Russett Family History

English (Gloucestershire): nickname from Middle English russet ‘reddish brown’ (from Old French rosset, a diminutive of rous(e) ‘red’ from Latin russus ‘red’). This may have been a nickname for someone with reddish brown hair or a ruddy complexion.

In Middle English russet also denoted a kind of reddish brown coarse woolen cloth typically worn by the poor, and thus the name might have been a nickname for someone who made or sold such cloth.

Altered form of French Rasset 1 reflecting the Canadian and American French practice of sounding the final -t.

Compare Racette.