HerzlGerman, Jewish Variant of Hertz. It was notably borne by the Austro-Hungarian Jewish journalist, writer and political activist Theodor Herzl (1860-1904), who is considered the founder of the modern Zionist movement.
HessGerman Habitational name from Hesse, a German state. It can also derive from the personal name Hesso, a short form of Matthäus, Hendrick, or a name containing the element hadu "battle, strife".
HeyerGerman, Dutch Occupational name for a grower or reaper of grass for hay, from Middle High German höu "grass, hay" and the agent suffix -er. Could also be a variant spelling of Heier.
HilfikerGerman (Swiss) Altered spelling of Hilfinger, patronymic derivative of the personal name Hilfo, Helfo, a short form of a Germanic personal name based on helfe 'helper'.
HilgersenGerman Means "son of Hilger”. From a Germanic personal name composed of the elements hild 'strife', 'battle' + gar, ger 'spear' and sen 'son'. Most common in Northern Germany.
HillegasGerman German: Variant of Hillegass from a variant of the Germanic personal name Hildegaud, composed of hild ‘strife’, ‘battle’ + got, of uncertain meaning (perhaps the same word as Goth).
HillenDutch, German Patronymic of Hille, a pet form of given names containing the element hild "strife, battle".
HimmelreichGerman, Jewish humorous topographic name from a place so named as being at a high altitude from Middle High German himel "heaven" and riche "empire" meaning "kingdom of heaven, heavenly kingdom".
HimmelsteinGerman, Jewish topographic name for someone living by a feature so named from Middle High German himel "heaven, sky" and stein "rock, stone" meaning "stone in the sky, sky stone"
HimmlerGerman, History Derived from German Himmel "heaven, sky". This was a topographic name for someone living at a high altitude. ... [more]
HintzellGerman (Rare) Variant from name Hintz which was popular in Saxony and Hessen. Name later used in German Prussia. The name Hintz originates as a short form of the personal name Heinrich.
HirschbergGerman, Jewish Derived from many places named Hirschberg in the states of Thuringia and North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany, or the historic city of Jelenia Góra in southwestern Poland. It is composed of Middle High German hirz meaning "deer, stag" and berg meaning "hill, mountain"... [more]
HirschfeldGerman, Jewish, Yiddish Ornamental name composed of German hirsch or Yiddish hirsh meaning "deer" and feld meaning "field". It is also a topographic name for someone who lived in an area of land frequented by deer or where millets grew.
HochsteinGerman Topographic name for someone who lived by a high rock or a castle of that name from Middle High German hoh "high" and stein "rock stone castle".
HockGerman Topographic name for someone living by a hedge, from a dialect variant of Heck.
HocktonGerman In relation to Hock a wine producing region and probably being adopted into Britain via Anglo Saxon settlers.
HodappGerman 1 South German: probably a nickname for a clumsy person, from Middle High German hōh ‘high’, ‘tall’ + the dialect word dapp ‘fool’.... [more]
HoenDutch, German From Middle Dutch hoen "chicken, hen", perhaps a nickname denoting a silly or foolish person, or an occupational name for someone who raised chickens.
HoenDutch, German From the personal name Huno, a short form of names containing the element hun "bear cub, offspring".
HoferleGerman (Austrian) Means "Yard Clearing" from a Combination of the Austrian word Höfer meaning "yard" or "court" with the ancient suffix "le" meaning woodland or clearing.
HoffGerman Means "yard, court, farmyard", from Germanic hof.
HoffaGerman Altered form of Hofer. This surname was borne by American labor union leader Jimmy Hoffa (1913-1975?).
HofferGerman The name Hoffer is derived from the Old German and German word hof, which means settlement, farm or court.
HohnGerman Derived from Middle High German hon "chicken". As a surname, it was given to someone who either bred or traded in chickens.... [more]
HolbeinGerman nickname for a bow-legged man from Middle High German hol "hollow" and bein "leg".
HolbrookEnglish, German (Anglicized) English: habitational name from any of various places, for example in Derbyshire, Dorset, and Suffolk, so called from Old English hol ‘hollow’, ‘sunken’ + broc ‘stream’. ... [more]
HolderGerman, Jewish, English 1. German: topographic name for someone who lived by an elder tree. Middle High German holder, or from a house named for its sign of an elder tree. In same areas, for example Alsace, the elder tree was believed to be the protector of a house... [more]
HollGerman, Dutch Topographic name meaning "hollow" or "hole", from Middle Low German and Middle High German hol.
HollingerGerman, Jewish Habitational name for someone from places called Holling or Hollingen.
HolsteinGerman habitational name from the province of Holstein long disputed between Germany and Denmark. This gets its name from holsten the dative plural originally used after a preposition of holst from Middle Low German holt-sate "dweller in the woods" (from Middle Low German holt "wood" and satesete "tenant")... [more]
HolteyGerman Old German name meaning "Wood Island". Holt means wood and ey means island. Family can be traced back to around 650 A.D. and is located in the Ruhr and Essen area of Germany.
HolthausGerman North German: topographic name for someone who lived by a copse (a small group of trees), from Middle Low German holt ‘small wood’ + haus ‘house’.
HoltzclawGerman (Anglicized, Modern) Americanized spelling of German Holzklau, which translates into modern German as "wood thief", but is probably a nickname for someone who gathered wood, from Middle High German holz "wood" + a derivative of kluben "to pick up", "gather", "steal".
HoltzmannUpper German, German Derived from the Upper German word "holz," which means "forest." Thus many of the names that evolved from this root work have to do with living in the woods
HölzelGerman The surname of Austrian singer Johann "Hans" Hölzel (1957-1998), better known by his stage name Falco.
HolzhauerGerman Occupational name for a "lumberjack, woodsman" with the element holz "forest".
HolzheimGerman The meaning of Holzheim is " wood home". Holz=wood and heim=home. ... [more]
HolzingerGerman, Jewish Habitational name for someone from any of various places called Holzing or Holzingen.
HolzklauGerman From Middle High German holz ‘wood’ + a derivative of klūben ‘to pick up, gather, steal’. It means "wood thief" but it was probably more likely used as nickname for someone who gathered wood
HolzschuhGerman Occupational - from German holz "wood", and schuh "shoe".
HombergGerman The surname Hamberg could be derived from it.
HoornGerman (Austrian) From 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.
HörmannGerman The distinguished surname Hormann is of very ancient German origin. It is derived from a Germanic personal name made up of the elements "heri," meaning "army," and "man," meaning "man."
HorneckerGerman Habitational name denoting someone from any of various places called Horneck.
HorneyGerman (Anglicized) German: Eastphalian or Americanized form of a personal name composed of the Germanic elements hard ‘hardy’, ‘brave’, ‘strong’ + nit ‘battle fury’, ‘eagerness to fight’, or a habitational name from a place so called in Brandenburg or in the Rhineland... [more]
HosnerGerman Occupational name for a knitter of hose (garments for the legs), from the plural form of Middle High German hose + the agent suffix -er (see Hose 3).
HostetlerGerman The name itself comes from the word Hostet or Hochstatt meaning "high place". Thus Hostetler is someone living in a high place or on high ground.
HotzGerman (Swiss), German Of debated origin and meaning; theories include a habitional name for someone from the Hotzenwald, a derivation from any given name containing the Germanic name element hadu "battle, combat" and a derivation from the verb hotzen "to swing, to sway, to tremble".
HowaldGerman From any several places named, from the elements hoh "high" and wald "forest".
HowdyshellAmerican, German Americanized (i.e., Anglicized) form of the Swiss German Haudenschild, which originated as a nickname for a ferocious soldier, literally meaning "hack the shield" from Middle High German houwen "to chop or hack" (imperative houw) combined with den (accusative form of the definite article) and schilt "shield".
HrachGerman (Austrian, Rare), Czech (Rare) Originated in the Czech-speaking region of Bohemia in Austria, pre-1900. From Czech hrách, meaning "pea." Given either to a very short man or to a gardener.
HubenGerman The roots of the distinguished German surname Huben lie in the kingdom of Bavaria. The name is derived from the Middle High German word "huober," meaning "owner of a patch of farmland." The term "Hube" was used to denote a 40-acre hide of farmland... [more]
HübenthalGerman From either of two place names, derived from the older form Hufinadah meaning "valley where the hooves were".
HufnagelGerman Metonymic occupational name for a farrier from Middle High German hufnagel "horseshoe nail" (literally "hoof nail"). Derived from huof "hoof" and nagal "nail".
HumboldtGerman (?) Derived from the Germanic given name Hunibald. Notable bearers of this surname were Alexander von Humboldt (1769-1859), a Prussian naturalist, geographer, explorer and polymath, and his brother Wilhelm von Humboldt (1767-1835), a linguist, philosopher and diplomat.
HummerGerman, English Hummer is the German word for 'Lobster' in English. It is also the name of a vehicle- the 'Hummer'!
HumperdinckGerman (?), Literature From the German surname Humperdinck. As a surname it was born by the composer Engelbert Humperdinck. As a first name it was used for the villain Prince Humperdinck in William Goldman's novel The Princess Bride.
HundertmarkGerman A nickname for a wealthy man, from Middle High German hundert meaning "hundred" + mark, a denomination of coin.
HurstGerman Topographic name from Middle High German hurst "woodland, thicket".
HusemannGerman Epithet for a servant or an administrator who worked at a great house, from Middle Low German hus ‘house’ (see House 1, Huse) + man ‘man’.
HustedGerman The name was originally spelled "Hustedt" and means "homestead." The family name originated in northern Germany. One branch of the family migrated to England, and a branch of that family to the United States.
HuthGerman From Middle High German huot "hat, cap, helmet", a name for someone who made or wore hats.
HütterGerman German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): occupational name for a hatter from an agent derivative of Middle High German huot ‘hat’; Yiddish hut, German Hut ‘hat’. German (Hütter): topographic name from Middle High German hütte ‘hut’... [more]
ImberiGerman (Swiss) It comes from Stuttgart Germany from the late 1800s. Then the name moved to a small village outside of Odessa Ukraine, in my family at least.
ItzsteinGerman Topographic surname that originated from broad regions around the river Itz in Thuringia, Germany. The word "Stein" (German word for stone) historically was also used to describe castles on a hill or at a river, thus a possible meaning of the name is "castle at the river Itz".
JaukGerman (Austrian) The meaning of the name Jauk is similar to the word "acre" in English. It is a measure word for how much land an ox can plough in one day. People with the surname Jauk are likely to have descended from farmers... [more]
JeschkeGerman Germanized form of Czech and Slovakian Ješko and Polish Jeszka, pet forms of given names beginning with Ja- or Je- such as Jan 1 or Jarosław, as well as various cognates or similar-sounding names, such as Ježek ("hedgehog").
JeterFrench (Huguenot), German Jeter is a French and German surname. It is the last name of former New York Yankees baseball player, Derek Jeter. It's also the last name of Carmelita Jeter, an American sprinter who specializes in the 100 meter sprint.
JobEnglish, French, German, Hungarian English, French, German, and Hungarian from the personal name Iyov or Job, borne by a Biblical character, the central figure in the Book of Job, who was tormented by God and yet refused to forswear Him... [more]
JungbluthGerman Means "young blossom" in German, from German jung "young" and blüte "blossom, flower", possibly denoting a person who blossomed early in their life.
JüngerGerman, Jewish German (Jünger) distinguishing name, from Middle High German jünger ‘younger’, for the younger of two bearers of the same personal name, usually a son who bore the same name as his father... [more]
JungmannGerman Means "young man" from German Jung and Mann.
KackleyGerman Probably an Americanized spelling of German Kächele (see Kachel).
KadGerman 1 German: habitational name for someone from a place called Kade near Magdeburg, Kaaden (German name of Kadeň in North Bohemia), or Kaden in Westerwald.... [more]
KadenGerman Habitational name for someone from Kaaden in North Bohemia, or any of several other places called Kaden.
KaeserGerman, German (Swiss) Occupational name for a cheesemaker or a cheese merchant from an agent derivative of Middle High German kæse "cheese". Variant of Käser.