A record of documented arms, meaning and origin, researched for the Butte family of France.
cross symbolChristian faith and serviceJ. B. Rietstap, Armorial Général, Gouda: G. B. van Goor Zonen, 1884–87
Blazon (the actual original written record)“De gu. à la croix d'or.”
The Butte arms were recorded in Franche-Comte, c. 1663.
Franche-Comte sat between France and the Empire and changed hands more than once. Border families held their land under arms and expected to defend it, so a shield was a practical thing rather than an ornament.
This is where the arms were entered in the register. Families often moved to other parts of the country, so the same name can turn up in more than one region.
The body that granted and recorded arms in France in this period.
Reigning in France when the Butte arms are first recorded.
In France, a coat of arms was a mark of honor that passed down through the male line to all legitimate descendants. Families often used the same shield without changes to show their shared heritage. If a branch wanted to stand out, they could add a small mark to their shield to show their specific place in the family tree.
The family name Butte likely originated as a descriptive term in the region of Franche-Comté, where records confirm the family was established by 1663. In the local dialect and old French, the word "butte" referred to a small hill, a mound, or a raised piece of land. It is probable that the earliest members of the family earned this name because they lived near a prominent geographical feature or worked on elevated terrain. During the seventeenth century, surnames were often tied to the specific landscape of a person’s home or farm. By settling in the rugged, mountainous terrain of eastern France, the early Butte family became identified by the very earth they cultivated. This connection to the land suggests a long history of agricultural life in the foothills of the Jura Mountains.
A small, isolated hill or mound of earth.
