Bezold (* Betzold, Betzoldt..), Petzoldt (* Petzold, Pezold) Beyer, Beier, Bayer, Baier Bezzenberger (cf. BROCKHAUS German Occupational hereditary surname for a person who was physically powerful, derived from Old German brock which may refer to persons with a stocky or strong build. Old German Script Transcriber (alte deutsche Handschriften):See your family names in the script of the era. And have a great day. Any ideas where it came from exactly? The table below includes the 1000 most common last names in America. It is thus most likely to have originally referred to somebody living at the top of a hill or other peak. Many attended German Evangelical churches in which the sermon was in German. 26). The meanings of German last names are those as defined initially when these names became surnames. Most German surnames derive either from archaic professions (such as Schmidt, Müller, Weber, or Schäfer) or places. Required fields are marked *. If you have any knowledge of Bauer being a surname or other leads I could follow I would be great full!!! But the first name that has been passed down was J Jonathan or Jon for short. If a name was translatable, sooner or later family members would use such terms as Carpenter for Zimmermann, Taylor for Schneider, etc. I found somewhere (not sure where) that it was Bauer. Type your name or other word into the font generator tool. Does that seem right. Gideon Adlon – actress. It is a toponymic name referring to people who originally came from the city of Aachen in … Your email address will not be published. Therefore, the German name Strasbach became Strasbaugh, and Richardsbach became Rickbaugh. The latter groups arrived in the 19th century, thus their plentiful names follow different patterns. In the table, the German name is listed on the left, with its origin (and explanation if needed) on the right. The acronyms OHG and MHG stand for Old High German and Middle High German, respectively. Occasionally, surname charts surface that we cannot contribute to any one individual. His American name was Uno Byers. Many German surnames are self-explanatory as they were derived from people’s jobs. She has a teaching degree and an M.A. Most German surnames derive either from archaic professions (such as Schmidt, Müller, Weber, or Schäfer) or places. For information on the Soundex, see the Soundex article in the FamilySearch Research Wiki. It derives from the medieval personal name, of Biblical origin, from Aramaic תאומא t'om'a, a byname meaning 'twin'. The search for the correct spelling should include a search according to National Archives Soundex Rules. For instance, Schmidt, which is ranked No. They all trace their lineage back to one couple whose name was DAVIS. The most common German surname, Müller (miller), is shared by around 700,000 people. To learn more, see Clifford Neal Smith’s article “Language and Onomastics” in Encyclopedia of German-American Genealogical Research, by Clifford Neal Smith and Anna Piszczan-Czaja Smith. Jensen Ackles – actor. 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. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Melchior Hofmann was a visionary religious leader in northern Germany in the early 16th century (he was to have some 20th century descendants, Karl and Nicholas von Hoffman, in America). © 2020 by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved. Because of this, German last names can be found throughout bordering countries, including Poland, Austria, France and Spain. Surname A-G. Surname H-K. Surname L-R. Surname S-Z. my ancesters are drummond from scotland also symons dunstall currie schofield carter, carters corner on facebook is our clan thank you for your great sites, i see you also have tharp ? At least that is what the family tree book shows. This is in response to the post of Gwynne Geyer. Another tricky thing about German last names: A last name could be what you would call a farm name. German Americans (German: Deutschamerikaner, pronounced [ˈdɔʏ̯tʃʔameʁiˌkaːnɐ]) are Americans who have full or partial German ancestry. in German studies. Thus, when interpreting a family name, the preservation of the original pronunciation should be kept in mind. Just before the civil war is when my relative came from Bavaria Germany to New York not sure what the original name was. German Surnames in America BECKER - BAKER ZIMMERMANN - CARPENTER SCHWARZ - BLACK KLEIN - LITTLE In some cases it may have originally denoted inhabitants of one of several places in Germany bearing the same name, such as ‘Nolle’ in Lower Saxony and ‘Noll‘ in Rheinland-Pfalz. Some of the most common last names that are unforgettable are Graf, Einstein, Becker, Kahn, Klose, Ballack, Bach, and so on. The meanings of German last names are those as defined initially when these names became surnames. The following tables include all surnames with over 0.001% frequency in the US population during the 1990 census. Discover the ethnic origin and meaning of last names. Actors. Ben Affleck – actor and filmmaker. For example, the surname Meyer means dairy farmer today, whereas, during the Middle Ages, Meyer designated people who were stewards of landholders. For instance, in eastern Pennsylvania, early-day officials who were Scotch-Irish translated German names ending in –bach to –baugh. Most of these Conversos fled to Turkey, some to West Africa, to the Caribbean Islands, South America and from there also to New Mexico, and a number of them settled in Germany and Poland. It is therefore the policy that these charts be listed as commissioner unknown. Carpenter and Weaver in English or Zimmermann and Weber in German tell us that the ancestor with whom the name originated was a carpen- ter or a weaver respectively. If a name was translatable, sooner or later family members would use such terms as Carpenter for Zimmermann, Taylor for Schneider, etc. But the name Byers is what they translated it to. I have many ancestors in the 1800s with different English-sounding surnames in the DC area. 24), and Schmid (No. A service provided by, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Pennsylvania, early-day officials who were Scotch-Irish translated German names ending in –bach to –baugh OHG... 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