Byrd (surname)
# Byrd (surname)

Byrd is a surname, a variant spelling of the English word "bird," which is derived from the Old English pre-7th-century word "bridde" (Middle English "brid" or "bird"). Another common variant of this surname is "Bird."

## Origin and variants

Byrd is a metonymic occupational or descriptive name that was originally used for a person who worked as a bird catcher (name shortened from "birdclever"), or someone who had bird-like characteristics (i.e., bright eyed or active, or perhaps one with a beautiful singing voice). A part of the ancient legacy of the Anglo-Saxon tribes in Britain, the surname Byrd was first found in Cheshire at Broxton, a village and civil parish in North West England. The surname was first recorded in Essex towards the end of the 12th Century as "Le Brid(d)."

Until the gradual standardization of English spelling in the last few centuries, English lacked any comprehensive system of spelling. Consequently, spelling variations in names are frequently found in early Anglo-Saxon and later Anglo-Norman documents, meaning that a person's name was often spelled several different ways over a lifetime. As such, different variations of the Byrd surname usually have the same origin.

## Notable people with the surname

* Alma W. Byrd (1924–2017), American politician
* Bill Byrd (1907–1991), baseball player
* Bobby Byrd (1934–2007), American R&B and soul singer, songwriter, and musician
* Butch Byrd (born 1941), AFL Hall of Fame
* Charles Willing Byrd (1770–1828), first sitting justice on the United States District Court of Ohio
* Charlie Byrd (1925–1999), American jazz guitarist
* Chris Byrd (born 1970), heavyweight champion in boxing
* Conley Byrd (1925–2014), Justice of the Arkansas Supreme Court
* Curley Byrd (1889–1970), American university administrator, educator, athlete, coach, and politician
* Damiere Byrd (born 1993), American football player
* Darryl Byrd (born 1960), American football player
* David Edward Byrd (born 1941), an American graphic designer and painter
* Dennis Byrd (1966–2016), American football player
* Donald Byrd (1932–2013), American jazz trumpeter
* Harry Byrd (baseball) (1925–1985)
* Harry F. Byrd (1887–1966), U.S. senator for Virginia
* Harry F. Byrd Jr. (1914–2013), U.S. senator for Virginia from 1965 until 1983
* Henry Roeland Byrd (1918–1980), blues musician
* Imhotep Gary Byrd, radio host and musician
* Jairus Byrd (born 1986), American football player
* James Byrd Jr. (1949–1998), murder victim
* Jefferson Byrd (born 1971), American politician
* Jerry Byrd (1920–2005), American lap steel guitarist
* Joseph Byrd (born 1937), rock musician
* Jonathan Byrd (musician) (born circa 1970), folk singer-songwriter
* Jordan Byrd (born 2000), American football player
* Leo Byrd (1936–1991), American basketball player
* Marlon Byrd (born 1977), baseball player
* Mary E. Byrd (1849–1934), American educator
* Mary Willing Byrd (1740–1814), second wife of Colonel William Byrd III
* Paul Byrd (born 1970), baseball player
* Petri Hawkins-Byrd (born 1957), bailiff "Byrd" on the Judge Judy TV series
* Richard Byrd (American football) (born 1962), former gridiron football player
* Richard E. Byrd (1888–1957), admiral, polar explorer, aviator
* Robert Byrd (1917–2010), U.S. Senator, Democrat from West Virginia
* Sammy Byrd (1910–1981), baseball player for the New York Yankees and PGA Tour golfer
* Steve Byrd (1955–2016), English rock musician
* Thomas Jefferson Byrd (1950–2020), American actor
* Tracy Byrd (boxer) (born 1964)
* Tracy Byrd (born 1966), country singer
* William Byrd (1540–1623), English composer
* William Byrd I (1652–1704), member of colonial Virginia's House of Burgesses
* William Byrd II (1674–1744), founder of Richmond, Virginia
* William Byrd III (1728–1777), member of the House of Burgesses, and military officer
* Winifred Byrd (1884–1970), American concert pianist
