Bui surname meaning
Chiefly Vietnamese Bùi, from the Chinese surname Pei (裴); also Cantonese Bei (貝), a Mei (梅) romanization, or Italian Bue.
Confidence: Disputed. More than one origin is plausible, or sources disagree. We show the conflict rather than pick a cute answer.
The short story
Bui is most often the US spelling of Vietnamese Bùi, which DAFN derives from the Chinese surname 裴 (Pei). Chinese Pei is a hereditary clan surname with historical place and lineage associations rather than a single everyday vocabulary gloss in American references. The same Latin Bui can also represent Cantonese 貝 (Bei), a romanization of 梅 (Mei), or an Italian patronymic/plural of Bue, so immigration records need care. Related forms include Bùi and Pei. Place is a cautious catalog fit for the Sino-Vietnamese clan-and-lineage surname pattern used elsewhere in this project. Confidence is disputed because several unrelated origins share the short spelling Bui.
Also seen as: Bui, Bùi, Pei, Bei
- Ancestry / DAFN entry for Bui (Vietnamese Bùi from Chinese 裴/Pei; Cantonese 貝/Bei; 梅/Mei; Italian Bue)
- Wikipedia “Bùi” (Vietnamese surname corresponding to Chinese Pei)
- Names2020_LastNames_RaceHispanic_Top1000.xlsx (2020 Census)