Show ContentsNathe Surname History

The ancient Anglo-Saxon surname Nathe came from Cnute, a popular name in England in the early Middle Ages. It was popular thanks to the influence of Cnut, a Dane, who became King of England in 1016. "There are two Cnuts in Domesday, one in Yorkshire, the other in Derbyshire." 1

Alternatively, it may be of nickname origin, from the Old English word hnutu, which meant brown, and would have been given to someone with a brown complexion. It may be that this is the origin of the English saying "Brown as a nut," used for someone who has spent a lot of time in the sun.

Early Origins of the Nathe family

The surname Nathe was first found in Gloucestershire where they held a family seat from early times and their first records appeared on the early census rolls taken by the early Kings of Britain to determine the rate of taxation of their subjects.

Early History of the Nathe family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Nathe research. Another 86 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1550, 1576, 1577, 1600, 1605, 1612, 1620, 1623, 1640, 1653, 1656, 1660, 1668, 1716, 1722 and 1987 are included under the topic Early Nathe History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Nathe Spelling Variations

Sound was what guided spelling in the essentially pre-literate Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Also, before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Therefore, spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Nathe family name include Nutt, Nudd, Nutting, Knutt, Nuttman, Nutter and others.

Early Notables of the Nathe family

Distinguished members of the family include John Nutt (1605-1668), an English politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1640 to 1653; and John Nutt (fl. 1620-1623), English pirate born in Devon who raided the Newfoundland and western England for three years before his capture by Sir John Eliot in 1623. His arrest and conviction caused a scandal in the English court as Nutt had paid Eliot £500 in exchange for a pardon. He was eventually released by the Secretary of State George Calvert. He arrived at Torbay Newfoundland in 1620 aboard the ship Dartmouth in 1620, but soon organized...
Another 204 words (15 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Nathe Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ireland Migration of the Nathe family to Ireland

Some of the Nathe family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 31 words (2 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Nathe family

For political, religious, and economic reasons, thousands of English families boarded ships for Ireland, the Canadas, the America colonies, and many of smaller tropical colonies in the hope of finding better lives abroad. Although the passage on the cramped, dank ships caused many to arrive in the New World diseased and starving, those families that survived the trip often went on to make valuable contributions to those new societies to which they arrived. Early immigrants bearing the Nathe surname or a spelling variation of the name include: James Nutt and his wife Rebecca settled with their three children in New York in 1739; Thomas and William Nudd settled in Barbados in 1663; William Nutt settled in Virginia in 1636.


Contemporary Notables of the name Nathe (post 1700) +

  • Mike Nathe, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from North Dakota, 2008 2


  1. Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
  2. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 12) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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