Petty Surname Meaning & Origin
What the Petty last name means, where the surname began and how it spread.
Order your pack and our heraldry team researches and paints the Petty coat of arms for you.
Meaning and origin of the Petty last name
Meaning of the Petty last name: small. Petty is an English surname from Old French petit, "small", a nickname for a short man or for the younger of two men with the same name. It appears in England from the 1100s and in Scotland, especially Aberdeenshire. The last name was carried to Virginia and the Carolinas. A curious detail of this surname origin: the same word survives in "petty cash" and "petty officer".
Arms associated with the Petty name
In English heraldry gold stood for generosity and blue for loyalty, and coats of arms associated with the Petty name speak that old language of colour.
Get your full Petty family history
This is only a glimpse of the Petty story. The full Petty history report goes much deeper into where the name began, who carried it and how the family spread, and it comes with a museum-style painted Petty coat of arms. Get the full Petty report.
Petty name FAQ
What does the Petty name mean?
Small. Common variants include Pettie, Pettey.
Where does the Petty surname come from?
It originates in England, and is also found in the United States, Scotland and Australia.
Is there a Petty coat of arms?
Arms were granted to individuals rather than to everyone with a surname. Herald Lab paints a personalized Petty coat of arms in museum style, based on historic heraldry.
Sources: Reaney & Wilson, Dictionary of English Surnames; George F. Black, The Surnames of Scotland (New York Public Library, 1946); Dictionary of American Family Names (Oxford).