ACHTERBERG Dutch, GermanFrom the name of various places in the Netherlands and Germany, for example the village of
achterberg in Utrecht. The place names are derived from Low German
achter "behind" and
berg "mountain, hill".
ACKER German, EnglishDenoted a person who lived near a field, derived from Middle English
aker or Middle High German
acker meaning "field".
ACKERMANN GermanDenoted a person who lived near a field, from Middle High German
acker "field" and
man "man".
ADENAUER GermanDenoted a person from the town of Adenau in Germany. The name of the town is of uncertain etymology.
ALTHAUS GermanName for a person dwelled in or by an old house, from German
alt "old" and
haus "house".
ARMBRUSTER GermanMeans "crossbow maker" from German
armbrust "crossbow". The word
armbrust was originally from Latin
arcuballista meaning "bow ballista", but was modified under the influence of German
arm "arm" and
brust "breast".
AUE GermanFrom German meaning "meadow by a river, wetland". There are many places with this name in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
BACH GermanTopographic name for someone who lived by a stream, from Middle High German
bach meaning "stream". This name was borne by members of the Bach musical family, notably the composer Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750).
BACHMANN GermanDenoted a person who lived near a stream, from German
bach "stream" and
mann "man".
BACHMEIER GermanOriginally referred to a farmer whose farm was beside a stream, from Middle High German
bach "stream" and
meier "steward, tenant farmer".
BADER GermanDerived from Old High German
bad "bath", most likely referring to a bath attendant.
BÄHR GermanFrom Middle High German
bër "bear" or
ber "boar". This was originally a nickname for a strong or brave person.
BAUER GermanFrom Old High German
bur meaning "peasant, farmer".
BAUMGARTNER GermanOccupational name for a person who worked or lived at an orchard, from German
Baumgarten "orchard" (derived from
Baum "tree" and
Garten "garden").
BAUMHAUER GermanOccupational name meaning "woodcutter", derived from German
Baum "tree" and
hauen "to chop".
BECKER GermanDerived from Middle High German
becker meaning "baker".
BELTZ GermanOccupational name for a tanner of hides, derived from Middle High German
belz meaning "fur".
BEST (2) GermanDerived from the name of the river Beste, meaning unknown.
BEUTEL GermanFrom Middle High German
biutel meaning "bag", originally belonging to a person who made or sold bags.
BEYERSDORF GermanMeans "farmers village", from German
Bauer meaning "farmer" and
Dorf meaning "village".
BIEBER German, JewishFrom Middle High German
biber meaning "beaver", possibly a nickname for a hard worker.
BIERMANN GermanDerived from German
bier "beer" and
mann "man". The name may have referred to a brewer or a tavern owner.
BLAU GermanMeans "blue" in German, most likely used to refer to a person who wore blue clothes.
BLECHER GermanOccupational name for someone who worked with tin or sheet metal, from German
blech "tin".
BLEIER GermanOccupational name for a worker of lead, derived from German
blei "lead".
BÖHLER GermanDerived from the name of several German towns called
Boll or
Böhl, meaning "hill".
BÖHM GermanOriginally indicated a person from the region of
BOHEMIA (
Böhmen in German).
BOHN GermanOccupational name for a bean grower, derived from Middle High German
bone "bean".
BÖTTCHER GermanOccupational name meaning "cooper, barrel maker" in German.
BRABAND GermanDerived from the name of the region of Brabant in the Netherlands and Belgium. It possibly means "ploughed region" or "marshy region" in Old High German.
BRAHMS GermanDerived from the given name
ABRAHAM. A famous bearer of this surname was the German composer Johannes Brahms (1833-1887).
BRÄNDLE GermanDerived from Old High German
brant "fire". This was a name for a person who lived near an area that had been burned.
BREISACHER GermanOriginally denoted one who came from the town of Breisach, in Germany. The town's name is possibly from a Celtic word meaning "breakwater".
BREITBARTH GermanFrom Old High German
breit "broad" and
bart "beard", originally a nickname for someone with a full beard.
BRETZ GermanIndicated a person from the town of Breetz in Brandenburg, Germany. The meaning of the town's name is unknown.
BRODBECK GermanMeans "bread baker" from Middle High German
brot "bread" and
becke "baker".
BRUN GermanFrom Middle High German
brun meaning "brown". It was originally a nickname for a person who had brown hair or skin.
BUCHHOLZ GermanFrom Middle High German
buoche "beech" and
holz "wood".
BURGSTALLER GermanFrom German
Burg "fortress, castle" and
Stelle "place, position". This was a name given to a person dwelling at or near such a site.
BUSCH GermanMeans "bush" in German, a name for someone who lived close to a thicket.
DREHER GermanMeans "a turner" from Middle High German
drehen "to turn". A turner was a person who used a lathe to create small objects from wood or bone.
DRESCHNER GermanDerived from Middle High German
dreschen "to thresh". A thresher was a person who separated the grains from a cereal plant by beating it.
DRESDNER GermanOriginally indicated a person who came from the city of Dresden in German.
DRESSLER GermanMeans "turner" from Middle High German
dreseler, an agent derivative of
drehen "to turn". A turner was a person who used a lathe to create small objects from wood or bone.
DUNST GermanDerived from Middle High German
dunst "haze".
EBNER (1) GermanOriginally indicated a dweller on a flat piece of land, derived from Middle High German
ebene "plateau".
ECKSTEIN GermanFrom Old High German
ecka meaning "edge, corner" and
stein meaning "stone".
EGGER GermanSouth German occupational name for a plowman or farmer, derived from German
eggen "to harrow, to plow".
EICHEL GermanMeans "acorn" in German, indicating a person who lived near an oak tree.
ESSER GermanMeans "cartwright", related to Old High German
ahsa "axle".
FÄRBER GermanOccupational name meaning "dyer", derived from German
Farbe "colour".
FASHINGBAUER GermanFrom
Fasching, a German carnival (
Fastnacht meaning "eve of the beginning of the fast", or the time before Lent) celebrated in Austria and Bavaria, and
bauer meaning "farmer".
FELD German, JewishMeans "field" in German. The name was originally given to someone who lived on land cleared of forest.
FORNEY GermanName for someone who lived near ferns, from Old High German
farn "fern".
FORST GermanDerived from Old High German
forst "forest". Probably unrelated to the Old French word
forest, which was derived from Latin, Old High German
forst was derived from
foraha meaning "fir tree".
FREI GermanMeans "free" in German, probably referring to someone outside the feudal system.
FREUD German, JewishMeans "joy" in German, a nickname for a cheerful person. A famous bearer was the psychologist Sigmund Freud (1856-1939).
FREUND GermanFrom Middle High German
vriunt, modern German
Freund meaning "friend".
FROMM GermanFrom a nickname derived from Middle High German
vrom meaning "noble, honourable".
FROST English, GermanFrom Old English and Old High German meaning "frost", a nickname for a person who had a cold personality or a white beard.
FUCHS GermanFrom Old High German
fuhs meaning "fox". It was originally a nickname for a person with red hair.
FUHRMANN GermanDerived from Middle High German
vuorman meaning "cartwright".
FÜRST GermanFrom a nickname meaning "(sovereign) prince" in German. The word
fürst itself is derived from Old High German
furisto "first".
GABLER GermanOccupational name for someone who made or sold forks, from Old High German
gabala "fork".
GASS GermanName for someone who lived on a street in a city, from German
gasse.
GEHRING GermanDerived from a short form of Germanic names starting with the element
ger "spear".
GEIER GermanMeans "vulture" in German, a nickname for a greedy person.
GEIGER GermanMeans "fiddle player" in German, derived from Old High German
giga "fiddle".
GEISSLER GermanOccupational name for a goat herder, from southern German
Geiss meaning "goat" and the suffix
ler signifying an occupation.
GERBER GermanMeans "tanner, leather dresser" in German, derived from Old High German
garawen meaning "to prepare".
GERST GermanOccupational name for a barley farmer, derived from Old High German
gersta "barley".
GLASS English, GermanFrom Old English
glæs or Old High German
glas meaning "glass". This was an occupational name for a glass blower or glazier.
GLÖCKNER GermanDerived from Middle High German
glocke "bell". It may have referred to a person who worked at or lived close to a bell tower.
GÖBEL GermanDerived from the given name
Göbel, a diminutive of the Old German name
Godebert, which is derived from
god "God" and
beraht "bright".
GRAF GermanFrom the German noble title
Graf meaning "count", ultimately from Greek
γραφευς (grapheus) meaning "scribe".
GRANER GermanOriginally denoted a person from Gran, the German name for Esztergom, a city in northern Hungary.
GROß GermanFrom Old High German
groz meaning "tall, big".
GRÜNBERG German, JewishFrom German
grün "green" and
Berg "mountain". This name indicated a person who lived on or near a forest-covered mountain.
GRÜNEWALD GermanMeans "green forest" from German
grün "green" and
Wald "forest".
GUTERMUTH GermanDerived from Middle High German
guot meaning "good" and
muot meaning "mind, spirit". It was a nickname for an optimistic person.
HABER German, JewishOccupational name for one who grew or sold oats, derived from Old High German
habaro "oat". As a Jewish surname it is ornamental.
HABERKORN GermanOccupational name for a dealer in oats, derived from Old High German
habaro "oat" and
korn "kernel, grain".
HAFNER GermanOccupational name for a potter, derived from Old High German
havan "pot, vessel".
HAHN GermanFrom a nickname for a proud or pugnacious person, from Old High German
hano meaning "rooster, cock".
HASE GermanFrom Middle High German and Middle Low German
hase meaning "hare, rabbit". This was a nickname for a person who was quick or timid.
HASENKAMP GermanFrom a northern German place name meaning "rabbit field", from Old Saxon
haso "hare" and
kamp "field" (from Latin
campus).
HAUER GermanDerived from Middle High German
houwen "to chop", referring to a butcher or woodchopper.
HAUMANN GermanDerived from Middle High German
houwen "to chop" and
man "man", referring to a butcher or woodchopper.
HÄUSLER GermanName for someone who lived in a house with no land, derived rom Old High German word
hus meaning "house".
HERSCHEL German, JewishDiminutive form of
HIRSCH (1) or
HIRSCH (2). A famous bearer was the British-German astronomer William Herschel (1738-1822), as well as his sister Caroline Herschel (1750-1848) and son John Herschel (1792-1871), also noted scientists.
HERTZ GermanDerived from Middle High German
herze meaning "heart", a nickname for a big-hearted person.
HERZOG GermanFrom a German title meaning "duke", a nickname for a person who either acted like a duke or worked in a duke's household.
HIRSCH (1) GermanMeans "deer, hart" in German. This was a nickname for a person who resembled a deer in some way, or who raised or hunted deer.
HOFER GermanOccupational name for a farmer, from German
Hof "farm", from Old High German
hof "house, estate, courtyard".
HOFMEISTER GermanMeans "master of the household", from Old High German
hof "house, estate, courtyard" and
meistar "master" (from Latin
magister).
HOLST Danish, Low German, DutchOriginally referred to a person from the region of
HOLSTEIN between Germany and Denmark. A famous bearer of this name was the English composer Gustav Holst (1874-1934).
HOLZKNECHT GermanOccupational name for a forester's helper, from Old High German
holz "wood" and
kneht "servant, apprentice".
HOLZMANN GermanDerived from Old High German
holz "wood" and
man "man", a name for someone who lived close to a wood or worked with wood.
HORN English, German, Norwegian, DanishFrom the Germanic word
horn meaning "horn". This was an occupational name for one who carved objects out of horn or who played a horn, or a person who lived near a horn-shaped geographical feature, such as a mountain or a bend in a river.