One more name post

A number of years ago the Mennonite Quarterly Review published an article by Isaac Zürcher entitled “Anabaptist-Mennonite Names in Switzerland.” The first part of the article describes Zürcher’s data pool and methodology; the second part provides a list of over 1,500 Mennonite surnames that appear in a variety of Swiss documents both legal and religious, public and private, between the years 1525 and 1799.

Building housing the State Archive of Bern

Not all the surnames represented Swiss natives or citizens; some no doubt entered the Swiss record as a result of traveling through the region or perhaps sojourning there for a time. Still, it comes as some surprise to find the name Buller (no unlaut!) in the list, two slots below Bühler (with an umlaut!). The attestation of Buller dates to the year 1684, that for Bühler to the very beginning of the period: 1525.

If anyone happens to be in Bern, Switzerland, and gains access to the State Archives of Canton Bern, the surname Buller is mentioned in the Ratsmanuale (Council Manual) for 1601–1700, A II 511 Vol. 199: 6 February 1684–23 August 1684, page 447.

Whether or not one of us ever sees the actual record and its context (Was it legal in nature? religious? something else?), we do need to ponder the significance of the fact that one of the earliest attestations of our family name that we have thus far encountered comes from Switzerland.