James, Clerkenwell.

BENNET, Bennett: Diminutive of Benedict. The fame of S. Benedict (480—543) the patriarch of the Western monks made the name popular. William, Robert, and Hugh Benedictus occur in Normandy c. 1180—95. Benedictus, son of Walter de Sancto Edmundo, witnessed a charter of sale of land in Perth, 1219 (Scon, p. 52). Benedict the dean (decanus) witnessed the gift of the mill of Wystoun to the Hospital of Soltre in 1249 (Soltre, p. 30), John Benet, Scotsman, late an enemy, became liegeman of Henry IV of England, 1402 (.Bain, IV, 624), and Richard Bennat, chaplain, is mentioned in 1459 (BAA., II, 126). Part of the lands of Williamstoun in the barony of Cardowie was leased to John Bennett, 1563 (LIM., 89), Robert Bennet was one of the first bailies of Cuirass, 1588 Andrew Bennot witnessed an instrument of resignation in 1527 (Panmure, II, 306), and the name was very common in Edinburgh in the seventeenth century. A family of this name in Chesters, were ranked among the 'landit men' of Roxburgh in the early part of the sixteenth century, and the Bennets of Grubbet were at that period an old family in the same county. The form Bennet is more common in Scotland, -ett being the prevailing form south of the Border. Benarte 1651, Bennatt 1574.

From the personal name Benedict. In the reigns of Edwards II. and III. the name is found thus modified: Fitz Benedict, Benediscite, Bendiste, Bendish, Bennett. This was in the city of Norwich. N. and Q. v. 291. The derivation from benet, a minor order of priests, is improbable.

A contraction of Benedict, from Benedictus, blessed.

A contraction or rather a corruption of Benedict, from Benedictus, blessed.

Bennett. —Differently derived from the early personal name of Benedict and from "benet," a minor order of priests. In the Hundred Rolls for Cambridgeshire and Oxfordshire, in the reign of Edward I, it occurs frequently in the form of Beneyt. At present it is rare or absent north of Lincolnshire and Lancashire, but is well dispersed over the rest of England, being best represented in Cornwall, Derbyshire, Dorset, Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, Notts, etc. It is singular that Bennetts is for the most part confined to Cornwall, the combination of the two varieties of the name placing this county at the head of the list.

The name Bennett comes from the first name Benedict. This name originates from the Latin word ‘benedictus’ which means ‘blessed’-a popular Christian name in late Roman times. It was also the name of the fifth-century founder of the Benedictine Order. Since that time, no fewer than fifteen popes have taken the name Benedict.

With the decay of Latin, the popular name Benedict was adapted into many languages. In Italian it became Benedetto, in French Benoit. The French form came to England with the Norman Conquest, then gradually evolved to Bennett. In the process many variations arose, some of which remain in common use today. Bennetts, for instance, means ‘dependant of Bennett’; Benson means ‘son of Bennett’, if it is not the alternative surname derived from the place in Oxfordshire. The surname Benn also derives from the old source (and, so far as we can tell, not from Benjamin). The variation Bennet is usually found in the north of the country.

The records of Furness Abbey, which was run by the Benedictine Order, indicate a great number of baptisms with the names of Bennet and Benson. Indeed, these names (the two most popular forms) are found to be particularly prevalent in areas where the Benedictine monks flourished. Other variations found in Benedictine baptismal records include the names Bennison, Benns, Bence, Bense, Bennie and Benny.

The earliest reference to a Bennett is in the 1193 records for Oseney Abbey. Here the name appears as Beneit, which is a variation of the Old French form. The earliest Bensons appear in the 1326 Rolls of Wakefield Manor, where John Benneson and Adam Bensome are listed. A rare variation of the name appears in Shakespeare. In Much Ado About Nothing one of the characters is called Benedick.

Bennett remained for many years a popular first name, but it is now rare. Likewise, the first name Ben is nowadays usually short for Benjamin, rather than for Benedict. Thus Bennett curiously remains a popular surname which derives from an original first name now almost unused.

Bennettitales is an alternative name for an extinct species of palm-like plants which constituted a major portion of the earth’s vegetation during the middle Mezozoic period some 150 million years ago.

Bennett’s Fracture is a fracture of the base of the thumb, named in honour of Edward Hallaron Bennett, the eminent Irish physician who was an expert on breaks and dislocations.

The geographical term ‘ben’ comes from the Gaelic word for peak (beann). Thus parts of Britain-especially Scotland and Ireland-abound in mountains incorporating the word: Ben Nevis, for instance, and Ben More.

There are no United Kingdom towns incorporating the name Bennett. Australia and the United States have Bennett mountains while New Zealand has a Cape Bennett.

With about 117,000 namesakes, Bennett is the 46th most popular surname in England and Wales. (The name is not common enough throughout Scotland to be counted separately.) Bennett is notably popular in and around Birmingham where an estimated one in about 420 families bears the name. In descending numerical order Bristol, Sheffield and Liverpool are other Bennett strongholds. Around the world Bennetts are most common in Sydney (one in 719 families), Canberra (one in 767) and Auckland (one in 805). The United States has more Bennetts than the entire population of Southampton-an estimated total of just under 255,000 makes this their 69th most popular surname.