The Clan/Sept History

Although Ireland already had an established system of hereditary surnames, the
Strongbownians brought many of their own naming traditions to the island. There
were, however, similarities between the two systems. The Strongbownians, like
the Irish, frequently used patronymic surnames, a form of surname that was built
from the name of the initial bearer's father, or another older relative. Norman
patronymic names, because they were originally formed in French, were often
created by the addition of a diminutive suffix to the given name, such as -ot,
-et, -un, -in, or -el. Occasionally, two suffixes were combined to form a double
diminutive, as in the combinations of -el-in, -el-ot, -in-ot, and -et-in. These
Stronbownians also created patronymic names by the prefix Fitz-, which was
derived from the French word fils, and ultimately from the Latin filius, which
both mean son. This prefix probably originated in Flanders or Normandy, it has
disappeared from France entirely but remains common in Ireland even today. The
Strongbownian surname of MacCotter is derived from the popular Norse personal
name Oitir. The Gaelic forms of the surname MacCotter are Mac Coitir and Mac
Oitir.

Church officials and medieval scribes often spelled early surnames as they
sounded. This practice often resulted in many spelling variations of even a
single name. Early versions of the name MacCotter included: Cotter, Cotters,
Cottar, Cottare, Cotteres, Cottares, Coitter and many more.
First found in Oxfordshire, where they held a family seat from ancient times.
In the mid-19th century, Ireland experienced one of the worst periods in its
entire history. During this decade in order to ease the pressure of the soil,
which was actually depleted by the effects of the previous years' grain crops,
landowners forced tenant farmers and peasants onto tiny plots of land that
barely provided the basic sustenance a family required. Conditions were
worsened, though, by the population of the country, which was growing fast to
roughly eight million. So when the Great Potato Famine of the mid-1840s hit,
starvation and diseases decimated the population. Thousands of Irish Families
left the country for British North America and the United States. The new
immigrants were often accommodated either in the opening western frontiers or as
cheap unskilled labor in the established centers. In early passenger and
immigration lists there are many immigrants bearing the name MacCotter: James
Cotter who settled in Bay De Verde, Newfoundland, in 1783; John Cotter settled
in Boston in 1764 with his wife Elizabeth; Edward Cotter settled in New York,
with his wife and four children in 1823.