The surname Rutherford, also Rutherfurd, is a Scottish and Northern English habitational surname deriving from a place in the Scottish borders region near Roxburgh. It may refer to:
Alexander Cameron Rutherford, Canadian politician, first Premier of Alberta (1905–1910)
Boyd Rutherford (born 1957), Lieutenant Governor of the U.S. state of Maryland
Clancy Rudeforth, former Australian rules footballer
Daniel Rutherford, a Scottish chemist and physician who is most famous for the discovery of nitrogen
Don Rutherford (1937–2016), English international rugby union player
Ernest Rutherford, 1st Baron Rutherford of Nelson, known as the "father of nuclear physics"
Gilbert Rutherford, American politician
Greg Rutherford (born 1986), British athlete (specifically long jumper)
Jack Rutherford (cricketer), Australian Test cricketer
Jack Rutherford (footballer born 1892) (1892–1930), English footballer for Brighton & Hove Albion, Bristol Rovers and Gillingham
Jack Rutherford (footballer born 1908), English footballer for Gillingham and Watford
Jim Rutherford, former NHL goaltender and current general manager of the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Joe Rutherford, an Aston Villa F.C. goalkeeper of the mid-20th-century
John Rutherford (disambiguation), multiple people
Joseph Franklin Rutherford, also known as "Judge Rutherford", 2nd president of the Watch Tower Society corporation
Kelly Rutherford, American actress, most famous for her role as Lily van der Woodsen in the CW teen drama Gossip Girl
Ken Rutherford (cricketer), New Zealand batsman and captain
Margaret Rutherford, British actress
Mike Rutherford (born 1950), English musician
Rachel Rutherford, New York City Ballet soloist
Samuel Rutherford, Scottish theologian, minister and political theorist
James Luin "Skip" Rutherford III (born 1950), academic administrator
See also
Edward Rutherfurd, nom de plume of Francis Edward Wintle, author of historical fiction
According to one theory, the name can be traced back to the West Flemish name Ruddervoorde, a community now part of Oostkamp. Another theory of the origin of the name states that a man by the name Ruther carried an ancient king of Scots over the River Tweed. Eventually, a descendant of the king gave land to the family that carried his forefather over the river and when surnames were adopted, Rutherford came into being.
The motto of the Rutherfords of one of the clans is Nec sorte nec fato, represented as "Nor by fate nor by chance."
