Orcutt
An English surname of uncertain derivation, perhaps originally a place-name or a rare descriptive form later reshaped in spelling.
The #6,940 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 63,909 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The exact origin of Orcutt is not firmly settled in the old surname books. One 19th-century note treats it alongside forms like Orncutt, suggesting it may be a variant spelling rather than a clearly separate surname. Another speculative explanation breaks it into old elements meaning something like “free from disease,” but that looks more like a guessed folk etymology than a secure derivation.
History
The surname appears in American genealogical and surname indexes by the mid-19th century, and the spelling Orcutt became established in the United States. Historical references also point to a related spelling, Orncutt, which may reflect the same family name under a different orthography. Because the name is uncommon, published explanations tend to be brief and tentative rather than definitive.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The surname is rare enough that 19th-century compilers often listed it only in passing, which is usually a sign that the name was already an established but uncommon family name.
From the historical record
“and O'Mealy, O'Meara, Omer, Omond, Onderdonk, O'NiEL and O'Nealey, Onthank, Oppenheimer, Or- BON, Orcutt, Ordward, Orgill, Orgills ; O'Reilly, O'Reily, O'Riley, and O'Rily; Ormond, Ormsbee and Ormsby, Orncutt, Orpi, O'Rourke, Orrall (some- times Orrell), Orto, Orvice, Orvis, O'Shea, Ostberg, OsTERHAUS, Osthues…”
— Suffolk Surnames (3rd ed.)