| ![Show Contents]() Bullas History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
- Origins Available:
 England The origins of the Bullas surname lie with the Anglo-Saxon tribes of Britain. The name Bullas began when someone in that family worked as a person who worked as a bull herder or a keeper of cattle. The surname Bullas is a name for the bull-herd, and is derived from the Old English word Bulluc, which literally means bullherder. 1 Another source notes a similar origin of the name: "bull-ward-either the man who presided over the sport of bull-baiting, or the one who had the care of the 'townbull.' " 2 Early Origins of the Bullas familyThe surname Bullas was first found in Wiltshire where the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 listed Geoffrey Bolhard as one of the first listings of the family. The same source listed Fulco Bulard as holding lands at that time in Kent. 3 In Suffolk, an earlier record of the family was found, that of Henry Buliard who was listed in the Feet of Fines for 1198. 4 One of the earliest records of the family in America was William Bullard (1594-1686), an early resident and two term Selectman in Dedham, Massachusetts. He was the eldest of four brothers who emigrated c. 1634-1635 and settled first at Watertown. All four brothers had issue. William was instrumental in the "planting of Dedham" and signed the social compact. Early History of the Bullas familyThis web page shows only a small excerpt of our Bullas research. Another 219 words (16 lines of text) covering the years 1198, 1273, 1275, 1500, 1524, 1672 and 1806 are included under the topic Early Bullas History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Bullas Spelling VariationsOne relatively recent invention that did much to standardize English spelling was the printing press. However, before its invention even the most literate people recorded their names according to sound rather than spelling. The spelling variations under which the name Bullas has appeared include Bullard, Buliard, Bolhard, Bulard, Bulward and others. Early Notables of the Bullas familyAnother 33 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Bullas Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible. Migration of the Bullas familyAt this time, the shores of the New World beckoned many English families that felt that the social climate in England was oppressive and lacked opportunity for change. Thousands left England at great expense in ships that were overcrowded and full of disease. A great portion of these settlers never survived the journey and even a greater number arrived sick, starving, and without a penny. The survivors, however, were often greeted with greater opportunity than they could have experienced back home. These English settlers made significant contributions to those colonies that would eventually become the United States and Canada. An examination of early immigration records and passenger ship lists revealed that people bearing the name Bullas arrived in North America very early: Robert Bullard who arrived in New England in 1634 and Henry Bullard who sailed to Virginia in 1636. Major-General Robert Lee Bullard, who was born at Youngsboro in Alabama in 1861.
- Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
- Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
- Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
- Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
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