Byrd (surname)

Byrd is a surname, a variant spelling of the English word "bird,"[2] which is derived from the Old English pre-7th-century word "bridde" (Middle English "brid" or "bird").[3] Another common variant of this surname is "Bird."[4]

A European Goldfinch common to the region
This article is about the surname Byrd. For other uses, see Byrd.
Byrd
Map of England showing the location of Broxton in Cheshire
Map of England showing the location of Broxton in Cheshire
Broxton
The location of Broxton in Cheshire
Pronunciationbɝd
Origin
Word/nameOld English
Meaning"Bird"
Region of origin England
 Cheshire
Other names
Variant form(s)Bird (common), Byrde, Bride, Brid, Bridde, Le Byrd, Le Brid, Le Bridde[1]

Origin and variants

Byrd is a metonymic occupational or descriptive name that was originally used for a person who worked as a bird catcher (name shortened from "birdclever"),[5] or someone who had bird-like characteristics (i.e., bright eyed or active, or perhaps one with a beautiful singing voice).[6] A part of the ancient legacy of the Anglo-Saxon tribes in Britain, the surname Byrd was first found in Cheshire at Broxton, a village and civil parish in North West England. The surname was first recorded in Essex towards the end of the 12th Century as "Le Brid(d)."[7]

Until the gradual standardization of English spelling in the last few centuries, English lacked any comprehensive system of spelling. Consequently, spelling variations in names are frequently found in early Anglo-Saxon and later Anglo-Norman documents, meaning that a person's name was often spelled several different ways over a lifetime. As such, different variations of the Byrd surname usually have the same origin.

Notable people with the surname

See also

References
  1. "Last name: Byrd". surnamedb.com. Retrieved 23 June 2018
  2. "Byrd Family History". ancestry.com. Retrieved 23 June 2018
  3. "Last name: Byrd". surnamedb.com. Retrieved 23 June 2018
  4. "Last name: Byrd". surnamedb.com. Retrieved 23 June 2018
  5. "Last name: Byrd". surnamedb.com. Retrieved 23 June 2018
  6. "Last name: Byrd". surnamedb.com. Retrieved 23 June 2018
  7. "Last name: Byrd". surnamedb.com. Retrieved 23 June 2018
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