Petterson History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Scotland
Sweden

The surname Petterson is a patronymic name created originally from the personal name of a male relative. Petterson is derived from the Greek word "petros," which means 'rock.' Forms of this name gained much popularity in the Middle Ages, as it appears in the Bible, bestowed by Christ on an apostle. St. Peter is often regarded as being the founder of the Christian church. The suffix "sson" and its variants are translatable as "son of."

Petterson Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: pettersen and others.

Petterson Ranking

In the United States, the name Petterson is the 7,379^th most popular surname with an estimated 4,974 people with that name. 1

Petterson migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Petterson Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Thomas Petterson, who arrived in Maryland in 1676 2

Petterson Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Johan Fredric Petterson, aged 19, who landed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1846 2
Johann Petterson, aged 22, who arrived in New York, NY in 1869 2
Nels Petterson, who landed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1875 2
Swen Petterson, aged 24, who landed in Mobile, Ala in 1881 2
Alex Petterson, aged 30, who immigrated to the United States from Gothenberg, Sweden, in 1892
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Petterson Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Ada Josefine Petterson, aged 19, who landed in America from Sweden, in 1900
Adolf L. Petterson, aged 20, who landed in America from Sweden, in 1901
Alb Petterson, aged 24, who settled in America from Gothenburg, in 1901
Petter Petterson, who arrived in Mobile, Ala in 1902 2
Carl A Petterson, who arrived in Arkansas in 1906 2
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Petterson migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Petterson Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mr. Charles Petterson, (b. 1849), aged 25, Scottish settler travelling from Glasgow aboard the ship "Parsee" arriving in Port Chalmers, Dunedin, Otago, South Island, New Zealand on 4th September 1874, died on board 3

Contemporary Notables of the name Petterson (post 1700) +

Sonja Petterson (1935-2020), Swedish sculptor
Pelle Helmer Petterson (b. 1932), Swedish four-time gold medalist sailor and yacht designer
Stefan Bengt Petterson (b. 1963), Swedish footballer
Per "Pelle" Helmer Petterson (b. 1932), Swedish yachtsman and boat designer
Per Petterson (b. 1952), Norwegian novelist
Andrew Keith "Andy" Petterson (b. 1969), Australian footballer

Historic Events for the Petterson family +

Empress of Ireland

Mr. George Petterson (1887-1914), Finnish Third Class Passenger from Helsingfors, (Helsinki), Finland who was traveling aboard the Empress of Ireland and died in the sinking 4

Citations +

"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
Commemoration Empress of Ireland 2014. (Retrieved 2014, June 17) . Retrieved from http://www.empress2014.ca/seclangen/listepsc1.html