Burns (surname)

The surname Burns has several origins. In some cases, it derived from the Middle English or Scots burn, and originated as a topographic name for an individual who lived by a stream. In other cases the surname is a variant form of the surname Burnhouse, which originated as a habitational name, derived from a place name made up of the word elements burn and house.[1] In other cases the surname Burns originated as a nickname meaning "burn house".[2] In other cases, the surname Burns is an Anglicised form of the Irish Ó Broin,[1] which means "descendant of Bran".[3] In some cases the surname Burns is an Americanized form of the Jewish surname Bernstein,[1] which is derived from the German bernstein ("amber").[4]

An early form of the surname when derived from the place name Burnhouse is "Burnis", recorded in 1526. An early form of the surname when derived from a nickname meaning "burn house" is "Brenhus", recorded in 1286 and 1275.[5]

List of notable persons with the surname Burns

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Fictional characters
  • Mr. Burns, a character in the television series The Simpsons; he is Homer's manager and an evil person
  • Eunice Burns, a character in the film What's Up, Doc?
  • Sir Isambard Burns, a character in Raymond Postgate's novel Verdict of Twelve

See also

References
  1. Oxford Dictionary of Family Names: Burns, Answers.com, retrieved 28 January 2013. This webpage is a partial transcription of Dictionary of American Family Names, Oxford University Press, 2006.
  2. Reaney, Percy Hilde (1995), Wilson, Richard Middlewood (ed.), A Dictionary of English Surnames (3rd ed.), Oxford University Press, pp. 63, 75, ISBN 0-19-863146-4.
  3. Oxford Dictionary of Family Names: Byrne, Answers.com, retrieved 28 January 2013. This webpage is a partial transcription of Dictionary of American Family Names, Oxford University Press, 2006.
  4. Oxford Dictionary of Family Names: Bernstein, Answers.com, retrieved 28 January 2013. This webpage is a partial transcription of Dictionary of American Family Names, Oxford University Press, 2006.
  5. Reaney, Percy Hilde (1995), Wilson, Richard Middlewood (ed.), A Dictionary of English Surnames (3rd ed.), Oxford University Press, p. 75, ISBN 0-19-863146-4.
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