Any information about my surname?

Question

Its Bird.

I always thought it was a really weird one, heres my questions:

Is it just found in Britain?

Is it common?

Am I right about it originating from Bird keepers?

Is there a website I can trace back ancesters for free?

Answer 1

Bird    

First name origins & meanings:

English: Birdlike

English: Like a bird

First name variations: Birdie, Birde, Birdea, Birdella, Birdena, Birdey, Birdi, Birdy, Birdee, Birdie, Byrdie, Byrd

Last name origins & meanings:

English and Scottish: from Middle English bird, brid ‘nestling’, ‘young bird’ (Old English bridd), applied as a nickname or perhaps occasionally as a metonymic occupational name for a bird catcher. The metathesized form is first found in the Northumbrian dialect of Middle English, but the surname is more common in central and southern England. It may possibly also be derived from Old English burde ‘maiden’, ‘girl’, applied as a derisory nickname.

Irish: Anglicization of Gaelic Ó hÉanacháin or Ó hÉinigh, in which the first element (after Ó) has been taken as Gaelic éan ‘bird’ (see Heneghan).

Jewish: translation of various Ashkenazic surnames meaning ‘bird’, as for example Vogel.

And

Surname: Bird

Recorded as Bird, Byrd, Byrde and Bride, this famous surname is English. It derives from the pre 7th century word "bridde" meaning a bird, and as a surname was originally given as a nickname to one thought to bear a fancied resemblance to a bird. This may have been from bright dress, or bright eyed and active, or perhaps to some one with a beautiful singing voice. The surname was first recorded towards the end of the 12th century (see below), and other early recordings include: Ralph le Brid, a witness in the Fines Court of Essex in the year 1231, and Richard Bird, a witness in the Assize Court of Cambridgeshire in 1260. The variant spelling Bride, most closely resembling the original Olde English "bridde", was first recorded as a surname in 1332, when John Bride was listed in the Subsidy Rolls of Cumberland, and later in the Century, Johannes Bridde was recorded in the 1379 Poll Tax Returns of Yorkshire. Occasionally, Bird (and its variants) may have been given as a metonymic occupational name to a bird catcher, and as such was a shortened form of the name "Birdclever", recorded in the 1427 "Calverley Charters of Yorkshire". Henry Bird was a```n early settler in the New World, he was recorded as purchasing a ticket for the ship "Amity" sailing to London, in July 1679 from Barbados. Recently the name has had much international notice through the famous cricket umpire 'Dickie' Bird of Yorkshire. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Earnald Brid, which was dated 1193, in the "Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire", during the reign of King Richard 1st, known as "The Lionheart", 1189 - 1199.

And

The meaning of the surname BIRD is - dweller at the sign of the bird; a birdcatcher.

Answer 2

Ancestry.com

No such thing as a free ride anymore.

Try Google, they have a genealogical helper

Answer 3

Hi,

     Bird is a common surname.  Looking at an index of the U.S. Census for 1930 and starting with the first state shown alphabetically, which is Alabama, there were 551 people living there with the surname of Bird in 1930.  

I'm sure that each of the other states would have a fairly decent population of Bird surnamed people as well.