In 1861 the third edition of Nathaniel Ingersoll Bowditch’s (1773-1838) Suffolk Surnames was published.[1] It is a collection of surnames based on those he came across in Suffolk county, Massachusetts. Bowditch is more well known as a famous maritime mathematician and the author of The New American Practical Navigator (1802).
In Suffolk Surnames Bowditch give an overview and history of surnames from the time of the Norman conquest of Britain. While he provides interesting observations on many surnames he has come across, he gives a very literal origin for the surname Buggy. My personal favorite is the inclusion of Buggy in “Names Derived from Horsemanship, Locomotion, Games and Sports”. While I have not read the full publication, I do hope some of his entries are for humorous purposes. The entries below come from pages 217 and 369.
[1] Bowditch, N. I. Suffolk Surnames. London: Trubner & Co., 1861.
