Butler (surname)

Butler is a surname that has been associated with many different places and people. It can be either:

• an Anglicisation of the French surname Boutilier, Bouthillier, a cognate of the English name.
• an English occupational name that originally denoted a servant in charge of the wine cellar, from the Norman French word butuiller. It eventually came to be used to describe a servant of high responsibility in a noble household, mostly leaving behind its association with the supply of wine.
• in Ireland, a noble family and dynasty associated with the counties of Tipperary, Kilkenny and parts of County Carlow. They were seated at Kilkenny Castle, and at Cahir Castle.
• an Anglicisation of German or Swiss-German surnames including Beutler, Bütler, Beidler.