Butter History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
The story of the Butter family begins in ancient Scotland among the Pictish clans. The Butter family lived in the counties of Perth and Fife (now in the modern regions of Tayside and Fife, respectively), and is likely from the village of Buttergask in the parish of Ardoch.
Researchers have mixed feelings about the origin of the name. One source notes "Boterus and Botorus are found as personal names in Domesday Book." 1 Another found in the Magni Rotuli Scaccarii Normanniae, a listing of "Ralph and Sylvester Butor in Normandy in 1198." 2 And another claims the name is from "the Old Norse, Buttr; from the Danish, Butho; from the Dutch, Boot, Buter, Butti; from the French, Buteau." 3
Early Origins of the Butter family
The surname Butter was first found in Fife and Perthshire where they held a family seat from very ancient times, some say well before the Norman Conquest and the arrival of Duke William at Hastings in 1066 A.D.
Further to the south in England, the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 listed: John le Butur, Cambridgeshire; John le Botur, Cambridgeshire; and John Botere, Huntingdonshire. 4
Early History of the Butter family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Butter research. Another 110 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1600, 1608, 1664, 1672 and 1767 are included under the topic Early Butter History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Butter Spelling Variations
Translation has done much to alter the appearance of many Scottish names. It was a haphazard process that lacked a basic system of rules. Spelling variations were a common result of this process. Butter has appeared Buttar, Butter, Butters, Buttars and others.
Early Notables of the Butter family
Notable amongst the Clan at this time was
- Nathaniel Butter (died 1664), a London publisher who published the first edition of Shakespeare's King Lear in 1608, and was one of the first publishers of a newspaper in English
Butter migration to the United States +
Many Scots left their country to travel to the North American colonies in search of the freedom they could not find at home. Of those who survived the difficult voyage, many found the freedom they so desired. There they could choose their own beliefs and allegiances. Some became United Empire Loyalists and others fought in the American War of Independence. The Clan societies and highland games that have sprung up in the last century have allowed many of these disparate Scots to recover their collective national identity. A search of immigration and passenger ship lists revealed many early settlers bearing the Butter name:
Butter Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
- Robert Butter, who landed in Virginia in 1635 5
- Robert Butter, who arrived in Virginia in 1663 5
- Giles Butter, who landed in Maryland in 1663 5
Butter Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
- Ralph Butter, who arrived in Virginia in 1715 5
- Thomas Butter, who landed in Maryland in 1716 5
- William Butter, aged 30, who landed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1775 5
- William Butter, who settled in Philadelphia in 1775
Butter Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
- Keyran Butter, who arrived in Philadelphia in 1842
- E Butter, who landed in San Francisco, California in 1851 5
- Mary Butter, who arrived in Mobile, Ala in 1851 5
- Peggy Butter, aged 35, who landed in Mobile, Ala in 1851 5
- Clementina Butter, who arrived in Puerto Rico in 1866 5
Butter migration to Canada +
Some of the first settlers of this family name were:
Butter Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century
- Euste Butter, who arrived in Halifax, Nova Scotia in 1749-1752
Butter migration to Australia +
Emigration to
Australia followed the
First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:
Butter Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
- George Butter, English convict from Shropshire, who was transported aboard the "Albion" on September 21, 1826, settling in New South Wales, Australia 6
- Elizabeth Butter, aged 19, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Marion" in 1849 7
- William Butter, aged 35, a miner, who arrived in South Australia in 1857 aboard the ship "Henry Moore"
Butter migration to New Zealand +
Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:
Butter Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
- Thomas Henry Butter, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Loch Fleet" in 1878
- John Butter, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Loch Fleet" in 1878
Contemporary Notables of the name Butter (post 1700) +
- John E Butter, American physician, Assistant Professor, Division of General Internal Medicine at Northwestern University Medical School
- William Butter (1726-1805), Scottish physician, a native of the Orkneys who studied medicine at Edinburgh, where he graduated M.D. in 1761 8
- Michel Butter (b. 1985), Dutch silver medalist long-distance runner at the 2007 European Athletics U23 Championships
- Anton Julius Butter (1920-1989), Dutch economist, Associate Professor the Department of Economics of the University of Amsterdam
- John Butter (1791-1877), English ophthalmic surgeon, born at Woodbury, near Exeter, on 22 Jan. 1791 8
The Butter Motto +
The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.
Motto: Diriget Deus
Motto Translation: God will direct it.
Citations +
- Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
- 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)
- Barber, Henry, British Family Names London: Elliot Stock, 62 Paternoster Row, 1894. 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)
- Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
- State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2016, October 27) Albion voyage to New South Wales, Australia in 1826 with 192 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/albion/1826
- State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) The MARION 1849. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1849Marion.htm
- Wikisource contributors. "Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900." Wikisource . Wikisource , 4 Jun. 2018. Web. 31 Oct. 2019