350,150 BUTLER members around the world

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BUTLER Family History

Family spelling variants include Buttler, Le Boutillier.

There are approximately 350,150 Butler family members around the world. In general you can double this figure to include those related to the Butler names to allow for those connected to the name through maiden name connections.

It is estimated that the largest group of Butler family members live USA 238,385 (68.1%), England with 42,009 (12%), Australia with 20,631 (5.9%), Canada with 15,370 (4.4%), South Africa with 13,789 (3.9%), Ireland with 11,479 (3.3%), New Zealand with 3,465 (1%), Scotland with 2,527 (0.7%) and Wales with 2,495 (0.7%) members. 

English and Irish from an Anglicised form of French Boutilier, from Old French bouteillier denoting a ‘servant in charge of the wine-cellar’ or wine steward, usually the head servant. Originating from Latin buticularius, from buticula meaning ‘bottle’.

Also an occupational name for a bottle maker, from Yiddish butl ‘bottle’ + the agent suffix -er.

Early bearers of the surname include: Hugo Buteiller, 1055 in Documents in France; Alexander le butiller, 1174–84 in Hatton’s Book of Seals (Hunts); Baldwin le Buteilier, 1200 in Pipe Rolls (Kent); William le Boteller, 1260 in Assize Rolls (Cambs); Henry le Butler, 1327 in Subsidy Rolls (Worcs); Brigg le Botiller’, 1379 in Poll Tax (Burnham Thorpe, Norfolk); Johannes Buteler, Walterus Butelier, 1381 in Poll Tax (Buckhorn Weston, Dorset); Johannes Butler, 1538 in IGI (Croydon, Surrey); James Butler, 1539 in IGI (Feckenham, Worcs); Richard Butler, 1539 in IGI (Stone, Bucks).

James Butler, English convict from Gloucester, who was transported aboard the "Andromeda" ship on 16th October 1826, settling in Van Diemen's Land, Australia.

In 1891, there were 23,225 occurrences in England and Wales and a further 333 occurrences in Scotland.

In 1881 census, the surname was widespread across the West Midlands and South East England. Although, Gloucestershire was a top county with 764 occurrences of which 92 were recorded in Bristol, as a top district for the surname.

In 1881, Agricultural Labourer, Labourer and Farmer were the top 3 reported jobs worked by Butler in the UK. The most common Butler occupation was Agricultural Labourer and a less common occupation was Coal Miner .

1881, 1891 Census

1881 Census in Kent

Dictionary of American Family Homes, P Hanks OUP 2003

Homes of Family Names in Great Britain, H.B. Guppy, London 1890

The Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain and Ireland, P.Hanks, Coats, McClure OUP 2016

1860 Lower, Mark A Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom, London: J.R Smith. Public Domain

1857 Arthur, William An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names. New York: Sheldon, Blakeman. Public Domain

http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/andromeda/1826

J.M.P