Show ContentsBourget History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The name Bourget has been included within French history since the early portion of the Middle Ages. This Languedoc name is derived from a maker of wooden bowls and dishes which is derived from the Old French word "bolle", which means "bowl".

Early Origins of the Bourget family

The surname Bourget was first found in Languedoc, where the family held a family seat since ancient times.

The family is said to have had members who were respected in their community and among them was Jean-François-Pascal-Henri who was named Knight of Malta as a reward for his courageous conduct during the Crusades and also became Lieutenant in the regiment of Aunis. Other members were known to have participated actively in the events of their times and were granted titles as was Armand-Ferdinand-Bernard-Michel du Bourg, Knight of Malta, Deputy of Haute-Garonne and Knight of the Legion of Honour in the 18th century.

The Bourg family was considered as an honorable and esteemed family and to this day several French provinces are proud to have been the ancestral home for such a family.

Early History of the Bourget family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Bourget research. Another 250 words (18 lines of text) covering the years 1276, 1300, 1535, 1560, 1669, 1671, 1678, 1691, 1710, 1742 and 1760 are included under the topic Early Bourget History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Bourget Spelling Variations

French surnames were subject to numerous spelling alterations depending on the region and time it was used. The early development of the French language relied heavily on borrowing elements and grammar from other languages. For example, Old French was infused with Germanic words and sounds when barbarian tribes invaded and settled in France after the fall of the Roman Empire. Middle French also borrowed heavily from the Italian language during the Renaissance. As a result of these linguistic and cultural influences, the name Bourget is distinguished by a number of regional variations. The many spelling variations of the name include Bourg, Bourge, Bourgue, Bourges, Bourgues, Bourgg, Burg, Burge, Burgue, Burges, Burgues, Borg, Borge, Borgue, Borgues, de Bourg, de Bourge, de Bourgue, de la Bourg, de la Bourgue, de la Bourge, De Bourg, du Bourg, Bourgeat, Bourgeix, Bourgeault and many more.

Early Notables of the Bourget family

Notable amongst the family name at this time was Emmanuel du Bourg, Knight, Marquis of Bozas in Vivarais.Clementine de Bourges was an eminent composer of the 16th century. Her husband was killed fighting against the Huguenots in 1560, and she died of grief Sept. 30 in the following year. Her compositions deserve to be ranked with those of the great composers of her time. 1Louis Bourguet (1678-1742) was a...
Another 69 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Bourget Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Bourget World Ranking

In the United States, the name Bourget is the 14,397th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 2 However, in Quebec, Canada, the name Bourget is ranked the 538th most popular surname. 3 And in France, the name Bourget is the 2,079th popular surname with an estimated 3,029 people with that name. 4


Bourget migration to the United States +

In 1643, 109 years after the first landings by Cartier, there were only about 300 people in Quebec, in 1663 there were only 500, 2,000 migrants arrived during the next decade. Early marriage was desperately encouraged amongst the immigrants. Youths of 18 took fourteen-year-old girls for their wives. The fur trade was developed and attracted migrants, both noble and commoner from France. 15,000 explorers left Montreal in the late 17th and 18th centuries. Migration from France to New France or Quebec as it was now more popularly called, continued from France until it fell in 1759. 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. Meanwhile, in Quebec, the French race flourished, founding in Lower Canada, one of the two great solitudes which became Canada. Many distinguished contributions have been made by members of this family name Bourget. It has been prominent in the arts, religion, politics and culture in France and New France. Amongst the settlers in North America with this distinguished name Bourget were

Bourget Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Daniel Bourget, who arrived in South Carolina in 1741 5

Bourget migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Bourget Settlers in Canada in the 17th Century
  • Mr. André Bourget, (b. 1625), aged 30, French labourer travelling to Canada to work for François Peron, arriving on 6th July 1655 6
  • Mr. André Bourget, French settler travelling to Canada for work arriving on 13th March 1656 6
  • Mr. André Bourget, French settler travelling to Canada to work for Jérôme Le Royer, arriving on 8th June 1659 6
  • Claude Bourget, son of Jean and Marie, who married Marie Couture, daughter of Guillaume and Anne, in Quebec on 28th January 1683 7
  • Pierre Bourget, son of Pierre and Marie, who married Marie Jean, daughter of Vivien and Élisabeth, in Lévis, Quebec on 11th January 1691 7
Bourget Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century
  • Claude-Charles Bourget, son of Claude and Marie, who married Élisabeth Pinguet, daughter of Nicolas and Élisabeth, in Quebec on 28th November 1718 7
  • Pierre Bourget, son of Pierre and Marie, who married Marie-Françoise Guay, daughter of Ignace and Périnne, in Lévis, Quebec on 16th November 1722 7
  • Louis Bourget, son of Claude and Marie, who married Françoise-Josephte Poitevin, daughter of Jean and Françoise, in Charlesbourg, Quebec on 5th August 1726 7
  • Théophile Bourget, son of Claude and Élisabeth, who married Marie-Louise Lessard, daughter of Charles and Catherine, in Quebec on 4th July 1746 7
  • Pierre Bourget, son of Claude and Élisabeth, who married Catherine Lessard, daughter of Charles and Catherine, in Quebec on 4th July 1752 7
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Bourget (post 1700) +

  • Brigadier-General Paul Bourget (1887-1968), French Chief of Staff, Orient Theater of Operations 8
  • Paul Bourget (1852-1935), French novelist and critic
  • Maurice Bourget (1907-1979), Canadian politician
  • Ignace Bourget (1799-1885), French-Canadian Roman Catholic priest and bishop of the Diocese of Montreal
  • Claude Marc Bourget (b. 1956), Canadian musician, writer and journalist
  • Barbara Bourget (b. 1950), Canadian artistic director
  • Ann Bourget (b. 1969), Canadian politician


  1. Grove, Sir George, A Dictionary of Music and Musicians (AD. 1450-1889) London: Macmillan1902, Print, 2 Vols
  2. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  3. "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
  4. http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/nom/
  5. 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)
  6. 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/
  7. Internoscia, Arthur E., and Claire Chevrier. Dictionnaire National des Canadiens Français 1608-1760. Vol. 1, Institut Drouin, 1958.
  8. Generals of World War II. (Retrieved 2011, October 3) Paul Bourget. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/Bourget/Paul-Alexandre-Pierre/France.html


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