This name, chiefly found in Yorkshire, is of Scandinavian origin, and derives from the Old Norse personal name "Auti", itself from "auth" meaning "riches" or "prosperity". The personal name was recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 under three variant spellings: "Auti, Alti" and "Outi". One Outi de Lincol, appeared in the 1166 Pipe Rolls of Norfolk, and a Willelmus filius (son of) Auti was recorded in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire, dated 1200. The surname was first recorded as "Oty" in the mid 13th Century; John Oty, in the Cartulary of Ramsey Abbey, Huntingdonshire, 1251, and as "Auty" in the second half of the 14th Century (see below). In the "modern" idiom, the name has several spelling variations, these include: Autie, Auty, Aughtie, Awty, Alty and Alti. Recordings from Yorkshire Church Registers include: the christening of Richardi Auty, an infant, on December 10th 1684, at Woodkirk, and the marriage of Daniel Auty and Martha Lee on November 12th 1719, in Mirfield. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Simon Auty, which was dated 1379, in the "Poll Tax Returns Records of Yorkshire", during the reign of King Richard 11, known as "Richard of Bordeaux", 1377 - 1399. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.

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