Burnett Coat of Arms, Family Crest and Burnett Family History

Burnett Family History

The ancient origin of the name Burnett was found in the irishsurnames.com archives.

Surnames developed a wide number of variants over the centuries. Many different spelling variations of the same name can be traced back to a single original root. Also, when a bearer of a name emigrated from Ireland it was not uncommon that their original name would be incorrectly transcribed in the record books upon arrival at their new location. Some names have dozens of spelling variations. Some Surnames were also altered over the years based on how they sounded phonetically, by their sound, and depending on the prevailing political conditions it may have been advantageous to change a name from one language to another. This was especially so in Ireland where most Gaelic names were 'anglicized' at some stage.

Variants of the name Burnett include Burnell, Burnard, Burnet, Bernard and Bernardin. This name is derived from the old French word 'brun' meaning 'brown'. This name is of Anglo-Norman descent spreading to Ireland, Scotland and Wales in early times and is found in many mediaeval manuscripts throughout these countries. Examples of such are a Custance Burnard, Cambridge, and a William Bernard, who were recorded in the 'Hundred Rolls', England, in the year 1273. An Andrew Burnet was registered in the University of Oxford in the year 1546. In Scotland about the year 1200 a Roger Burnard made two grants to the Monks of Melrose from his lands of Faringdun, one of them being witnessed by his four sons, Gaufrid, Ralph, Walter and Richard. In Ireland the names Burnett, Burnell and Brunell have existed in Counties Meath and Dublin since the thirteenth century and in County Clare since the sixteenth century. Burnett is also found in County Monaghan since the seventeenth century. The Burnett family crest (or coat of arms) came into existence many centuries ago. The process of creating these coats of arms began as early as the eleventh century although a form of Proto-Heraldry may have existed in some countries prior to this, including Ireland. The new more formalized art of Heraldry made it possible for families and even individual family members to have their very own family crest, coat of arms, including Burnett descendants.