BULLER
Buller is a surname of English origin. It is derived from the Old English word bula, meaning bull, and typically functioned as an occupational name given to those who worked with these animals, for example as bull‑herders or bull‑keepers.
The occupational usage is reinforced by the etymology of the name: it denotes a connection to the trade involving bulls, a relationship that has traditionally been associated with strength and power.
Alternate origins for the surname have been examined. One possibility places it in Old French, where it could have been an occupational name for a scribe or copyist derived from the Middle English bulle, a letter or document. A separate hypothesis suggests a French habitational link from Bouille, with the suffix -er adapting a norman placename pattern. A third hypothesis argues an early medieval German root from Middle High German bullen, meaning to roar, which could have been a nickname for a man who spoke loudly. These interpretations are supported by the earliest appearances of the name in church registers of German states in the 16th century and the documented marriage of John Buller to Phillippa Percyvell in London in 1603.
The first recorded spelling of the family name is that of Thomas le Bulur, dated 1203, where he is listed as a witness in the Assize Court Rolls of Staffordshire during the reign of King John. This surviving record confirms that the name had entered use in the early 13th century.
Heraldic evidence associates the Buller surname with a specific coat of arms, depicting a silver cross that is quarter‑pierced, set upon a black field together with four black eagles. The motto accompanying this emblem is Aquila non capit muscas, which translates as “The eagle catcheth not flies.” The grant of this armoury was explicitly recorded for Buller families in Somerset, Cornwall and Devon.
During the Middle Ages the emergence of the Buller surname was concentrated in Somerset, a county in South West England. Subsequent demographic surveys show a further concentration of the name in the south‑west of England, particularly Devon and Cornwall, reflecting the settlement patterns of families bearing the name in that region.
In the modern era the Buller surname can be found across several English‑speaking countries, including the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Australia and South Africa. In the United States the name is most commonly encountered in the Midwest and the Southeast, particularly Kansas, whereas in Australia it is dispersed nation‑wide.
Notable individuals who have carried the Buller surname include Sir Francis Buller (1745‑1800), a justice of the common pleas who served from 1794 until his death; Charles Buller (1806‑1848), a Member of Parliament who also served as secretary to the governor‑general of Canada; Walter Buller, a British Army officer; and Sir Walter Lawry Buller, a New Zealand ornithologist of renown.
Over the centuries a number of variants of the surname have arisen, such as Bullar, Bullard, Bulleher, Bullere and Bullar. In France the name may be rendered as Beuller and in German as Bühler (Buehler). Many families combined Buller with locational elements, producing composite surnames like Bullard‑Downs. It should be noted that while these variants share etymological roots with Buller, they are distinct from unrelated surnames such as Butler, which have separate origins.
Typical given names associated with the Buller surname
Male
- Alfred
- Andrew
- Anthony
- Christopher
- David
- Graham
- James
- John
- Mark
- Michael
- Peter
- Richard
- Stephen
Female
- Alison
- Christine
- Claire
- Helen
- Joanna
- Joanne
- Laura
- Margaret
- Patricia
- Rachel
- Sandra
- Sarah
- Susan
Similar and related surnames
Related and similar names are generated algorithmically based on the spelling, and may not necessarily share an etymology.
How to communicate the surname Buller in...
Braille
⠃⠥⠇⠇⠑⠗
Morse
-.....-.-...-....-.
Semaphore
There are approximately 1,357 people named Buller in the UK. That makes it roughly the 5,813th most common surname in Britain. Around 21 in a million people in Britain are named Buller.
Surname type: Occupational name
Origin: English
Region of origin: British Isles
Country of origin: England
Religion of origin: Christian
Language of origin: English
Famous people named Buller
- Mary Frances Buller-Fullerton-Elphinstone, Lady Elphinstone - Sister of Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother (1883 to 1961)
- Francesca Buller - Actress
- Sidney Buller-Fullerton-Elphinstone, 16th Lord Elphinstone - Baron (1869 to 1955)
- Redvers Buller - Recipient of the Victoria Cross (1839 to 1908)
- John Buller - Composer (1927 to 2004)
- Ed Buller - Record producer
- Eric Buller - Cricketer (1894 to 1973)
- Sir Francis Buller, 1st Baronet - Judge (1746 to 1800)
- William Buller - Cricketer (1812 to 1875)
- Sir Edward Buller, 1st Baronet - Royal Navy officer during the French Revolutionary Wars and Napoleonic Wars. (1764 to 1824)
- Anthony Buller - Member of Parliament (1780 to 1866)
- Henry Buller - (1873 to 1960)
Names and descriptions courtesy of Wikipedia, and may contain errors. This is not intended to be an exhaustive list of every famous person with this name.