Pitman

Etymology

This surname is generally explained as a topographic name from Middle English pit, ‘pit’ or ‘hollow,’ plus man, meaning someone associated with that place. The older dictionaries often gloss it as ‘the pit man,’ a person who lived beside a deep hollow, pit, or quarry-like depression. Some historical forms also point to a place-name origin in a few cases, but the main sense is clearly topographic rather than occupational.

History

The name is found in medieval English records in forms such as Piteman and Pitman, and it continued as a relatively straightforward local surname. Later surname dictionaries also note related spellings and variants such as Pittman and Piteman. Because the word is transparent in English, the surname likely arose independently in more than one place.

Origin

Regions

Variant spellings

Fun fact

In older surname books, Pitman is grouped with other simple topographic names like Bridgman and Styleman.

Related surnames