“My last name is Butt. Where does this somewhat odd name originate?”
Jacob Butt, Montreal, Canada
Butt is a caste name in Kashmir. I’m not sure about the origin of the name, but present day Butts in Pakistan, are stereotyped as hearty, loud, gregarious, rambunctious people who love rich foods, especially sweetmeats. If you have these qualities then maybe you have Kashmiri ancestry.
Matteela, Lahore, Pakistan
PS Butts are deathly afraid of Himalayan bears.
In Medieval England every village had ‘butts’, which was an area set aside for practicing with bow and arrow etc. I would suggest that perhaps your name derives from one of your ancestors being the keeper of one of these.
Hilary *******, Pizarra, Spain
According to a book written by George F Jones, entitled German-American Names a definition of the name Butt is “plaice, fishmonger”. The name Butz, or Butts means “scarecrow”. Also, the name Butt may have originally been spelled as Bott or Botts. The definition of this name, according to Mr. Jones’ book, is “bogeyman”.
Liz *********, Freehold, New Jersey, USA
In the neighborhood I grew up in in a suburb of Denver there was a family named Butts. Must have been the German kind because they were light-skinned and blonde.