Origin and popularity of the name WRIGHT

Origin

Wright : English and Scottish: occupational name for a craftsman or maker of machinery mostly in wood of any of a wide range of kinds from Middle English and Older Scots wriht wright wricht writh write (Old English wyrhta wryhta) ‘craftsman’ especially ‘carpenter joiner’. The term is found in various combinations (for example Cartwright and Wainwright) but when used in isolation it often referred to a builder of windmills or watermills. This surname is also very common among African Americans.

Arkwright : English: occupational name for a chest maker from Middle English ark wright ‘maker of chests boxes etc.’ (Old English arc ‘chest’ + wyrhta ‘wright joiner’).

Detherage : 1: English: occupational name for someone who chopped up wood into tinder Middle English dethewright from dethe ‘fuel’ ‘tinder’ + wright ‘maker’.2: Possibly a much altered form of German Dieterich or Dietrich.

Seawright : Scottish (Ayrshire and Lanarkshire): variant of Sievewright an occupational name for someone who made sieves from Middle English and Older Scots sive ‘sieve’ + wright wricht ‘wright’.

Sievewright : from Middle English and Older Scots sive ‘sieve’ + wright wricht ‘wright’ for someone who made sieves.

Wraight : variant of Wright usually from Kentish Old English werhta Kentish Middle English wreght and wrete but the vowel of Middle English wright was sometimes lowered in other dialects to give wreght early Modern English wraight wraith.

Wrightman : English: occupational name from Middle English wright ‘craftsman’ (see Wright) + man ‘man’ denoting someone who assisted a craftsman.

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Last name frequency

Geographic distribution of the 391,234 individuals with the name WRIGHT on Geneanet.

This last name in the family trees

See below the Geneanet members' family trees which contain the last name WRIGHT