Show ContentsBuney History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The Buney family's name is derived from the ancient Norman culture that was established in Britain following the Norman Conquest of island in 1066. Their name originated with an early member who was a bunn, or literally from the Old French word bonne which means good. [1] Another source presumes the name could have been from place Bougnies, a Norman village in Belgium. [2]

Early Origins of the Buney family

The surname Buney was first found in Nottinghamshire at Bunny, a parish, in the union of Basford, N. division of the wapentake of Rushcliffe. "Bunny Park, the seat of Lord Rancliffe, to the east of the village, is an ancient mansion of brick ornamented with stone, with a massive gateway entrance. The church is a spacious and well-built edifice, partly in the decorated and partly in the later English style, with a tower surmounted by a crocketed spire." [3]

The Bunnys of Ibdrope were said to have held that Hampshire estate from temp. King John. [4]

Further to the north in Scotland, William Buny, was a Scottish merchant who had safe conduct into England, 1412; Patrick Buny held land in Linlithow, 1461; and Henry Buny held a tenement there in 1472. [5]

Early History of the Buney family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Buney research. Another 126 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1540, 1543, 1558, 1559, 1562, 1567, 1574, 1584, 1588, 1601, 1612, 1617 and 1619 are included under the topic Early Buney History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Buney Spelling Variations

Before English spelling was standardized a few hundred years ago, spelling variations of names were a common occurrence. Elements of Latin, Norman French and other languages became incorporated into English throughout the Middle Ages, and name spellings changed even among the literate. The variations of the surname Buney include Bunney, Bunny, Buny, Bunnie and others.

Early Notables of the Buney family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was Edmund Bunny (1540-1619), a noted theological writer who acquired the estates of the Hartops of Dalby. He was born in 1540 at the Vache, the seat of Edward Restwold, his mother's father, near Chalfont St. Giles, Buckinghamshire. He was the eldest son of Richard Bunny (d. 1584) of Newton or Bunny Hall in Wakefield parish, who was treasurer of...
Another 66 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Buney Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Buney family

In England at this time, the uncertainty of the political and religious environment of the time caused many families to board ships for distant British colonies in the hopes of finding land and opportunity, and escaping persecution. The voyages were expensive, crowded, and difficult, though, and many arrived in North America sick, starved, and destitute. Those who did make it, however, were greeted with greater opportunities and freedoms that they could have experienced at home. Many of those families went on to make important contributions to the young nations in which they settled. Early immigration records have shown some of the first Buneys to arrive on North American shores: Richard Bunny who settled in Barbados in 1679 with his wife and daughter; William Bunney his brother settled in Barbados in the same year; Thomas Bunney settled in Charlestown Massachusetts in 1630.



  1. Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
  2. The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
  3. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
  4. Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
  5. Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)


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