BUTTERY
Buttery is an English surname of locational or occupational origin, situated within the broader context of the British Isles and England. The name arises from the Middle English term buterie, which denoted a storeroom or pantry.
In medieval households and monastic institutions a buttery was the department responsible for the storage and distribution of butter and other provisions. Consequently, the individual who served as keeper of the buttery became known by the occupational epithet buterer, which later evolved into the hereditary surname Buttery.
Historical records trace the name in various spellings, including Botterell, Buttrey, and initially as Boteri or Buteri. The earliest appearance of the surname is in the pipe rolls of Berkshire in 1177, where a William Buteri is recorded during the reign of King Henry II. Subsequent references include Reginald Boteri in the Curia Regis rolls of Hertfordshire in 1211, William de Buteri of Suffolk in 1219, and John de la Boterye of Staffordshire in 1334. The possibility that the name originates from a lost medieval village of Buttery in Shropshire is supported by the place-based naming conventions of the period.
The surname is of French provenance, presumably introduced into England following the Norman Conquest of 1066. The term boterie itself reflects this continental influence, linking the name to the practical necessity of preserving foodstuffs in a dry, cool environment—an indispensable role in an age when starvation was a constant threat.
In sum, Buttery is a locational and occupational surname that encapsulates the historical importance of food preservation within English medieval society, and its recorded use from the late twelfth century onward attests to its established presence in the annals of British history.
Typical given names associated with the Buttery surname
Male
- Andrew
- Brian
- David
- John
- Mark
- Michael
- Paul
- Peter
- Richard
- Robert
- Stephen
Female
- Alison
- Elizabeth
- Helen
- Joanne
- Julie
- Karen
- Louise
- Margaret
- Mary
- Sarah
- Susan
Similar and related surnames
- Buttress
- Buttrey
- Butteris
- Boughter
- Boutter
- Bouter
- Bouttier
- Butare
- Battery
- Boutier
- Butter
- Bottery
- Buter
- Butera
- Buters
- Butery
- Butier
- Butor
- Butrey
- Butry
- Buttar
- Buttary
- Butteree
- Butterey
- Butters
- Butterway
- Buttor
- Buttray
- Buttry
- Booter
- Boutari
- Boutry
- Bowter
- Buttars
- Butterby
- Butterick
- Butteridge
- Butteriss
- Butterly
- Buttree
Related and similar names are generated algorithmically based on the spelling, and may not necessarily share an etymology.
How to communicate the surname Buttery in...
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There are approximately 2,265 people named Buttery in the UK. That makes it roughly the 3,796th most common surname in Britain. Around 35 in a million people in Britain are named Buttery.
Surname type: Location or geographical feature
Origin: English
Region of origin: British Isles
Country of origin: England
Religion of origin: Christian
Language of origin: English
Famous people named Buttery
- John Buttery - Cricketer (1814 to 1873)
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.