Show ContentsNott History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The Nott name has descended through the generations from the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture. Their name comes from having lived at the knot, the summit of a rocky hill, from the residence near that place.

Early Origins of the Nott family

The surname Nott was first found in Derbyshire where traditionally the name was descended from the Scandinavian King Canute, or Cnut.

Drayton sings "The Knot that called was Canutus, bird of old, of that great King of Danes, his name that still doth hold, his appetite to please that far and near was sought, for his, as some have said, from Denmark hither brought."

Cnut or Canute the Great (994?-1035), and by Scandinavian writers the Mighty and the Old, was king of the English, Danes, and Norwegians, and was the younger son of Sweyn, king of Denmark. 1

Early feudal rolls provided the king of the time a method of cataloguing holdings for taxation, but today they provide a glimpse into the wide surname spellings in use at that time. Randulfus filius Cnut was listed in the Pipe Rolls for Devon in 1191; Knot pater Alani and Alanus filius Knod were both listed in the Assize Rolls for Lincolnshire in 1202; Radulfus filius Knut was found in the Pipe Rolls for Yorkshire in 1203; Walter and Robert Cnot were in the Pipe Rolls for Suffolk in 1165 and were later Knights Templar in 1185 ; William Cnotte was found in the Curia Regis Rolls for Bedfordshire in 1206; William, John Knotte in the Assize Rolls for Worcestershire in 1221; and Stephen le Knotte was listed in the Subsidy Rolls for Sussex in 1296. 2

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 had two listings for the family: Richard Knotte, London; and Peter Cnotte, Salop (Shropshire) while the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379 had the following: Robertus Knotte; Ricardus Notte; Isabella Notte; and Thomas Knot. 3

Up north in Scotland, "A ship of Knut the wealthy, citizen of Berwick, was carried off by Erlind, earl of Orkney, in 1156 (Orkneyinga Saga, Edinburgh, 1873, p. 161.) Hugo Cnot granted an annual-rent of two shillings to the Priory of Inchcolm, c. 1210-1229. The name also occurs in records of Coldingham Priory as Cnoyt. Richard Knut witnessed resignation of the lands of Langholm and Brakanwra, 1281. Adum Knout and John Knout were burgesses of Roxburgh, 1296, and rendered homage [to King Edward I of England] in that year. " 4

Early History of the Nott family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Nott research. Another 116 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1086, 1582, 1606, 1621, 1622, 1626, 1629, 1632, 1633, 1641, 1656, 1681, 1708, 1724, 1729, 1730, 1734, 1763, 1777 and 1811 are included under the topic Early Nott History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Nott Spelling Variations

Only recently has spelling become standardized in the English language. As the English language evolved in the Middle Ages, the spelling of names changed also. The name Nott has undergone many spelling variations, including Cnot, Cnotte, Canute, Cnut, Knot, Knout, Knotte, Knott and many more.

Early Notables of the Nott family

Distinguished members of the family include

  • William Knott of Great Gonerby, Lincolnshire. Edward Knott (1582-1656), born with the name of Matthew Wilson, was an English Jesuit controversialist, twice provincial of the Society of Jesus in Englan...
  • Sir Thomas Nott (1606-1681), was an English Royalist Lieutenant-Colonel and an original fellow of the Royal Society. He was eldest son of Roger Nott, a wealthy citizen of London, a younger son of the...

Nott Ranking

In the United States, the name Nott is the 13,447th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 5

Migration of the Nott family to Ireland

Some of the Nott family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 148 words (11 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


Nott migration to the United States +

To escape the unstable social climate in England of this time, many families boarded ships for the New World with the hope of finding land, opportunity, and greater religious and political freedom. Although the voyages were expensive, crowded, and difficult, those families that arrived often found greater opportunities and freedoms than they could have experienced at home. Many of those families went on to make significant contributions to the rapidly developing colonies in which they settled. Early North American records indicate many people bearing the name Nott were among those contributors:

Nott Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • Mary, Catherine and Thomas Nott, who settled in Maine in 1635
  • George Nott, who arrived in New England in 1637 6
  • John Nott, who arrived in Maryland in 1643 6
  • Matha Nott, who landed in Virginia in 1664 6
  • Edward Nott, who arrived in Virginia in 1664 6
Nott Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Peter Nott, who arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1802 6
  • William Nott, aged 28, who arrived in Barnstable, Massachusetts in 1821 6
  • Frances Nott, aged 55, who landed in Barnstable, Massachusetts in 1821 6
  • William J Nott, who arrived in New York in 1836 6
  • Dr. Nott, who landed in San Francisco, California in 1850 6
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Nott migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Nott Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century
  • Ernst Nott, who arrived in Quebec in 1850

Nott migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Nott Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
  • Mr. Thomas Nott, English school teacher who was convicted in Middlesex, England for 7 years for theft, transported aboard the "Elizabeth" in May 1816, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 7
  • Mr. John Nott, English convict who was convicted in Surrey, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Baring" in December 1818, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 8
  • George Nott, English convict from Bristol, who was transported aboard the "America" on April 4, 1829, settling in New South Wales, Australia 9
  • Mr. Thomas Nott, English convict who was convicted in Bristol, England for 14 years, transported aboard the "Emperor Alexander"on 6th April 1833, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 10
  • Mr. Charles Nott, English convict who was convicted in Gloucester, Gloucestershire, England for 14 years, transported aboard the "Fairlie" on 14th October 1833, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 11
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Nott 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:

Nott Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
  • William Nott, aged 26, a farm labourer, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Birman" in 1842
  • Ann Nott, aged 32, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Birman" in 1842
  • Charles Nott, aged 32, a labourer, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Eveline" in 1865 12
  • Mary Ann Nott, aged 29, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Eveline" in 1865 12
  • Elizabeth Nott, aged 6, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Eveline" in 1865 12
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Nott migration to West Indies +

The British first settled the British West Indies around 1604. They made many attempts but failed in some to establish settlements on the Islands including Saint Lucia and Grenada. By 1627 they had managed to establish settlements on St. Kitts (St. Christopher) and Barbados, but by 1641 the Spanish had moved in and destroyed some of these including those at Providence Island. The British continued to expand the settlements including setting the First Federation in the British West Indies by 1674; some of the islands include Barbados, Bermuda, Cayman Island, Turks and Caicos, Jamaica and Belize then known as British Honduras. By the 1960's many of the islands became independent after the West Indies Federation which existed from 1958 to 1962 failed due to internal political conflicts. After this a number of Eastern Caribbean islands formed a free association. 13
Nott Settlers in West Indies in the 17th Century
  • Tho Nott, aged 18, who landed in St Christopher in 1635 6
  • Mr. Thomas Nott, (b. 1617), aged 18, British settler traveling aboard the ship "Paul of London" arriving in St Christopher (Saint Kitts) in 1635 14

Contemporary Notables of the name Nott (post 1700) +

  • Charles Cooper Nott Sr. (1827-1916), American Chief Justice of the United States Court of Claims
  • Andrea Nott (1982-2008), American synchronized swimmer at the 2008 Summer Olympics
  • Douglas N. Nott (1911-1991), American NFL football running back
  • Josiah Clark Nott (1804-1873), American physician and surgeon
  • Eliphalet Nott (1773-1866), American Presbyterian minister, inventor, educator, President of Union College, New York
  • Samuel A. Nott, American politician, Member of California State Assembly 23rd District, 1875-80 15
  • Joel B. Nott, American politician, Member of New York State Assembly from Albany County 2nd District, 1850 15
  • George W. Nott, American Democratic Party politician, Postmaster at New Orleans, Louisiana, 1887-90 15
  • Earl A. Nott, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate in primary for U.S. Representative from Oregon 1st District, 1938; Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Oregon, 1948, 1952 15
  • Abraham Nott (1768-1830), American politician, Representative from South Carolina 4th District, 1799-1801; Circuit Judge in South Carolina, 1810-19 15
  • ... (Another 14 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)


  1. Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
  2. Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
  3. Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
  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)
  5. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  6. 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)
  7. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 1st March 2022). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/elizabeth
  8. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 16th September 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/baring
  9. State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2014, November 26) America voyage to New South Wales, Australia in 1829 with 176 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/america/1829
  10. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 11th April 2022). https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/emperor-alexander
  11. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 21st September 2022). https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/fairlie
  12. New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 4th November 2011). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
  13. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_West_Indies
  14. Pilgrim Ship's of 1600's (Retrieved October 4th 2021 from https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/shiplist.htm
  15. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, April 1) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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