Rut was attested in historical sources as Corithnich Reutharius in 1310, Cordnitze super Tulminum in 1480, Krytha bey der Pfarr in 1515, Coriniza di Baza in 1566, and Teutsch Coritniza in 1624, among many other names. It was labeled D. Ober Koritniza oder Deutsch Greuth in the late-18th-century Josephinian Land Survey. The Slovene name Rut is derived from the Slovene common nounrut, referring to a meadow on cleared land in a hilly environment. The Slovene noun is a borrowing from Middle High Germanrut 'clearing'. The older name of the village, Nemški Rut, refers to the community of German speakers that formerly lived there. The Slovene name of the village was changed from Nemški Rut to Rut after the Second World War as part of efforts by Slovenia's postwarcommunist government to remove German elements from toponyms.