The noble Viking settlers who came to the rocky shores of Scotland in the Middle Ages brought with them the ancestors of the Bouk family. They lived in a place noted for the presence of a ridge that formed a boundary between two distinct areas. It comes from a variant of the word boak or balk, of the same meaning. While historians generally agree upon the aforementioned topographical derivation, most believe that this name actually came from the area called Boak in the parish of Kirkholm.
The surname Bouk was first found in Berwickshire an ancient county of Scotland, presently part of the Scottish Borders Council Area, located in the eastern part of the Borders Region of Scotland, where they held a family seat from ancient times, long before the Norman Conquest in 1066.
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Bouk research. Another 92 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1546, 1576, 1632, 1683 and are included under the topic Early Bouk History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Scottish names from the Middle Ages vary enormously in their spellings. This is a result of the fact that there were no universal standards like dictionaries for scribes to judge by. The recorded spelling variations of the name Bouk include Boag, Boig, Book, Boack, Boge, Bogue, Boak, Bouk, Bouck, Bogues, Bogg, Boggs and many more.
More information is included under the topic Early Bouk Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Some of the Bouk family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 57 words (4 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Settlers found farms all along the eastern part of what would become the United States and Canada. They provided a base and a backbone that would strengthen two great nations in the making. In the 20th century, the ancestors of those brave Scots have rediscovered their heritage through highland games and Scottish historical societies. Early North American immigration records have revealed a number of people bearing the Scottish name Bouk or a variant listed above, including:
Some of the first settlers of this family name were: