What is a Bruce?

Question

As in Robert the Bruce...

Answer 1

"the Bruce" is apparently the Anglicized form of the original surname of the Norman French family -- "de Bruis" or "de Brus", meaning "FROM Bru(i)s". In other words the original did not mean "the" at all: it just sounded like it.

A bit further --
"Bru(i)s" or "Bruys" was the name of the family's ESTATE in Normandy. It is now known as "Brix". The estate name is generally said to mean something like "the brushwood thicket", which would have described the terrain of the estate (as many estate names did). It seems, in other words, that "bru(i)s" was the Norman French equivalent of the English word "brush".

The "Bruce" clan and its history:
http://www.fortunecity.com/bally/leitrim/147/bruce.html
http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/read/GENMSC/1995-06/0802240340
http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/read/SCT-CAITHNESS/2001-08/0997262738

The town of Brix -
http://www.relaxinfranceonline.com/normandy/50009.htm

Answer 2

Without looking it up I have no idea, ,but I will have a guess that Bruce is a place so its Robert of Bruce....will go and have a look now and put an edit on.

Edit
Doesn't say much about the name on Wikipedia other than he was of Scottish Norman ancestory and his family originated in Brieux which sounds a bit like Bruce.

Answer 3

a Bruce is a man who looks a bit like Santa but in a sexy way because he has a bone in his pants he wants you to date ;) ;) ;) he likes digging especially sandcastles and likes pretending to be Indiana Jones but again a sexy one, he also makes bread and there is a sexy book written about him called 50 shades of Bruce which is really naughty. He is the one TRUE Bruce other people claim to be Bruce but they are liars. He is an amazing man and should be worshipped. Finally, his greatest talent is identifiying things that look like puffballs but in reality are not puffballs <3

Answer 4

The name "Robert the Bruce" arose from a strange mixture of Norman French and Scots Gaelic. Bruce is the modern version of a very old Norman surname:

"Robert I, King of Scots (Mediaeval Gaelic:Roibert a Briuis; modern Scottish Gaelic: Raibeart Bruis; Norman French: Robert de Brus or Robert de Bruys; 11 July 1274 – 7 June 1329), usually known in modern English as Robert the Bruce, was King of Scotland from 1306 until his death in 1329.

Although his paternal ancestors were of Scoto-Norman heritage (originating in Brieux, Normandy), his maternal ancestors were Scottish-Gaels. He became one of Scotland's greatest kings, as well as one of the most famous warriors of his generation, eventually leading Scotland during the Wars of Scottish Independence against the Kingdom of England. He claimed the Scottish throne as a great-great-great-great grandson of David I of Scotland."
(Wikipedia)

So the name really means "Robert, one of a family with the surname Bruce"

Answer 5

"Bruce" was his family name. He's refered to simply as Robert Bruce in most more-recently written articles.

I think he was actually born in Essex - can someone confirm this, or am I imagining things?

Answer 6

Not sure, but in Oz we call anybody who is a bit slow a Bruce. Seriously, I think that what is meant by the title is that he was Robert, Bruce's son

Answer 7

What is a Bruce? It's a lot like a Jones, a Smith, a Brown, etc.... it's his family name/last name.

Answer 8

Isn't it brave.