Swett
An old nickname surname from a word meaning “sweet” or “amiable.”
The #9,603 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 91,237 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Swett is a spelling variant of Sweet, a surname formed from an Old English and Middle English nickname meaning pleasant, kindly, or agreeable. The name ultimately reflects the ordinary adjective “sweet,” used as a personal byname. Historical sources also compare it with related continental surnames carrying the same sense of “sweet” or “amiable.”
History
The surname appears in English records in several spellings, including Sweet, Swett, and Swetting. In the United States it is best known as a relatively uncommon New England name, and the spelling Swett has been preserved in family lines rather than becoming the dominant form. Early surname writers treated it as a straightforward descriptive nickname rather than a place-name or occupational label.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
One 19th-century writer even grouped Sweat, Swett, and Swetting together as a playful set of names showing “cause and effect.”
From the historical record
“SWARTWOUT (N. 13.), Black wood. (v. Zwart and van 't Wout.) SWETT and Sweet ((£.), Amiable, {v. Habasque, Ledoux, Suss, and de Zoete.) SWIFT {i^.), Agile, Fleet; also (prov.) Stupid fellow. T. TAILLEBOT {£.), Pillager. Talebot (U-), pillager, thief. A Capt. Taillebot was ennobled in 15 G2. {v. Ladron.) TAILLEFER…”
— Surnames