Liggett

Etymology

Liggett is usually treated as a variant of the better-known surname Lidgate, itself from a place-name built on Old English elements meaning a gate or opening in a boundary or enclosure. In this spelling, the final form has been reshaped by later pronunciation and spelling variation, rather than reflecting a separate root. The older scholarship cited here links Liggett with other forms such as Lidgate, Lidgett, and similar local variants.

History

19th-century surname dictionaries recorded Liggett as a spelling variant found in English local usage, with concentrations noted in parts of northern England. The Matheson excerpt also shows the name in Ireland, where it appears in small numbers, likely through later migration rather than an independent Irish origin. In modern usage it survives as a relatively uncommon surname in the United States and the British Isles.

Origin

Regions

Variant spellings

Fun fact

Bardsley’s material groups Liggett with a whole cluster of similar spellings, showing how flexible surname spelling could be before modern standardization.