Show ContentsBretto Surname History

The name Bretto has a long French heritage that first began in northwestern region of Brittany. The name is derived from when the family lived in the province of Brittany, known to the French as Bretagne. Dwellers in this province were referred to as Bretons.

Early Origins of the Bretto family

The surname Bretto was first found in Brittany, where the family has held a family seat since ancient times.

Early History of the Bretto family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Bretto research. Another 310 words (22 lines of text) covering the years 1558, 1609, 1655, 1679, 1700, 1900 and 1913 are included under the topic Early Bretto History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Bretto Spelling Variations

Changes of spelling have occurred in most surnames. The earliest explanation is that during the early development of the French language, names were not yet fixed in spelling. Usually a person gave his version of his name, phonetically, to a scribe, a priest, or a recorder. This depended on accent, and local accents frequently changed the spelling of a name. Some variables were adopted by different branches of the family name. Hence, there are some spelling variations of the name Bretto, including Breton, Bretone, Bretton, Breto, Bretto, Bret, Bretau, Breteau, Brettau, Bretteau, Bretaux, Brettaux, Lebreton, Lebreteau, Lebreto and many more.

Early Notables of the Bretto family

Another 48 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Bretto Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Bretto family

In 1643, 109 years after the first landings by Cartier, there were only about 300 people in Quebec. Migration was slow. The fur trade attracted migrants, both noble and commoner. By 1675, there were 7000 French in Quebec. By the same year the French Acadian presence in the Maritimes had reached 500. The French founded Lower Canada, thus becoming one of the two great founding nations of Canada. The family name Bretto has made many distinguished contributions in France and New France to the world of science, culture, religion, and education. Amongst the settlers in North America with this distinguished name Bretto were Widow Breton, aged 53; who settled with her son Jean Pierre Breton, aged 17; in Charles Town in 1732; Elizabeth Breton, aged 28; who settled in New York in 1820.



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