Kett Surname

118,675th
Most Common
surname in the World

Approximately 3,875 people bear this surname

Most prevalent in:
England
Highest density in:
Ireland

Kett Surname Definition:

This surname is derived from a nickname. 'the cat,' a sobriquet affixed on the nominee for some supposed sleekness of manner, &c. A well-known Norfolk surname: at least six centuries old in that county.

Adam le Kat. Calendarium Rotulorum Patentium in Turri Londinensi.

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Kett Surname Distribution Map

PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
England8931:62,3947,342
United States7581:478,17840,545
Germany7101:113,38813,961
Russia3371:427,66540,788
Canada3191:115,50312,273
Ireland2531:18,6121,981
Australia2201:122,70813,477
New Zealand1231:36,8166,282
Hungary591:166,37814,685
Austria211:405,49741,758
Latvia181:113,89116,101
Taiwan161:1,465,2979,806
South Africa141:3,869,836127,494
Wales141:221,03813,576
Nigeria131:13,626,366237,812
Mauritania131:314,98913,616
France91:7,380,302306,885
Norway91:571,36544,190
Thailand91:7,848,705447,191
Croatia61:704,76744,411
Scotland61:892,30328,047
Qatar61:393,00055,922
Jersey51:19,8403,614
Malaysia51:5,898,845196,803
India41:191,766,3461,073,940
Switzerland41:2,053,22997,179
Romania41:5,019,46862,922
Spain41:11,688,009116,470
Belarus21:4,750,530139,516
Israel21:4,278,817136,311
Czechia21:5,316,734169,646
Lithuania11:3,034,58847,401
Trinidad and Tobago11:1,363,97522,013
Vietnam11:92,646,0548,382
United Arab Emirates11:9,162,273135,437
Sweden11:9,846,757347,448
Poland11:38,008,749231,653
Jordan11:8,842,43726,010
Japan11:127,844,29373,547
Georgia11:3,745,54547,852
Dominican Republic11:10,432,93236,508
Denmark11:5,644,71593,155
China11:1,367,321,56651,149
Cameroon11:20,769,068227,406
Brazil11:214,074,3321,693,628
Argentina11:42,743,414282,706
Algeria11:38,631,551130,422
Northern Ireland11:1,845,03620,648
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
Ireland1731:25,6062,755
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
England3921:62,1827,229
Wales11:1,568,41619,290
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States931:539,98637,316

Kett (306) may also be a first name.

Kett Surname Meaning

From Where Does The Surname Originate? meaning and history

This surname is derived from a nickname. 'the cat,' a sobriquet affixed on the nominee for some supposed sleekness of manner, &c. A well-known Norfolk surname: at least six centuries old in that county.

Adam le Kat. Calendarium Rotulorum Patentium in Turri Londinensi.

Klyas le Cat, Norfolk, 1273. Hundred Rolls.

Reginald le Cat, Essex, ibid.

Henry le Catt, Norfolk, 14 Edward I: History of Norfolk.

William le Cat, Norfolk, 1275: ibid.

Roger le Chat, Norfolk, temp. King John: ibid.

1465. William Catte, rector of Edingthorp, Norfolk: ibid.

William Cat, Somerset, 1 Edward III: Kirby's Quest.

1678. James Catt, rector of Gresham, Norfolk. History of Norfolk.

1692. Baptised — Aviss, d. Thomas Catt: St. James, Clerkenwell.

1803. Married — Richard Catt and Mary Stedman: St. George, Hanover Square.

A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames (1896) by Charles Wareing Endell Bardsley

(Teutonic) = Keat, q.v.

Walter le Ket.—Cal Rot. Orig.

(Celtic) Cet was the name of some early Irish military heroes [cp. Old Irish cét, first]

Surnames of the United Kingdom (1912) by Henry Harrison

Ó Ceit IF 314*; Map Clare

A Guide to Irish Names (1964) by Edward MacLysaght

From the animal-like Lion, Bear, Wolf, &c. The family are probably of Norman origin, and the name was written Le Chat. Ilbert de Chaz, whose tombstone is at Lacock Abbey, came from Chaz or Cats in the neigbourhood of Bohun. A family of Le Cat were lords of Berreuil, near Gournay, in the XV. cent. The records of Norfolk show that the name of Le Chat, Le Cat, or Catt, existed at or about Heveningham from temp. King John till the XV. cent. The Ketts of Wymondham are said to have been a branch of the family. See Pedigree, &c., in Records of House of Gournay. There was also an ancient Teutonic personal name, Cato or Cat, whence perhaps the local names Cateby, Catton, Catcott, &c. An old family in Kent wrote themselves De Cat, implying a local origin. Philipott's Vill. Cant. 75.

Patronymica Britannica (1860) by Mark Antony Lower

Catt is an ancient east country name. It occurred in Norfolk and Essex in the 13th century and remained a Norfolk name until the 15th century and probably later (H. R., L.) (Blomefield's "Norfolk"). Cat, Le Catt, and De Cat were its early forms. An old Kent family bore the name of De Cat (L.). The name of Catt is also now established in Sussex.

Homes of Family Names in Great Britain (1890) by Henry Brougham Guppy

The Sussex family of Catt may very probably be connected with the old Kentish family of De Cat (L.). The name has been established for many centuries in the eastern counties, and further reference to it will be found under "Suffolk," in which county it still occurs.

Homes of Family Names in Great Britain (1890) by Henry Brougham Guppy

Kett Last Name Facts

Where Does The Last Name Kett Come From? nationality or country of origin

The surname Kett (Hassaniya-Arabic: ﻛﺖ, Russian: Кэтт) is found in England more than any other country or territory. It may also appear as a variant:. Click here for other possible spellings of this last name.

How Common Is The Last Name Kett? popularity and diffusion

The surname is the 118,675th most numerous last name globally. It is borne by approximately 1 in 1,880,657 people. Kett is primarily found in Europe, where 61 percent of Kett live; 31 percent live in Northern Europe and 30 percent live in British Isles. Kett is also the 503,193rd most widely held given name in the world It is held by 306 people.

The surname is most common in England, where it is held by 893 people, or 1 in 62,394. In England it is most numerous in: Norfolk, where 22 percent are found, Essex, where 14 percent are found and Greater London, where 12 percent are found. Not including England it exists in 47 countries. It also occurs in The United States, where 20 percent are found and Germany, where 18 percent are found.

Kett Family Population Trend historical fluctuation

The prevalency of Kett has changed over time. In England the number of people who held the Kett surname grew 228 percent between 1881 and 2014; in The United States it grew 815 percent between 1880 and 2014; in Ireland it grew 146 percent between 1901 and 2014 and in Wales it grew 1,400 percent between 1881 and 2014.

Kett Last Name Statistics demography

The religious adherence of those carrying the Kett last name is predominantly Catholic (100%) in Ireland.

In The United States those bearing the Kett last name are 10.98% more likely to be registered Republicans than The US average, with 57.75% being registered to vote for the party.

The amount Kett earn in different countries varies greatly. In Norway they earn 21.97% more than the national average, earning 422,098 kr per year; in South Africa they earn 50.07% less than the national average, earning R 118,656 per year; in United States they earn 20.99% more than the national average, earning $52,207 USD per year and in Canada they earn 4.12% more than the national average, earning $51,728 CAD per year.

Phonetically Similar Names

SurnameSimilarityWorldwide IncidencePrevalency
Keitt891,789/
Kette891,613/
Khett89155/
Kiett8970/
Keatt8932/
Kettz8924/
Keutt893/
Kettő891/
Ketth891/
Keytt891/
Ket8618,712/
Khette80164/
Ketthe8023/
Kettős806/
Hckett802/
Khetts801/
Kettch800/
Keittz800/
Keitth800/
Keattz800/
Keut755,992/
Kitt755,558/
Kete755,083/
Kiet754,375/
Keet753,630/
Keat752,952/
Keth75991/
Khet75780/
Keyt75747/
Keit75394/
Keşt7567/
Keht7536/
Kytt7513/
Kätt7511/
Cket755/
Cett753/
Qett752/
Hket751/
Kcet751/
Kqet751/
Keattch7379/
Kettová733/
Kheette731/
Keith6780,997/
Keyte672,527/
Keeth671,195/
Kheat671,161/
Keath671,065/
Kitte67606/
Keate67586/
Khete67579/
Kecht67555/
Kethe67543/
Kieth67373/
Khiet67354/
Keuth67247/
Keite67204/
Kheit67178/
Chett6739/
Keete6736/
Kheyt6732/
Quett6730/
Keest6720/
Kistt6717/
Keyth6715/
Kejst6715/
Khitt6711/
Khetd679/
Kesth676/
Ckete673/
Kheet673/
Kittp673/
Kheth672/
Kitht672/
Keitp671/
Keiht671/
Kuitt671/
Qette671/
Keytz671/
Hkeut671/
Kestz671/
Cketh671/
Cetth671/
Kytts671/
Kgeet671/
Keuht671/
Kethd671/
Kedte671/
Keadt671/
Keeyt671/
Kheut671/
Ketsh670/
Kieht670/
Kyott670/
Kaitt670/

Kett Name Transliterations

TransliterationICU LatinPercentage of Incidence
Kett in the Hassaniya-Arabic language
ﻛﺖkt-
Kett in the Russian language
Кэттkett-

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Footnotes

  • Surnames are taken as the first part of an person's inherited family name, caste, clan name or in some cases patronymic
  • Descriptions may contain details on the name's etymology, origin, ethnicity and history. They are largely reproduced from 3rd party sources; diligence is advised on accepting their validity - more information
  • Name distribution statistics are generated from a global database of over 4 billion people - more information
  • Heatmap: Dark red means there is a higher occurrence of the name, transitioning to light yellow signifies a progressively lower occurrence. Clicking on selected countries will show mapping at a regional level
  • Rank: Name are ranked by incidence using the ordinal ranking method; the name that occurs the most is assigned a rank of 1; name that occur less frequently receive an incremented rank; if two or more name occur the same number of times they are assigned the same rank and successive rank is incremented by the total preceeding names
  • Ethnic group cannot necessarily be determined by geographic occurrence
  • Similar: Names listed in the "Similar" section are phonetically similar and may not have any relation to Kett
  • To find out more about this surname's family history, lookup records on Family​Search, My​Heritage, FindMyPast and Ancestry. Further information may be obtained by DNA analysis