Show ContentsKetterer History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Ketterer Family Crest Download (JPG) Heritage Series - 600 DPI

Family Crest Download (JPG) Heritage Series - 600 DPI

Etymology of Ketterer

What does the name Ketterer mean?

The roots of the Ketterer family name are in ancient Scotland with the Viking settlers. Ketterer was derived from the Old Norse personal name Sigtryggr, which literally means true victory. The Gaelic form adopted for the surname is Mac Shitrig.

Early Origins of the Ketterer family

The surname Ketterer was first found in Galloway (Gaelic: Gall-ghaidhealaibh), an area of southwestern Scotland, now part of the Council Area of Dumfries and Galloway, that formerly consisted of the counties of Wigtown (West Galloway) and Kirkcudbright (East Galloway), where they held a family seat from very ancient times, some say well before the Norman Conquest and the arrival of Duke William at Hastings in 1066 A.D.

Early History of the Ketterer family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Ketterer research. Another 106 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1000, 1376, 1643 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Ketterer History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ketterer Spelling Variations

Sound and intuition were the main things that scribes in the Middle Ages relied on when spelling and translating names. Since those factors varied, so did the spelling of the names. Spelling variations of the name Ketterer include MacKettrick, Kettrick, Kitterick, MacKitterick, MacEtterick, McKettrick, McKetrick, Ketterick and many more.

Early Notables of the Ketterer family

More information is included under the topic Early Ketterer Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ketterer Ranking

the United States, the name Ketterer is the 18,630th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 1

Migration of the Ketterer family to Ireland

Some of the Ketterer family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 76 words (5 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ketterer migration to the United States +

In North America, the monarchy was thousands of miles away and Scots were free to settle on their own land and practice their own beliefs. The American War of Independence provided an opportunity for these settlers to pay back the English monarchy and forge a new nation. Recently, this heritage has survived through North American highland games and Clan societies. Early North American immigration and passenger lists have revealed a number of people bearing the name Ketterer or a variant listed above:

Ketterer Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Hans Michel Ketterer, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1753 2
  • Heinrich Ketterer, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1767 2
  • Jacob Ketterer, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1770 2
Ketterer Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Henry Ketterer, aged 46, who arrived in New York in 1833 2
  • Joseph Ketterer, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1841 2
  • Frederic Ketterer, who landed in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1873 2

Contemporary Notables of the name Ketterer (post 1700) +

  • Andrew "Drew" Ketterer (b. 1949), American lawyer and politician, Member of the Maine House of Representatives (1990-1994)
  • Mary E. Ketterer, American Democratic Party politician, Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Ohio, 1944 3
  • J. L. Ketterer, American politician, Mayor of Bozeman, Montana, 1936-37 4
  • Mrs. Charles Ketterer, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate for Presidential Elector for Ohio, 1928 4
  • Sepp Ketterer (1899-1991), German-born Austrian cinematographer
  • Theodor Ketterer (1815-1884), German renowned Black forest clockmaker, best known for his cuckoo clocks
  • Eugène Ketterer (1831-1870), French composer and pianist
  • Markus Jari Ketterer (b. 1967), Finish retired professional ice hockey player, inducted into the Finnish Hockey Hall of Fame in 2005
  • Reinhard E. Ketterer (b. 1948), German retired competitive figure skater
  1. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  2. 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)
  3. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 7) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html

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