View Message

[Surname] The German Surname Kah
I found this name in the south west of Germany, and it sounds quite unusual in this area and probably in all of Germany. I have no hint that it should be from another country, except the fact that quite a number of names in this area come from France.

Andy ;—)
vote up1vote down

Replies

the southwest of Germany, do you mean near the Alsace? Because that explains why it is used in France too, because these areas were subject of long conflicts and under rule of both Germany and France.

I couldn't find the meaning, but maybe it's a variant of Kahn. In the south of Germany they speak dialects (well, everywhere in Germany, actually) and maybe that's why the 'n' fell away. Kahn means 'rowing boat' and is a much more common surname in Germany.
vote up1vote down
Two more ideasNow that you brought up KAHN: This can be a contracted form of Konrad or else a variant of Cohn (Hebrew Cohen = priest).

Thank ypu for your help! Sometimes it only takes a spark …

Andy ;—)

P.S.: I think "Kahn" in German can be any kind of boat, not neccessarily a rowing boat.
vote up1vote down
Thank you, Menke! Yes, Alsace is not far away, so Kahn may be a good guess. I found Kahmacher which is a variant of Karrmacher ("car maker"), so maybe the whole "macher" just drifted away at one point.

Andy ;—)
vote up1vote down