Contents [hide]

Bouchard History Etymology Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables World Ranking

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Motto Citations

Bouchard History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
France

Etymology of Bouchard

What does the name Bouchard mean?

The name Bouchard was formed many centuries ago in France during the Dark Ages. It was a Norman name typically given to a the Norman given name Bucchard.

Early Origins of the Bouchard family

The surname Bouchard was first found in Normandy (French: Normandie), the former Duchy of Normandy, where the family held a family seat since ancient times.

During the Middle Ages the diverse branches of the family distinguished themselves through their remarkable accomplishments and received grants of lands, titles and letters patent confirming their nobility and that of future generations. Many members appeared in the records of 1209. In recognition of his dedicated and valuable services in his community in which he lived, Pierre Bouchard was granted the title of Lord of Cornefou in 1301.

Many other members were actively involved in the social and public affairs of their region and served their country and fellowman in leading positions: as sénéchal of Angoumois and Bishop of Périgueux in the 1500's and as a Governor of Périgord in the 16th century. And because of their fame several French provinces are proud to have been the ancestral seat for such a family.

Claude Bouchard, born in 1626, son of Claude and Marie (née Fremon), was a doctor that travelled from Picardie, France to Quebec in the 17th century. He married Marguerite Benard on 20th November 1651 and together they had two sons, Jean and Paul-Claude. 1

Early History of the Bouchard family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Bouchard research. Another 92 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1599, 1619, 1622, 1635, 1645, 1646, 1653, 1662, 1667, 1676, 1686, 1702, 1720, 1730 and 1794 are included under the topic Early Bouchard History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Bouchard Spelling Variations

History has changed the spelling of most surnames. During the early development of the French language in the Middle Ages, a person gave his version of his name, phonetically, to a scribe, a priest, or a recorder. Some variables were adopted by different branches of the family name. Hence, there spelling variations of the name Bouchard, some of which include Bouchard, Bouchar, Boucharde, Bouchart, Boucharte, Bouchare, Bouchars, Boucharre, Buchard, Buchar, Bucharde, Buchart, Bucharte, Buchare, Buchars, Boucchard, Boucchar, Bouccharde, Boucchart, Bouccharte, Boucchare, Boucchars, Boucharse, Boucherd, Boucherde, Boucherte and many more.

Early Notables of the Bouchard family

Notable amongst the family in this period was

Pierre Bouchard, Lord of Cornefou; and Étienne Bouchard (c. 1622 - 1676), a French surgeon who came to Ville-Marie (Montreal) in 1653 under the sponsorship of the Société Notre-Dame de Montréal

Bouchard World Ranking

In the United States, the name Bouchard is the 1,878^th most popular surname with an estimated 17,409 people with that name. 2 However, in Canada, the name Bouchard is ranked the 25^th most popular surname with an estimated 53,561 people with that name. 3 And in Quebec, Canada, the name Bouchard is the 5^th popular surname. 4 France ranks Bouchard as 402^nd with 10,548 people. 5

Bouchard migration to the United States +

By 1643 there were only about 300 people in Quebec. Since immigration was slow, early marriage was desperately encouraged amongst the immigrants. The fur trade attracted migrants, both noble and commoner. 15,000 explorers left Montreal in the late 17th and 18th centuries. By 1675, there were 7000 French in Quebec. By the same year the Acadian presence in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island had reached 500. In 1755, 10,000 French Acadians refused to take an oath of allegiance to England and were deported to Louisiana. The French founded Lower Canada, thus becoming one of the two great founding nations of Canada. The distinguished family name Bouchard has made significant contributions to the culture, arts, sciences and religion of France and New France. Amongst the settlers in North America with this distinguished name Bouchard were

Bouchard Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Jean Bouchard, who landed in Louisiana in 1718-1724 6
Mrs. Bouchard, who settled in Louisiana in 1721

Bouchard Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

François Bouchard, son of Bernard and Félicité Tremblé, married Julie Audet-Lapointe, daughter of François and Magdelène Tremblé, at the parish of Saint-Jean in 1825
Mr. Bouchard, who landed in San Francisco, California in 1850 6
Gustav Bouchard, aged 37, who arrived in New Orleans, La in 1850 6

Bouchard migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Bouchard Settlers in Canada in the 17th Century

Mr. Gabriel Bouchard, French settler travelling to Canada for work arriving on 28th April 1642 7
Etienne Bouchard, who arrived in Montreal in 1653
Mr. Nicolas Bouchard, French labourer travelling to Canada to work for Antoine Grignon, Pierre Gaigneur, and Jacques Massé, arriving on 3rd March 1657 7
Mr. Michel Bouchard, French settler travelling to Canada to work for Antoine Grignon, Pierre Gaigneur, and Jacques Massé, arriving on 22nd March 1657 7
Michel Bouchard, aged 21, who arrived in Canada in 1657
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Bouchard Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Michel Bouchard from Antille-le-Marois, France, settled in Québec in 1700

Contemporary Notables of the name Bouchard (post 1700) +

Ken Bouchard (b. 1955), American former NASCAR driver, the 1988 NASCAR Winston Cup Rookie of the Year
Ron Bouchard (1948-2015), American NASCAR driver, the 1981 NASCAR Winston Cup Rookie of the Year, brother of Ken Bouchard
Velma Bouchard, American Democratic Party politician, Chair of Luce County Democratic Party, 2003 8
Robert A. Bouchard, American Democratic Party politician, Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from New York, 1988 8
Michael J. Bouchard (b. 1956), American Republican politician, Member of Michigan State House of Representatives 65th District, 1991; Defeated in primary, 1984, 1988; Member of Michigan State Senate, 1991-99 8
John D. Bouchard, American Republican politician, Candidate for U.S. Representative from New York 30th District, 1988 8
Charles J. Bouchard, American Democratic Party politician, Member of Wisconsin State Assembly, 1963-64 8
Arthur A. Bouchard, American politician, Delegate to New Hampshire State Constitutional Convention from Berlin 4th Ward, 1948; Delegate to New Hampshire State Constitutional Convention from Berlin 4th Ward, 1956 8
Pierre-François Bouchard (1772-1832), French sea captain, best known for discovering the Rosetta Stone in the Egypt
Anthony Bouchard (b. 1992), Canadian Para athlete competing in wheelchair racer, competing at the 2024 Paralympics
... (Another 8 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

The Bouchard 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: Fais honneur
Motto Translation: Do honor

Citations +

Olivier, Reginald L. Your Ancient Canadian Family Ties. Logan: The Everton Publishers, Inc., P.O. Box 368, 1972. Print
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
"Surnames Meanings, Origins & Distribution Maps - Forebears." Forebears, https://forebears.io/surnames
"The first 1,000 family names by rank, Quebec (in French only)" Institut de la statistique du Quebec, https://statistique.quebec.ca/en/document/family-names-in-quebec/tableau/the-first-1000-family-names-by-rank-quebec
http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/nom/
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)
Debien, Gabriel. Liste Des Engagés Pour Le Canada Au XVIIe Siècle. Vol. 6, Laval University, 1952. (Retreived 24th May 2018). Retrieved from https://lebloguedeguyperron.wordpress.com/2016/06/30/130-liste-des-contrats-dengagement-pour-la-nouvelle-france-releves-a-la-rochelle-entre-1634-et-1679/
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, January 7) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html