Rutty

There are two possible origins for this interesting and unusual name. The first being a dialectual variant of Ready. From the Middle English, "readi", meaning prepared, denoting a person who was punctual. Alternatively it could be a variant of a metonymic occupational name Root or Rutt, meaning a player on the Rote, an early medieval stringed instrument from the Middle English and Old French "Rote". Recorded in Troebridge, Wiltshire is the marriage of one "Robert Rutty and Anne Masone" in 1562. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Godric Rute, which was dated 1166, Pipe Rolls of Norfolk, during the reign of King Henry II, The Builder of Churches, 1154 - 1189. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.