A French and English surname, Blanchard comes from the Old French terms ‘blanc’ and ’ard’ which referred to a person with a whitish appearance doing something in excess. From the Old German terms there are ‘blanc’ and ‘hard’ which means something is beautiful and strong. A spelling variation for Blanchard is Blanchaud. In England the Blanchard family name originated in Lancashire. The Blanchard families spread into Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, the city of London, Hampshire and Wiltshire. In Scotland most with the Blanchard name reside in Midlothian, Aberdeenshire, Fife and West Lothian counties. Within the United States the Blanchard surname originated in Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Louisiana, Ohio and California. Famous: Felix “Doc” Blanchard (champion college football player), Terence Oliver Blanchard (musician and composer), Mari Blanchard (actress), John Edwin Blanchard (professional baseball player), Albert Gallatin Blanchard (Civil War Confederate Army General), Erin Blanchard (champion gymnast), Anne Eugenie Blanchard (a French supercentenarian who died at the age of 114 years and 261 days in 2010), Lory Blanchard *footballer from New Zealand), Porter Blanchard (famous silversmith designing Porter Blanchard flatware) and Thomas Blanchard (19th century inventor of machines for gun barrels, stream wagons and flinging envelopes).