| Origin | |
|---|---|
| Language(s) | English, Norman, German |
| Word/name | English |
| Meaning | Watchman, Guardian, Defender, Protector |
| Region of origin | Europe |
| Other names | |
| Variant form(s) | Wait, Wayte, Waits, Waight, Wächter, |
| See also | Wilhelm/Willem/William (a name also meaning "protector"), Alexander (a name also meaning "defender") |
Waite is an English surname (of Norman origin) and rarely a given name. Its variant forms include Wait, Wayte, Waits and Waight. It is derived from the old high German wahten (to keep watch); it is common in the sense of guard or watchman to all the Teutonic languages, the German wacht, Dutch vaght, Swedish vakt and English watch. When used as a verb, its meaning is "to stay in expectation of"; as a noun, it denotes a minstrel watchmen.
Waite is an occupational name for a watchman either in a town or castle from Anglo-Norman French waite ‘watchman member of the watch’ (of ancient Germanic origin; compare Wachter / Wächter).
The following are named Waite.
Surname
- Arthur Edward Waite (1857–1942), British poet and scholarly mystic
- Arthur Waite (racing driver) (1894–1991), Australian racing driver
- Catharine Van Valkenburg Waite, American author, lawyer and women's suffrage activist
- C. B. Waite (1861–1927), American photographer
- Charlie Waite (born 1949), English photographer
- Charles Burlingame Waite (1824–1909), American lawyer, jurist and author
- David Waite, Australian rugby league coach
- Davis Hanson Waite (1825–1901), governor of Colorado
- Edgar Ravenswood Waite, Australian zoologist
- Edward Wilkins Waite (1854–1924), English landscape painter
- Fred Waite (1853–1895), American cowboy, member of Billy the Kid's gang and later Chickasaw Nation legislator and attorney general
- Fred Waite (politician) (1885–1952), New Zealand soldier and politician
- Genevieve Waite (1948–2019), South African actress, singer and model
- Grant Waite (born 1964), New Zealand golfer
- Henry Waite (disambiguation)
- Jahmali Waite (born 1998), American soccer goalkeeper
- James Waite (footballer, born 1999), Welsh footballer
- Jamie Waite (born 1986), Thai football goalkeeper
- Jarrad Waite (born 1983), former Australian rules footballer
- Jimmy Waite (born 1969), Canadian ice hockey coach and goaltender
- John Waite (disambiguation)
- Joseph Waite (alive in 1893 in England), a Latin and Greek scholar who edited the book Latin and Greek verse by Thomas Saunders Evans
- Keith Waite (1927–2014), New Zealand-born English editorial cartoonist
- Linda Waite, American sociologist and social demographer
- Martin Waite (born 1971), Scottish former international rugby union player
- Matthew Waite (born 1995), English cricketer
- Mitchell Waite (born 1946), author of books on electronics and computing
- Morrison Waite (1816–1888), American attorney, jurist, politician, and chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court
- Nicholas Waite (died c. 1715), English governor of Bombay
- Norman Waite (1898–1970), English footballer
- P. B. Waite (1922–2020), Canadian historian
- Pete Waite, American volleyball coach
- Peter Waite (philanthropist) (1834–1922), South Australian pastoralist, businessman, company director and philanthropist
- Ralph Waite (1928–2014), American actor, best known for the role of John Walton on the TV series The Waltons
- Reginald Waite, Royal Air Force officer
- Ric Waite (1933–2012), American cinematographer
- Terry Waite (born 1939), British human rights activist and author
- Thomas Waite (regicide) (died 1688), English Member of Parliament and one of the regicides of King Charles I
- Thomas Waite (civil servant) (1718–1780), Under-Secretary for Ireland
- Tommy Waite (born 1972), Northern Irish boxer
Given name
- Waite Hoyt (1899–1984), American Major League Baseball pitcher
- Waite Phillips (1883–1964), American petroleum businessman and philanthropist
- Waite Stirling ((1829–1923), English missionary and first Anglican bishop of the Falkland Islands
Fictional characters
- Asenath and Ephraim Waite, in "The Thing on the Doorstep", an H.P. Lovecraft short story
See also
- Governor Waite (disambiguation)
- Justice Waite (disambiguation)
- Senator Waite (disambiguation)
- Weight (surname)
- Waite (disambiguation)
References
- Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary. C. & G. Merriam Co.
- https://www.waitegenealogy.org/FGS/historysurname.pdf
Name listThis page or section lists people that share the same given name or the same family name. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change that link to point directly to the intended article. Categories: