Variant of Everett, from Old English eofor (boar) and heard (brave), meaning "brave as a wild boar."
Everitt is a variant spelling of Everett, itself derived from the Old High German name "Eberhard" — composed of "eber" (wild boar) and "hard" (brave, strong, hardy). The wild boar in Germanic culture was no ordinary animal: it was a symbol of ferocious courage and the willingness to charge forward regardless of odds, associated with warriors and the god Freyr in Norse tradition. To be named Eberhard was to carry a declaration of fearless strength.
The name traveled through Norman French influence into English as Everard, then naturally evolved into Everett and its variants, including Everitt, which preserves the double-t ending that hints at its older orthographic history. The name has functioned as both a surname and a given name in the English-speaking world for centuries, giving it a particular quality of distinguished versatility. Edward Everett — the Massachusetts senator, governor, and orator who delivered the two-hour speech at Gettysburg that everyone forgot, preceding Lincoln's two-minute address that everyone remembers — gave the name an American civic resonance in the 19th century.
As a first name, Everett (and Everitt) fell from common use in the mid-20th century but has returned with force in the 21st, riding the wave of "strong grandpa names" that has brought Theo, Arthur, and August back alongside it. The Everitt spelling specifically offers a slightly more antique, surname-ish quality that appeals to parents who want the sound without the now-common spelling, carving out quiet individuality within the revival.