Couttant History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Scotland

The history of the Couttant name began with the ancient Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. The name is derived from Cuthbert in the patronymic form where it was used as son of Cutt. 1 Alternatively, the name could have denoted "the son, or family, of Cutha (famous)." 2

Early Origins of the Couttant family

The surname Couttant was first found in Norfolk where Herlewin and WIllian Cutting were listed in 1221. Later, Richard Cutting was listed in the Feet of Fines for Essex in 1235. 1

"The Cuttings are at present at home in Ipswich and its neighbourhood. Edward Cuttinge held land in Haughley, Stowmarket, in the reign of Edward IV." 3

The Cowden variant came from Cowden, a small village and civil parish in the Sevenoaks District of Kent. Great Cowden dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086 when it was first listed as Coledun 4 and literally meant "hill where charcoal is made," from the Old English "col" + "dun." 5

Alternatively, the family could have originated in Scotland at "Cowden in the parish of Dalkeith, Midlothian. There is also a Cowden near Dollar but Cowden near Dalkeith is more probable source of the name." 6

Early History of the Couttant family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Couttant research. Another 145 words (10 lines of text) covering the years 1550, 1595, 1599, 1634, 1685 and 1689 are included under the topic Early Couttant History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Couttant 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 Couttant family name include Cutting, Cudden, Cudding, Cuttin, Cutten, Cuttan, Cuddan, Cuddin, Cuddon, Cuding, Cuting, Cuden, Cutin, Cutine, Cudan, Cudane, Coudan, Couding, Coutting, Coutten, Couttan, Couttin, Cutton and many more.

Early Notables of the Couttant family

Distinguished members of the family include Francis Cuttinge (c. 1550-1595/6), English lutenist and composer. He "was one of the most distinguished composers of lute music towards the close of the reign of Elizabeth and the beginning of that of James. Nothing is...
Another 41 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Couttant Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Couttant migration to the United States +

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 Couttant surname or a spelling variation of the name include :

Couttant Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Francois Couttant, aged 38, who landed in Louisiana in 1719 7

Citations +

Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)