Bryan is a surname found in the

English-speaking world The English-speaking world comprises the 88 countries and territories in which English language, English is an official, administrative, or cultural language. In the early 2000s, between one and two billion people spoke English, making it the ...

. This surname has several different origins. One origin of the name is from an Anglo-Norman name, ''de Brionne'', derived from either of two places called ''Brionne'' in the north of

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

—one is Brionne, in

Eure Eure ( ; ; or ) is a department in the administrative region of Normandy, northwestern France, named after the river Eure. Its prefecture is Évreux. In 2021, Eure had a population of 598,934.Creuse Creuse (; or ) is a department in central France named after the river Creuse. After Lozère, it is the second least populated department in France. It is bordered by Indre and Cher to the north, Allier and Puy-de-Dôme to the east, Cor ...

. It may also come from ''de Brienne'' from Brienne-le-Château. Another origin of the surname is as a patronymic, being borne by someone who was son of an individual named Bryan. In addition to being found in

Brittany Brittany ( ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the north-west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica in Roman Gaul. It became an Kingdom of Brittany, independent kingdom and then a Duch ...

, it was used among the Breton followers of the

Normans The Normans (Norman language, Norman: ''Normaunds''; ; ) were a population arising in the medieval Duchy of Normandy from the intermingling between Norsemen, Norse Viking settlers and locals of West Francia. The Norse settlements in West Franc ...

who appear in

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

and

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

. Alternatively, Bryan might be the anglicized form of the Irish surname O'Brien. The Irish spelling of the surname Brien, Brian or the Norman spelling Bryan would then have a much longer origin in Ireland than in Brittany, predating the Normans.

People with the surname

A

* Albert Vickers Bryan (1899–1984), American judge * Albert Vickers Bryan Jr. (1926–2019), American judge * Albert Bryan Jr. (born 1968), American politician, Governor of the U.S. Virgin Islands * Albertus Bryne (1620s–1668), aka Albert Bryan, English organist and composer * Alfred Bryan (illustrator) (1852–1899), English illustrator * Alfred Bryan (lyricist) (1871–1958), Canadian songwriter * Arthur Bryan, British business executive * Arthur Q. Bryan, American comedian *

Ashley Bryan Ashley Frederick Bryan (July 13, 1923February 4, 2022) was an American writer and illustrator of children's books. Most of his subjects are from the African-American experience. He was a U.S. nominee for the Hans Christian Andersen Award in 2 ...

(1923–2022), American author and illustrator

B

* Benjamin Bryan (1840–1914) English journalist, editor, writer, and activist * Billy Bryan (born 1955), American football player * Billy Bryan (baseball) (born 1938), American former Major League Baseball catcher *

Bob Bryan Robert "Bob" Charles Bryan (born April 29, 1978) is an American former professional tennis player. Widely regarded as one of the greatest doubles tennis players of all time, Bryan was ranked as the List of ATP number 1 ranked doubles tennis pl ...

(born 1978), American doubles tennis player with his twin brother Mike * Bob Bryan (geologist), Australian geologist * Brother Bryan, American Presbyterian minister

C

* C. D. B. Bryan (1936–2009), American author and journalist * Cecil E. Bryan (1878–1951), American architect * Charles Bryan (disambiguation) * Charlie Bryan (1933–2013), American labor leader

D

* David Bryan, American musician * Donald Bryan, American politician * Dora Bryan, British actress

E

* Elizabeth Carew (c. 1500–1546), née Bryan, reputed mistress of Henry VIII and wife of his close friend, Nicholas Carew * Elizabeth M. Bryan (1942–2008), British paediatrician * Ernie Bryan, Welsh footballer

F

* Francis Bryan (1490–1550), English courtier and diplomat known as ''The Vicar of Hell'', brother of Elizabeth * Frank M. Bryan, professor of political science * Frank Bryan (cricketer) (1853–1923), English cricketer

G

* Gary Bryan, American DJ * Gay Bryan, American long and triple jumper * George Bryan (disambiguation) * Godfrey Bryan (1902–1991), English cricketer * Goode Bryan, American Civil War Confederate general * Gordon Bryan, Jamaican cricketer * Gordon Bryan (1895–1957), British pianist

H

* Henderson Bryan, Barbadian cricketer * Henry Francis Bryan, 17th governor of American Samoa * Henry Hunter Bryan, American politician

I

* Inés Bryan, Dominican Republic medic and politician

J

* Jack Bryan, English cricketer * James Bryan (disambiguation) * Jane Bryan, American actress * Jenny Bryan, Canadian professor and R developer * Jimmy Bryan (1926–1960), American racing driver * Joe Bryan (born 1993), English footballer * John Bryan (disambiguation) * Joseph Bryan (1773–1812), American politician * Joseph Hunter Bryan (1782–1839), American politician * Joseph M. Bryan (1896–1995), American businessman and philanthropist

K

* Karen Bryan, Speech therapist and deputy vice-chancellor of the University of Greenwich * Kathleen Price Bryan, American philanthropist * Kean Bryan, English footballer * Kirk Bryan (geologist), American geologist * Kirk Bryan (oceanographer) (born 1929), American oceanographer

L

* Lettice Bryan (1805–1877), American author * Luke Bryan, American country music singer-songwriter

M

* Margaret Bryan (c. 1468–c. 1551/52), governess of Henry VIII's acknowledged children * Mark Bryan (born 1967), American musician, a founding member, songwriter and lead guitarist of the band Hootie & the Blowfish * Mark Bryan (painter) (born 1950), American painter * Mark Bryan (veterinarian), New Zealand veterinarian and researcher * Marvin Bryan, English footballer * Michael Bryan (disambiguation) *

Mike Bryan Michael Carl Bryan (born April 29, 1978) is an American former professional tennis player. Widely regarded as one of the greatest doubles tennis players of all time, Bryan was ranked as the world No. 1 in men's doubles for a record 506 weeks ...

(born 1978), American doubles tennis player with his twin brother Bob

N

* Nancy Anne Bryan (1930–2010), American philanthropist * Nathan Bryan (North Carolina politician) (1748–1798), American politician * Nathan Bryan (scientist) (born 1973), American biologist * Nathan P. Bryan (1872–1935), American lawyer, judge and politician

P

* Paul Bryan (musician) (born 1967), American musician * Paul Bryan (politician) (1913–2004), British politician

Q

* Quisi Bryan (born 1970), American murderer

R

* Rebecca Bryan, wife of Daniel Boone * Richard Bryan, American politician * Ronnie Bryan (1898–1970), English cricketer

S

* Sabrina Bryan, American actress * Samuel Bryan, American political writer * Silas Bryan (1822–1880), American judge and politician

T

* Taven Bryan, American football player * Thomas Bryan (disambiguation)

V

* Vincent P. Bryan, Canadian songwriter

W

* Wesley Bryan (born 1990), American professional golfer * William Bryan (disambiguation)

Z

* Zachery Ty Bryan (born 1981), American actor

References

{{surname English-language surnames

People with the surname

A

B

C

D

E

F

G

H

I

J

K

L

M

N

P

Q

R

S

T

V

W

Z

See also

References