The Boudreau One-Name study began around 2014 when I first started my genealogy adventure. I can trace back the root in North-America to Michel Boudrot and his wife Michelle Aucoin, whom came from La Rochelle, France and settled in Acadie, New France.

After the deportation of Acadians in 1755 (Le Grand Dérangement), the Boudrot/Boudreau/Boudreaux were spread out, some back in France, some in the Caribbean and some the United States of America.

My goal is to first, document all the descendants of Michel and Michelle. Once that completed, I'll be researching exclusively in France to try and connect the Boudreau's there to the ones here, on the other side of the pond.

The variants that are currently registered are Boudrot and Boudreaux.

The Boudrot variant is actually the starting point of the study. This is the way Michel Boudrot wrote his name from 1639 onwards (earliest sample available) and his descendants to at least 1755.

The Boudreau form is what is most commonly found in Canada and parts of eastern United States.

The Boudreaux variant is more common down in Louisiana, USA.

Some deviants exist: Boudros, Boudrault, Boudreault, Boudriaux, Boudret, Boudereau, Boudereaux, Bouderot, Bouderos, Bouderault, Boudereault, Boudreiaux, Bouderet and Budrow are some I've encountered so far.

Of French origin, seems to be a derivative of the personal name Boudier from the ancient germanic name Bodhari, composed of the elements Bod ‘Messenger’ And Hari ‘Army’.

It is believed the origin of the surname Boudreau was first found in Languedoc, France, where the family was anciently established. The members of the family also settled in other regions of France, where several of them distinguished themselves.

And there is of course a few branches that traversed the ocean to try and find a better life on the other side of the Atlantic. 

Boudreau Settlers in Canada in the 17th Century

• Michel BOUDROT, b. about 1600. Judge and Lieutenant General of Port-Royal, Acadia, married Michelle AUCOIN (Martin, Barbe MINGUET) about 1639 in France. It is believed they originated from La Rochelle, Aunis, France
• Jean BOUDREAU (Martin, Marie FOUCAULT), born in 1643 in Saint-Porchaire, Charente-Inferieure, France travelled to Canada in 1667. He married Marie-Rose VIVIEN on 13th September 1673. His second marriage was in Charlesbourg on 13th December 1689 to Elizabeth PIVAIN.

Boudreau Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

• Judith Boudreau, aged 30, who arrived in Acadia in 1765

Contemporary Notables of the name Boudreau (post 1700)

• Jean Boudreau (1748-1827), Canadian politician in Lower Canada
• James Bernard "Bernie" Boudreau (b. 1944), Canadian lawyer and politician, member of the Nova Scotia House of Assembly
• Roy Boudreau (b. 1946), Canadian teacher and politician, member of the legislature of New Brunswick
• Howard Boudreau, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Michigan, 1964 ^[6]
• Anne Boudreau, American Democratic Party politician, Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Maine, 1964 ^[6]
• Louis Boudreau (1917-2001), American Major League Baseball player, American League MVP Award winner in 1948
• Bruce Boudreau, (b. 1955) Canadian National Hockey League coach, curently (2022) with the Vancouver Canucks

• At Ancestry.ca, there is currently 132,000 entries of Births, Marriages and Death for the family name Boudreau (including the variants Boudrot, Boudreaux, Boudreault and Budrow)
• On FamilySearch, the number goes up to 243,209 entries of Births, Marriages and Death for the family name Boudreau and variations.
• The PRDH* which undertook the exhaustive reconstruction of the population of Quebec from the beginnings of French colonization in the seventeenth century to the year 1850, currently has 17,737 records of BMS in it's databank. This dataset is the starting point of our research.
• WikiTree has, as of today, 5124 unique personal profiles including the above variations. 

*PRDH: Programme de recherche en démographie historique

Until the tools are used and the data entered, no numbers are currently available as this study is still in it's enfancy. 

However, we can safely estimate that the numbers on each side of the Atlantic should be fairly equal since the family name grew on either end through time and still exist today.

All of the Boudreau Births, Marriages and Death in North America, starting in Port-Royal Acadia in 1639, moving to the Quebec province and the United States are currently being compiled in a chronological, direct descendant way as to make sure we forget no one. We are using Parish records when they are available and census records for each time period. 

This data will be available as we enter it on the website, My Ancestors And Their Friends.

Here, you'll find my Boudreau Study: Boudreau OneNameStudy

Here, you'll find a combination of my 5 current studies, 3 One-Name and 2 Place studies: My Ancestors And Their Friends