This interesting name, with variant spellings Seater and Setter is of Orcadian territorial origin from the lands of Setter in Stromness, Orkney. The name derives from the Olde Norse "Saetr" meaning a shieling i.e. a hut or shelter for animals. This is synonymous with the Olde English pre 7th Century "set" translating as "a fold where animals were kept" - but when referring to old villages, the meaning may be "homestead" or even "village". The surname is well recorded in Orkney Church registers from the mid 17th Century, (see below). On February 18th 1672 David Seater and Jonet Irving were married in Kirkwall in St. Ola and on May 1st 1685 Janet Seatter married Alexander Wildridge in Shapinsay, Orkney. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Arthur Setter, son of James Setter an Marion Walter, which was dated August 23rd 1663, christened in Shapinsay, Orkney, during the reign of King Charles 11 of England, known as "The Merry Monarch", 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.1660 - 1685.

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