Alternative spellings include Bennet, Benett, Benet and Bennette.
[citation needed] It is related also to the medieval name Benedict from the Latin "Benedictus" meaning "well-spoken of" or "blessed".
[1] Bennett is the English spelling of the Anglo-Norman name Ben[n]et (modern French first name Benoît, surname Bénet[2]).
The oldest public record of the surname is dated 1208 in County Durham in North East England.
According to author George F. Black, Benedictus, the son of Walter de Sancto Edmundo, witnessed a charter of sale of land in Perth in 1219.