Show ContentsButy History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Etymology of Buty

What does the name Buty mean?

A product of the ancient Brythonic Celts of Wales, the name Buty, is from the Old English personal name Budda, which is derived from the Old English word budda, which means beetle. 1 The root meaning of budda is to swell, and the surname Buty may also be a nickname applied to a fat person, or perhaps ironically, to a thin one. Another source claims the name was an ancient Anglo-Saxon personal name meaning "messenger." 2

The name was "a strongly established surname as the Hundredorum Rolls prove, some of the fontal names attached suggesting a Flemish origin." 3

Early Origins of the Buty family

The surname Buty was first found in Cornwall, where the first entry for the family was in the Latin form, that of Brihtmerus Budde, who appeared as an Old English Byname c. 1025. A few years later, Leofwinus Budda was recorded at Oseney, Oxford in 1135 and later again, Ralph Budde was listed in the Pipe Rolls for Hampshire in 1170. 1

The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 include entries for Juliana Budde, Oxfordshire; Iward Bude, Norfolk; William Budde, Oxfordshire; and Simon Bud, Huntingdonshire. 3 All held lands there at that time. In Somerset, we found John Budde, 1 Edward III (during the first year of King Edward III's reign.) 4

"The Budds were a well known Winchester family in the early part of the 17th century; they filled the office of mayor and made bequests for the poor. Winchester still has the name. In the forms of Bud, Budd, and Biidde, the name occurred in Oxfordshire and Somersetshire in the reign of Edward I." 5

Early History of the Buty family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Buty research. Another 153 words (11 lines of text) covering the years 1025, 1066, 1135, 1170, 1746, 1756, 1774, 1793, 1797, 1798, 1801, 1821 and 1853 are included under the topic Early Buty History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Buty Spelling Variations

There are relatively few surnames native to Wales, but they have an inordinately large number of spelling variations. Early variations of Welsh surnames can be explained by the fact that very few people in the early Middle Ages were literate. Priests and the few other literate people were responsible for recording names in official documents. And because most people could not specific how to properly record their names it was up to the individual recorder of that time to determine how a spoken name should be recorded. Variations due to the imprecise or improper recording of a name continued later in history when names originally composed in the Brythonic Celtic, language of Wales, known by natives as Cymraeg, were transliterated into English. Welsh names that were documented in English often changed dramatically since the native language of Wales, which was highly inflected, did not copy well. Occasionally, however, spelling variations were carried out according to an individual's specific design: a branch loyalty within the family, a religious adherence, or even patriotic affiliations could be indicated by minor variations. The spelling variations of the name Buty have included Budd, Budde, Bud, Budds, Bude and others.

Early Notables of the Buty family

George Budd (fl. 1756), the English painter, is supposed to have been born in London, where for some time he kept a hosier's shop. Eventually he was led by his taste for drawing to abandon the business and devote himself wholly to art. He practised in portrait, landscape, and sometimes still life. 6 Richard Buud (1746-1821), was an English physician, born in 1746 at Newbury...
Another 64 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Buty Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Buty family

North America in the 1800s and 1900s saw the arrival of many Welsh people hoping to share in the wealth of land, work, and freedom that they felt North America held. Those who made the journey often attained those expectations, but only through an enormous amount of hard work, perseverance, and often a bout of good luck. These immigrants helped contribute to the growth of industry, commerce, and culture of both Canada and the United States. Discovered in the immigration and passenger lists were a number of people bearing the name Buty: Giles Budd settled in Virginia in 1639; John Budd settled in New Jersey in 1678; John Budd settled in Boston Massachusetts in 1637; Thomas Budd settled in Nevis in 1722.



  1. Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
  2. Harrison, Henry, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary Baltimore: Geneological Publishing Company, 2013. Print
  3. Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
  4. Dickinson, F.H., Kirby's Quest for Somerset of 16th of Edward the 3rd London: Harrison and Sons, Printers in Ordinary to Her Majesty, St, Martin's Lane, 1889. Print.
  5. Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
  6. Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print


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