Littell Surname

162,058th
Most Common
surname in the World

Approximately 2,685 people bear this surname

Most prevalent in:
United States
Highest density in:
United States

Littell Surname Definition:

This surname is derived from a nickname. 'the little'; compare Bigg, Small, and Long. Sometimes affixed as a sobriquet on the least of two bearing the same name.

Johannes de Bland, et uxor, 1379: Poll Tax of Yorkshire.

Johannes de Bland, littill, 1379: ibid.

Read More About This Surname

Littell Surname Distribution Map

PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States2,6171:138,50214,451
England321:1,741,18971,393
Canada121:3,070,466169,836
Philippines101:10,123,822213,993
Brazil41:53,518,583632,670
Denmark21:2,822,35876,882
Australia11:26,995,701270,794
Germany11:80,505,459560,955
Hong Kong11:7,335,48316,643
Russia11:144,123,056881,408
South Africa11:54,177,704343,732
Spain11:46,752,036156,870
Thailand11:70,638,3451,175,915
United Arab Emirates11:9,162,273135,437
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
England451:541,67528,673
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States8441:59,5016,569

Littell (47) may also be a first name.

Littell Surname Meaning

From Where Does The Surname Originate? meaning and history

This surname is derived from a nickname. 'the little'; compare Bigg, Small, and Long. Sometimes affixed as a sobriquet on the least of two bearing the same name.

Johannes de Bland, et uxor, 1379: Poll Tax of Yorkshire.

Johannes de Bland, littill, 1379: ibid.

Johannes Tailliour, parws (i.e. parvus), 1379: ibid.

Johannes Tailliour, de Hyle, 1379: ibid.

William le Letle, Oxfordshire, 1273. Hundred Rolls.

Wiscard Litil, Huntingdonshire, ibid.

John le Litle, Berkshire, ibid.

Julian Litel, Cambridgeshire, ibid.

1544-5. Simon Bedell and Margaret Litell, widow: Marriage Lic. (Faculty Office).

1619. Baptised — John, s. Davye Little: St. James, Clerkenwell.

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

A descriptive name, in Latin documents rendered parvus, 'little, small.' French petit (of unknown origin) is also used in old documents as an equivalent. Hugo parvus, clericus regis, in reign of William the Lion (Melros, p. 32). Hugo parvus, burgess of Dundee, c. 1202 (RAA., I, p. 96). R. parvus, chaplain, witnessed a charter in favor of the Hospital of Soltre, between 1214—40 (Soltre, p. 19). John Litill served on an inquest at Lanark, 1313 (Bain, III, 1420). An agreement was made between the abbot of Scone and Robertus dictus Lytil, 1332 (CSR., I, p. 105). In 1351 Martin Litill, who witnessed a charter by William, dominus vallis de Ledell, of the lands of Abirdowyr in Fife (RHM., II, p. 56), is probably Martin Lytill who in 1358 possessed the land of Cardvyn (ER., I, p. 563). Nichol Litil was one of the 'borowis for the earl of Douglas's bounds of the West March, 1368 (Bain, IV, 512). Adam Lityll was a tenant of the Douglas in the barony of Kilbucho, 1376 (RHM., II, p. 16). Duncan Petit was chancellor of the church of Aberdeen, 1426 (RMS., II, 54), and Johannes Petit, vicar of Lestalrig, 1448, appears also as J. Litill (Soltre, intro., p. xliv). The bequest of Clemens Litill in 1580 was the foundation of the library of Edinburgh University. The Littles occupied the lower part of Upper Eskdale and a portion of Ewesdale, and were recorded in 1587 as one of the unruly clans in the West March (APS., III, p. 466). Armstrong (Liddesdale, p. 184) gives the following additional forms of the name from public records: Litle, Littell, Littill Lytil, Lytle, Lyttille; plural: Litillis, Litles, Littilles, Lytills, Lytils, Lytles. See also Petty. Probably in some instances altered from Liddell, which see.

The Surnames of Scotland (1946) by George Fraser Black (1866-1948)

(English) Small, Short [Middle English litel, &c., Old English lýtel]

Surnames of the United Kingdom (1912) by Henry Harrison

(English) The small or short man.

Dictionary of American Family Names (1956) by Elsdon Coles Smith

1. A person of diminutive stature. Like the French Le Petit, the German Klein, &c. 2. Perhaps the same as Liddell.

Patronymica Britannica (1860) by Mark Antony Lower

Ralph, William, Bernard, Herbert Parvus or Le Petit, 1180-95, Normandy (Magni Rotuli Scaccarii Normanniae). Fourteen of the name occur in Normandy 1198 (Ib.); many in England, c. 1198 (Rotuli Curiae Regis).

The Norman People (1874)

Littell Last Name Facts

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

The last name Littell occurs in The United States more than any other country/territory. It may be found as:. For other possible spellings of this name click here.

How Common Is The Last Name Littell? popularity and diffusion

The last name is the 162,058th most commonly used last name at a global level It is held by approximately 1 in 2,714,170 people. The last name is primarily found in The Americas, where 93 percent of Littell live; 93 percent live in North America and 93 percent live in Anglo-North America. It is also the 1,467,136th most widespread first name internationally, borne by 47 people.

The surname Littell is most frequently occurring in The United States, where it is borne by 2,617 people, or 1 in 138,502. In The United States Littell is most numerous in: California, where 12 percent live, Indiana, where 8 percent live and Florida, where 6 percent live. Apart from The United States this surname is found in 13 countries. It also occurs in England, where 1 percent live and Canada, where 0 percent live.

Littell Family Population Trend historical fluctuation

The incidence of Littell has changed over time. In The United States the number of people who held the Littell last name rose 310 percent between 1880 and 2014 and in England it contracted 29 percent between 1881 and 2014.

Littell Last Name Statistics demography

In The United States Littell are 18.25% more likely to be registered with the Republican Party than the national average, with 65.02% registered to vote for the party.

The amount Littell earn in different countries varies marginally. In United States they earn 2.13% more than the national average, earning $44,070 USD per year and in Canada they earn 5.03% more than the national average, earning $52,184 CAD per year.

Phonetically Similar Names

SurnameSimilarityWorldwide IncidencePrevalency
Lithtell931/
Laittell930/
Leittell930/
Littel921,257/
Litell9270/
Lithell8697/
Luttell8623/
Leitell8614/
Listell865/
Luittel862/
Lettell861/
Leittel860/
Lyttell860/
Littael860/
Littill860/
Listtel860/
Litteel860/
Litel83163/
Littl8381/
Luitel7718,401/
Lüttel77340/
Leitel77253/
Lytell77234/
Lisell77165/
Laitel7782/
Lyttel7748/
Luttel7738/
Loitel7729/
Letell7726/
Listel7714/
Littil7710/
Leittl775/
Lietel774/
Lettel774/
Licell771/
Littyl771/
Littlh771/
Lithel770/
Litelt770/
Litl7399/
Leitelt71110/
Luettel71109/
Lichtel7185/
Lythell7181/
Loisell7145/
Lissell7135/
Leistel7127/
Leithel7113/
Lystell719/
Laistel718/
Lestell712/
Luitehl711/
Luitele711/
Leatell711/
Leiteld711/
Littleh711/
Luttiel711/
Lutaell710/
Leutell710/
Lutiell710/
Luthell710/
Leitl672,562/
Listl671,753/
Lettl67653/
Lutel67107/
Lytel6795/
Laitl6756/
Leill6745/
Letel6724/
Loissell6722/
Lisel6713/
Litil6711/
Laiscell6710/
Leall677/
Laill676/
Lhill675/
Lielh672/
Liejl672/
Hlitl671/
Lutll671/
Loill671/
Lichteld671/
Luichtel671/
Litelova671/
Lietl671/
Letthill671/
Leull670/
Lgell670/

Search for Another Surname

Littell Reference & Research

Little FamilyTree DNA Group - A group collating DNA test results for those who bear the surname, includes results of DNA tests and discussions.

Little FamilyTree DNA Project - A description of a group researching the paternal lines of men who bear the surname with the help of DNA analysis.

The name statistics are still in development, sign up for information on more maps and data

By signing up to the mailing list you will only receive emails specifically about name reference on Forebears and your information will not be distributed to 3rd parties.

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 Littell
  • 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