Origin
Bos : 1: Dutch South German and French: from the ancient Germanic personal name Boso or from a shortened form of Boshard composed of the elements bōs ‘bad evil wild angry’ (German böse Dutch boos) and hard ‘hardy brave’. Compare Boos.2: Dutch: variant of Bosch.3: French: regional variant of Bois ‘wood’. This may also be a habitational name from (Le) Bos the name of several places mainly in southern France. Compare Dubos.4: Polish (Boś): from a pet form of a Slavic personal name beginning with Bo- such as Bolesław (see Bolek) or Bogusław (see Boguslawski).5: Hungarian (Bős): from a pet form of the old personal name Bő.6: Hungarian (Bós): from the old personal name Bós.
Ares : Galician: habitational name from any of the places called Ares in the provinces of A Coruña and Lugo in Galicia (Spain) named either from the plural of ar ‘wind air’ (compare Buenos Aires Galician Bos Ares) or from the medieval personal name Arias (Aires) which is probably of ancient Germanic origin.
Beswetherick : seemingly originating as a variant of a surname Bos- Beswarthack from the place-name Bosvathick in Constantine (Cornwall). The surname is found in the Falmouth area in the mid-seventeenth century and in mid-Cornwall (especially Luxulyan and Lostwithiel) in the eighteenth. Beswetherick is a late and irregular variant of Beswarthack perhaps partly under the influence of the unrelated surname Petherick. The place-name is from Cornish bos ‘dwelling’ + guarthek ‘cattle’.
Boes : 1: German (also Bös): variant of Böse (see Boese). This surname is also found in France (Alsace and Lorraine).2: Dutch: from the ancient Germanic personal name Boso based on the element bōs ‘bad evil wild angry’. Compare Boos.
Boesman : Flemish:: 1: derivative of Boso an ancient Germanic personal name based on the element bōs ‘bad evil wild angry’ (see Bos 1).2: topographic name for someone who lived or worked in a wood (see Bosman 1).
Bolitho : Cornish: habitational name from either of two places in Cornwall named Bolitho from Cornish bos bod ‘dwelling’ + a personal name of uncertain form.
Boos : 1: German: habitational name from any of several places so named.2: Dutch: from an ancient Germanic personal name Boso based on the element bōs ‘bad evil wild angry’ (Dutch boos). Compare Bos.
Bosak : Czech and Slovak (Bosák Slovak also Bošák); Polish Croatian Serbian and Jewish (eastern Ashkenazic): nickname for a poor man or beggar a derivative of bosý (Czech and Slovak) bosy (Polish) bos (Croatian and Serbian) ‘barefoot’ meaning literally ‘barefoot man’.
Bosanko : Cornish: habitational name from a place called Bosanketh in Saint Buryan (Cornwall) named with Cornish bos bod ‘dwelling’ + an unidentified personal name. In England in the 18th century this surname became confused with French Bosanquet the name of a French family of Huguenot refugees who settled in Cornwall.
Bosch : 1: Dutch; German (also Bösch): topographic name for someone living near the woods from Dutch bos(ch) ‘wood’ Middle Low German bosch ‘bushes woods’. This surname is also found in France (mainly Alsace and Lorraine). Compare Bosh and Dutch Vandenbosch.2: South German (Bösch): see Boesch.3: Germanized form of Sorbian Boš and Bož: from a pet form of a Slavic personal name beginning with Bo- such as Bogusław (see Boguslawski) and Bolesław (see Bolek).4: Catalan and southern French: topographic name from Catalan and Old Occitan bosc ‘wood’ (from Late Latin boscus) or a habitational name from Bosch a place called with this word.
Boschert : German (Baden-Württemberg): variant of Bossert in southern Germany and Switzerland a patronymic from a personal name composed of the ancient Germanic elements bōs ‘bad evil wild angry’ (German böse) and hard ‘hardy strong brave’ or a derivation of Burkhart.
Bosence : from Bosence in Sancreed (Cornwall) itself from bos a later form of Cornish bod ‘dwelling’ + gwyns ‘wind’.
Boshart : 1: South German: rare variant of Bosshart (cognate of 2 below) and in North America (also) an altered form of this and of the same Swiss German surname.2: Dutch: from a personal name composed of the ancient Germanic elements bōs ‘bad evil wild angry’ and hard ‘hardy strong brave’ or a derivative of a short form of the personal name Burkhart (compare Boss).3: In some cases reportedly also an altered form of Bushart a surname of German or perhaps French origin.
Bosman : 1: Dutch: from bos ‘wood’ + man ‘man’ a topographic name for someone who lived or worked in a wood (see Bosch compare Bos 2). This surname (in any of the two possible senses; see also 2 below) is also established in South Africa. Compare also Bossman.2: Dutch: variant of Bos 1 + man ‘man’.3: English (East Yorkshire): occupational name most likely from the surname Bowes + Middle English man for a servant of a man with the surname Bowes.4: Americanized form of German Bosmann: variant of Bossmann (see Bossman).
Boso : Italian: from the medieval personal name Boso from an ancient Germanic personal name based on the element bōs ‘bad evil wild angry’.
Boss : 1: English (of Norman origin): from the Old French personal name Bos from ancient Germanic Boso based on the element bōs ‘bad evil wild angry’.2: English: nickname for a hunchback from Middle English Old French boce bos ‘protuberance swelling’ (compare Bossard 2).3: German (also Böss): from a short form of the personal name Borkhart a variant of Burkhart. This surname is also found in France (Alsace and Lorraine).4: Possibly also an Americanized form of South German Bös (see Bos).5: Danish: variant of Buus.6: Americanized form of French Bourgeois.
Bossard : 1: French: from a personal name composed of the ancient Germanic elements bōs ‘bad evil wild angry’ and hard ‘hardy strong brave’. Compare Bozarth Bussard and 3 below.2: French: nickname for a hunchback from Old French bosse ‘hump hunched back’ + the pejorative suffix -ard.3: Swiss German: variant of Bosshart in part a cognate of 1 above.
Bossett : English: from the Old French personal name Boset a pet form of Bos (see Boss).
Bosshart : Swiss German and South German: from a personal name composed of the ancient Germanic elements bōs ‘bad evil wild angry’ and hard ‘hardy strong brave’ or a derivative of a short form of the personal name Burkhart (see Boss). Compare Boshart 1 and Buzzard 2.
Bossman : 1: Americanized form of German Bossmann: patronymic from the ancient Germanic personal name Boso based on the element bōs ‘bad evil wild angry’.2: Dutch: of German origin (see 1 above) or a variant of Bosman (and in North America possibly also an altered form of this). This surname is rare in the Netherlands.
Bosson : 1: English: from the Old French personal name Bos + English -son or possibly with the French suffix -on (see 3 below). Compare Boss.2: English: variant of Bossom.3: French: from a derivative of the Old French personal name Bos from ancient Germanic Boso based on the element bōs ‘bad evil wild angry’.
Bou : 1: Catalan and southern French: from Catalan and Occitan bou ‘ox’ (from Latin bos genitive bovis) probably a metonymic occupational name for a herdsman. Compare Bove.2: Arabic (mainly Lebanon Maghreb): vernacular dialect variant of Abou in which the initial short vowel is dropped. This surname is found among both Muslims and Christians.3: Cambodian: written ប៊ូ unexplained.
Bouvier : French: occupational name for a herdsman Old French bouvier (from Late Latin bovarius a derivative of bos genitive bovis ‘ox’). Compare Bouvia and Bovia.
Bove : 1: Italian: from bove ‘ox’ (from Latin bos) applied as a metonymic occupational name for a plowman or herdsman or as a nickname for someone thought to resemble an ox in some way for example in being fat or patient.3: Danish: nickname from bouæ ‘villain wretch’ or from the old personal name Bovi.2: Catalan (Bové): variant of Bover ‘oxherd cowherd’.4: English: perhaps an occasional variant of Buff for Bough.
Bua : Italian (mainly Sicily): metonymic occupational name for a herdsman or a nickname for a powerfully built man from bue ‘ox’ an old variant of bove (from Latin bos bovis ‘bull’).
Bue : 1: Norwegian: habitational name from a farm so named most probably from bu ‘small house hut’ (compare Buan).2: Italian: nickname for a powerfully built man from bue ‘bull’ a dialect form of bòve (from Latin bos genitive bovis). In some cases it may have been originally a metonymic occupational name for a herdsman. Compare Lo Bue.
Dubos : French: regional variant of Dubois a topographic name with fused preposition and definite article du ‘from the’ for someone living or working in a wood (see Bos) or a habitational name for someone from Le Bos the name of several places in various parts of France.
Ten Busch : Dutch: topographic name form someone living near a busch bos ‘wood forest’.
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Source : DAFN2 : Dictionary of American Family Names 2nd edition, ©2022 by Patrick Hanks and Oxford University Press
FANBI : The Oxford Dictionary if Family Names in Britain and Ireland, ©2016, University of the West of England
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