Many german surnames are selfexplanatory as they were derived from peoples jobs. The the most common form of german family name is occupational. Depending on the culture, all members of a family unit may have identical surnames or there may be variations based on the cultural rules. Etymology definition and meaning collins english dictionary. Dictionary of american family names 20, oxford university. He was joined later by his father, thomas, and three brothers, humphrey, john and robert d. Zimmermann is also very common in switzerland, where it ranks 14th in the nation, and in austria, where it comes i. Usually, such family name s are derived from nickname s. The meaning and history of first names behind the name. Surname search guide provides a single source for finding your family tree and researching your family names, meaning of surnames origin and family descent. In fact, hitler himself was originally called schicklegruber. The name, however, derives from the familys former residence in broc, in the area of anjou, france.
What can your last name reveal about your german ancestors. Authored by our very own experienced journalisthistorian these books describe the origins of your family name in a light hearted and informative fashion. Search historical records start a free family tree online and well do the searching for you. Quickly and easily gather information pertaining to your families history, family records, genealogy records, immigration records, and much more. The history of german originates from a spanish background. Kingdom of poland under russian administration 1821. Later german form of audo or odo, originally a short form of various names beginning with the germanic element aud meaning wealth, fortune. Immigration, often sponsored by local authorities, also brought foreign family names into the germanspeaking regions. I am simply an ordinary fellow who has taken an interest in armenian surnames. It is, however, not suited for learners of the language, and is sometimes even hard to understand for natives.
It is professional enough to satisfy academic standards, but accessible enough to be used by anyone. This was the name of four kings of germany, starting in the 10th century with otto i, the first holy roman emperor, who was known as otto the great. Suffixes which can indicate a german occupational name are. Discover your family history in millions of family trees and more than a billion birth, marriage, death, census, and military records. Find the meaning, history and popularity of given names from around the world. Behind the name will also translate given names into other languages. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of randolphi cole. Germany names, personal genealogy familysearch wiki. Where variations of a spelling of a surname occurred, those monikers are listed as separate names. Get ideas for baby names or discover your own names history. These occupational names form the largest group among the german family names. Many german names have their roots in the germanic middle ages. This is an az dictionary of germanamerican names with the spellings, meanings, and variants of about 15.
Navigate to the genealogy page that contains your family names resource links. Previously, the family name had been manougian which, by the way, means youth. Indeed in the list of the most common family names in germany, names that. It is a german name from saxony, an anglicization of tollkiehn ie tollkuhn my note. Tracing your german american last name can help you learn new facts and details about your ancestors. For example, the acronym of the hebrew words kohen hatzedek righteous priest produced katz german for cat, a name acceptable to german officials. A list of german origin and americanised family names. Some indicate the cities or regions where some surnames are most common or the earliest date and place the name was documented. They are generally classified into four groups, based on the origin of a nickname. I wanted to say that for example blue had always had a wavelength of 440490 nm and the way we physically perceive it did not change since invention of language disregarding color blindness as probably not significant for etymology.
Handbook of ashkenazic given names and their variants by alexander beider 15,000 given names, derivation of their root name, and how given name derived. It has also been explained as an abbreviation of hubert or as a derivation of heber, the hebrew patriarch. Taken in this narrow sense, the study of the etymology of surnames of. Online etymology dictionary origin, history and meaning. German minority census of 1939 by thomas kent edlund guide to the holdings of family history library for this record group. Often the german name chosen had a different meaning to the jew than it did to the german official who recorded it. The family name requirement was extended to posen in 1833 and to all other parts of the prussian state in 1845. By 1500 the use of family names such as schmidt smith, petersen son of peter, and backer baker was common in the germanspeaking regions and all across europe. Medieval forms of the name are atebroc, attebroc, attenbroke and was more often. Hiver, hivar, hubbar, hupper, huper, hobar, hibber, kuber, kubri, kivri, heber, eber, hever, ever. I was particularly intrigued by the family law section at the end of the family heritage book. Jun 28, 2015 best to let the man answer that question himself. This is followed in popularity by the name schmidt along with variants such as schmitt or schmitz, this comes from the blacksmiths trade, with meier coming in third place.
Dictionary of american family names oxford reference. Free surname origins dictionary over 70,000 surname origins. Discover the meaning of the german name on ancestry. The list was initially created by searching for the most common last names in german telephone books. John winchell and his family emigrated from england to watertown, massachusetts in 1631. The name, however, derives from the family s former residence in broc, in the area of anjou, france. In etymology, they are generally classified into four groups, based on the origin of a nickname. An interesting look at the last names of wellknown german, austrian, and swiss. The first european surnames seem to have arisen in northern italy around a. Etymology is the study of the origins and historical development of words.
I typed in the given name of one of my immigrant ancestors hans. Means almond in german, an occupational name for a grower or seller, or a topographic name for a person who lived near an almond tree. The use of books or written charters was introduced in anglosaxon times by the ecclesiastics, as affording more permanent and satisfactory evidence of a grant or conveyance of land than the symbolical or actual delivery of possession before witnesses, which was the method then in vogue. The common names schmidt and schmitz lead in the central germanspeaking and eastern low germanspeaking areas. North german, occupational name for a wood turner, middle low german dreyer, dreger. Uncovering the origin of last names can reveal how our ancestors made a living, were remembered, or their role in society, giving us insights into their lives. What is the meaning and origin of the family name tolkien.
Often a person was distinguished by a reference to his or her father. The company name is pronounced the same as that of bodine himself. Descendants and relatives lived in new england, new york, ohio, wisconsin and elsewhere. Search last names, surname meanings, etymology and history of family names, surnames, genealogy, family trees and more. German family name etymology in etymology, german family names were introduced during the late middle ages in the german language area. The surname book appears occasionally in english records. The site has become a favorite resource of teachers of reading, spelling, and english as a second language. My hans did come from denmark, and i was reminded to search for him using other forms of his name. Embracing the etymology and history of the name and the outlines of some collateral genealogies alexander winchell dr.
The cole family originated in cornwall, south west england. The family tree historical atlas of germany by james m. Robert bosch gmbh full company name is a german diversified technologybased corporation. Is there a good online resource to look up the etymology.
The revealing etymology of the weasley family tree. Understanding german surnames and given names can help you find and. Very quickly it explained that hans is the german, dutch, and scandinavian short form of johannes. Probably an americanized spelling of german and jewish ashkenazic buch or buck. You have came to right place to find thousands of family name histories and meaning of surnames. Guerrero occupational name meaning warrior, from germanic werra, modern german wirr confused. Free dictionary of surname origins and last name meanings. Api to determine the likely gender of a german name for gender studies. As a legacy, family surname searches which are given free to us online, last a lifetime and beyond. This is a list of some spanish words of germanic origin. Because of this, german last names can be found throughout bordering countries, including poland, austria, france and spain.
Browse for all the origins, histories, and meanings of german and over 40,000 other names. There are also many books that discuss german names and their meanings. The meanings of german last names are those as defined initially when. They are often very easy to identify if you either know a little german or know which clues to look for. I wish to emphasize, first and foremost, that i am not a linguist or philologist, and certainly not an expert on names or languages. It possibly means ploughed region or marshy region in old high german. The name was borne also by a number of other early christian saints. A surname, family name, or last name is the portion in some cultures of a personal name that indicates a persons family or tribe or community, depending on the culture. Fen learning is part of sandbox networks, a millennial learning company, reaching hundreds of millions of people across the globe. A list of surnames in which the usage is german page 2. Medieval forms of the name are atebroc, attebroc, attenbroke and was more often than not pluralized to brooks and brookes in modern times.
Familyeducation is part of the fen learning family of educational and reference sites for parents, teachers and students. Hitler is not a particularly common german surname. Names with the vowel cluster ei klein are also mostly german. List of the most common surnames in germany wikipedia. Names and name meanings the site has information on the etymology of german family names as well as a community section, where questions about names origins are discussed. Translation for surname in the free englishgerman dictionary and many other german translations. Pdf scientific approach to etymology of surnames researchgate. Jan 14, 2020 surname distribution data on forebears ranks zimmermann as the 20th most common surname in germany, while the zimmerman spelling is more common in the united states. Braband german derived from the name of the region of brabant in the netherlands and belgium. A decree requiring family names was issued in 1821, but it was not enforced. The use of books or written charters was introduced in anglosaxon times by the ecclesiastics, as affording more permanent and satisfactory evidence of a grant or conveyance of land than the symbolical or actual delivery of possession before witnesses, which was the method then in. Cyning king is from germanic kunjan family hence, by extension royal family, from the ie root gen to birth.
Find your familys average life expectancy, most common occupation, and more. The origin is alderback, the name of a small brook, as well as a farm that it runs past, in gunnerud in the same area of varmland, from whence goran andersson aldrin came. The online etymology dictionary is the internets goto source for quick and reliable accounts of the origin and history of english words, phrases, and idioms. Sep 06, 2018 tracing your german american last name can help you learn new facts and details about your ancestors. With roots in the germanic middle ages, german surnames have been around since the 1100s. The design of the family heritage book, the german eagle with intertwined wedding rings, was created in 1921 and registered with the german patent and trade mark office. The history of german family names part 2 blog beyond history. German last names originate from places and professions in germany and far beyond, as a list of 100 of the most common german surnames shows. Get ideas for baby names or discover your own name s history. The meaning and origins of names are not always what they seem to be at first glance.
It is of middle english origin, and its meaning is swarthy, coalblack, charcoal. Gervasius, around whom a cult grew up following the discovery of his remains in milan in 386. Dictionary of american family names 20, oxford university press. But the most common names were ones that were cleverly disguised. How to say family in german whats the german word for family.
The meaning and origin of famous german names thoughtco. Some have speculated that he changed his name to hide his jewish descent. If his wife inherited a farm, he might change his name to her maiden name. Depending on the culture, all members of a family unit may have identical surnames or there may be. Nov 22, 2006 i typed in the given name of one of my immigrant ancestors hans. List of spanish words of germanic origin wikipedia. A last name could be what you would call a farm name. Meaning, pronunciation, translations and examples log in dictionary.
Depending on regional history, geography and economics, many family names have french, dutch, italian, hungarian or slavic e. German family name etymology academic dictionaries and. If a german moved onto someone elses farm, it was not uncommon to change his last name to that of the farm. An az list of about 18,000 german surnames briefly discusses their meanings, while the books introduction discusses the origin of surnames and the. Usually, such family names are derived from nicknames. Marcus was an old roman name, of uncertain possibly nonitalic etymology.
Discover the history and origin of your english family surname history with these fun entertaining and easy to read mini books. A boon for genealogical research and an interesting browse for the merely curious, this detailed dictionary is an englishlanguage reference for more than 15,000 german family names, including variant spellings as well as the meaning and origin of each name. Beginning consonant clusters such as kn knopf, pf pfizer, str stroh, neu neumann, or sch schneider indicate possible german origins, as do endings such as mann baumann, stein frankenstein, berg goldberg, burg steinburg. Family name affixes are a clue for surname etymology and can sometimes determine the ethnic origin of a person. Common german surnames and their surname origins and last name meanings. All resources are categorized and will take you directly to the best resources pertaining to your families history.