Trottier is a French-Canadian occupational surname — from trottier (one who trots), denoting a messenger or courier, someone paid to carry messages quickly between places. In medieval France, trottiers were employed by lords and merchants; in New France, the name was carried by early Norman and Poitevin colonists.
The Trottier family arrived in Quebec before 1700 and became one of the founding families of the French-Canadian community. The name spread through Quebec and into Acadia. Hockey player Bryan Trottier (born 1956 in Saskatchewan to a part-Métis family) made the name widely known — he won four Stanley Cups with the New York Islanders.
Love to Visit France covers the stories, places, and people behind French culture — from the Alps to the Atlantic, from ancient surnames to living villages.
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