Follow
Scottish and northern English: habitational name from Rutherford in Maxton (Roxburghshire) apparently named with Old English hrīther hrȳther ‘ox’ + ford ‘ford’ though a British Celtic origin of the type ro- ‘great’ + dubr- ‘water river’ is also possible for the first element. Places named Rutherford in West Linton (West Lothian) and Barningham (North Yorkshire) are less likely sources of the name.
Source: Dictionary of American Family Names 2nd edition, 2022