Buford
An English surname that likely began as a place-name for someone from a ford or river crossing associated with a beech tree or a similar feature.
The #3,907 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 33,969 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Buford is generally treated as a locational surname, from a place-name built around the element ford, meaning a river crossing. The first part is usually explained as an Old English word referring to a beech tree or, in some cases, as a related local feature-name, so the original sense was likely “the ford by the beech tree” or something close to that. As with many English surnames, the spelling later stabilized in several forms, including Buford and Beauford.
History
The surname appears in English-speaking records as a family name inherited from an ancestral place rather than from an occupation or nickname. In the United States, Buford became more familiar through migration from Britain and later through bearers in the South and West. It is also commonly found as a given name, which sometimes reflects surname-as-first-name naming traditions.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Buford is one of several surnames that later crossed over into use as a first name, especially in the United States.