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| Origins Available: |
| | England |
The Bonny family has descended through the lines of the ancient Normans that came to England following their Conquest of England in 1066. The Bonny name reveals that an early member was a handsome person, especially one who is large or well built. The name comes from the Norman word bonnie, a common nickname for an attractive person. This word possibly derives from the Old French bon, which means good or fine, although the movement is not clear. 1
The surname Bonny was first found in Bedfordshire and Leicestershire, where they had been granted lands by King William. They were originally seated in St. Bonnet in Normandy in the arrondisement of Calvados.
"The knight of this name who accompanied Duke William from Normandy, received for his services the lordship of Penclawdd, in Gower. "Bonet or Benet, was one of such persons, as after the battle were advanced to Seigneuries in this land, Glamorgan." A descendant of the Norman, Bonet, Robert Benet, who, married Avis, daughter and heir of John Crompe, of Sanctuary, in Gower, and great grand-daughter, maternally, of Caradoc ap Ynir ap Ivor, Lord of Dyfed, is supposed to have been the "Robert Benote" whose name appears amongst the Lances attendant on the Duke of Gloucester at Azincourt. 2
Henry Bonet was Warden of St Mary's College, Ottery St Mary, Devon in 1349.
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Bonny research. Another 46 words (3 lines of text) covering the years 1620, 1688, 1702, 1718 and 1782 are included under the topic Early Bonny History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Before the advent of the printing press and the first dictionaries, the English language was not standardized. Sound was what guided spelling in the Middle Ages, so one person's name was often recorded under several variations during a single lifetime. Spelling variations were common, even among the names of the most literate people. Known variations of the Bonny family name include Bonnett, Bonney, Bonnet, Bonny, Bonnie and others.
More information is included under the topic Early Bonny Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
In France, the name Bonny is the 5,594th most popular surname with an estimated 1,000 - 1,500 people with that name. 3
To escape the political and religious chaos of this era, thousands of English families began to migrate to the New World in search of land and freedom from religious and political persecution. The passage was expensive and the ships were dark, crowded, and unsafe; however, those who made the voyage safely were encountered opportunities that were not available to them in their homeland. Many of the families that reached the New World at this time went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations of the United States and Canada. Research into various historical records has revealed some of first members of the Bonny family to immigrate North America: