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Gura Humora & South Bukovina, Surnames History and Origin

ABRAHAM From the Hebrew personal name Avraham, borne by a Biblical patriarch revered by Jews as the founding father of the Jewish people (Genesis 11–25), and by Muslims as founder of all the Semitic peoples, both Hebrew and Arab (compare Ibrahim). The name is explained in Genesis 17:5 as being derived from Hebrew av hamon goyim ‘father of a multitude of nations’. It was widely used as a personal name among Christians as well as Jews in the Middle Ages in diverse cultures from northern Europe to southern India. It is also found as a given name among Christians in India, and in the U.S. has come to be used as a family name among families from Kerala. ABRAMOWITZ Jewish (eastern Ashkenazic): patronymic from Abram, a reduced form of the personal name Abraham.  ADELSBERG  First found in Austria where this family name becomes a prominent contributor to the development of the district of ancient times. ADELSTEIN  Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name, or ornamental-occupational name for a jeweler, from German Edelstein in the sense ‘precious stone’. ADLER German: from Adler ‘eagle’, denoting someone living in a house identified by the sign of an eagle. The German noun is from Middle High German adelar, itself a compound of adel ‘noble’ + ar ‘eagle’. This name is widespread throughout central and eastern Europe, being found for example in Czech, Polish, Slovenian, and Hungarian (Ádler). Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name meaning ‘eagle’. AHARON Jewish: variant of Aaron. Mainly Jewish: from the Biblical Hebrew personal name Aharon, which was borne by the first high priest of the Israelites, the brother of Moses (Exodus 4:14). Like Moses, it is probably of Egyptian origin, with a meaning no longer recoverable. In some countries Aaron was also a gentile personal name; not all occurrences of the surname are Jewish. AIZIC  ALTKOPF  ALTMAN  Jewish (Ashkenazic): variant of Altmann. German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): from Middle High German altman, German Altmann, literally ‘old man’, applied either as a personal name or as a nickname for an older man as distinguished from a younger one. ALTSCHUELLER  APTER Jewish (Ashkenazic): habitational name for someone from Apt, the Yiddish name of Opatów in Kielce voivodeship, Poland. The place name (in German, Yiddish, and Polish) is from a root meaning ‘abbot’, the place having been named for the local abbey. ASCHKENASI Jewish: nickname applied by Jews in Slavic countries for a Jew from Germany; it was also used to denote a Yiddish-speaking Jew who had settled in an area where non-Ashkenazic Jews were in the majority. Ashkenaz is a Biblical place name (Genesis 10:3, Jeremiah 51: 27), etymologically related to Greek Skythia ‘Scythia’. However, since the 9th century ad, if not earlier, it has been applied to Germany. AXELRAD Jewish: variant of Axelrod, Jewish (Ashkenazic): from the Yiddish personal name Akslrod, which is of uncertain derivation, perhaps from Alexander BABAD BAER German (Bär): from Middle High German ber ‘bear’, a nickname for someone thought to resemble the animal in some way, a metonymic occupational name for someone who kept a performing bear, or a habitational name for someone who lived at a house distinguished by the sign of a bear. In some cases, it may derive from a personal name containing this element. Jewish (Ashkenazic): from the Yiddish male personal name Ber, from Yiddish ber ‘bear’. BALABUST  BART  German: variant of Barth, or from a Germanic personal name, cognate of Old High German beraht ‘bright’, ‘shining’, as in Berthold. BARTFELD  BAUMGARTEN German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): topographic or metonymic occupational name for someone who owned or lived by an orchard or was employed in one, from Middle High German boumgarte ‘orchard’ (a compound of boum ‘tree’ + garte ‘enclosure’), German Baumgarten. There are also several villages named with this word, and so in some cases the surname may have originated as a habitational name from one of these. As a Jewish name, it is mainly ornamental. BEER  North German and Dutch: from Middle Low German bare, Middle Dutch bere ‘bear’, applied as a nickname for someone thought to resemble the animal in some way, or as a metonymic occupational name for someone who kept a performing bear. Alternatively, it could have been a habitational name for someone who lived at a house distinguished by the sign of a bear, or from a Germanic personal name with this as the first element. BENDIT BERGER  German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): topographic name for someone who lived in the mountains or hills (see Berg). As a Jewish name it is mainly ornamental. It is found as a surname throughout central and eastern Europe, either as a surname of German origin or as a German translation of a topographic name with similar meaning, for example Slovenian Gricar, Hribar, Gorjan or Gorjanc. BERGMAN  German variant of Berg, reinforced by the addition of the suffix -man(n) ‘man’, a topographic name in most cases, but in some an occupational name for a miner. BERKOWICZ  Jewish (Ashkenazic): patronymic from the Yiddish male personal name Berke, Germanized form of either the Polish spelling Berkowicz or eastern Slavic Berkovich. BERL Jewish (Ashkenazic): pet form of the Yiddish male name Ber. BERNFELD Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name from the Yiddish personal name Ber (‘bear’) + German Feld ‘open country’. BERNSTEIN Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name from German Bernstein ‘amber’ (from Middle Low German bernen ‘to burn’ + sten ‘stone’; it was thought to be created by burning, although it is in fact fossilized pine resin). German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): in some cases perhaps a metonymic occupational name for a craftsman or dealer in amber. BESNER BIEDERMANN Jewish (Ashkenazic): surname adopted because of its honorific meaning, from modern German bieder ‘honest’, ‘upright’ + -mann ‘man’. BIENER Jewish (Ashkenazic) and German: occupational name for a beekeeper, a variant of Bien, with the addition of the -er agent suffix. BIONOWICI BIRNBAUM German: topographic name for someone who lived by a pear tree, from Middle High German bir ‘pear’ + boum ‘tree’. Jewish (Ashkenazic): from German Birnbaum ‘pear tree’, applied mainly as an ornamental name, possibly occasionally as a topographic name. BITKOWER BITTMANN BLASENSTEIN BLECHER German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): occupational name for a worker in tin or some other metal. BLUM German: from Middle High German bluom ‘flower’, hence an occupational name for a flower gardener or a florist. Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name from German Blume, Yiddish blum ‘flower’. BLUMENFELD Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name composed of German Blume ‘flower’ + Feld ‘field’. BRANDES Jewish (Ashkenazic): habitational name from the Czech town of Brandýs, on the Labe (Elbe) river, called Brandeis in German. BRANDMAN Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name, a derivative of Brand. habitational name from the Czech town of Brandýs, on the Labe (Elbe) river, called Brandeis in German. BRAUN German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): nickname from German braun ‘brown’ (Middle High German brun), referring to the color of the hair, complexion, or clothing, or from the personal name Bruno, which was borne by the Dukes of Saxony, among others, from the 10th century or before. It was also the name of several medieval German and Italian saints, including St. Bruno, the founder of the Carthusian order (1030–1101), who was born in Cologne. BRAUNSTEIN  Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name composed of German braun ‘brown’ + Stein ‘stone’. BRECHER  German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): from an agent derivative of German brechen ‘to break’, an occupational name for someone who crushed hemp or flax, or possibly a nickname for a lawbreaker. BREIER  German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): variant of Breuer or Bräuer, North German and Ashkenazic Jewish, or Americanized form of German Bräuer, an occupational name for a brewer of beer or ale, from Middle Low German bruwer or Middle High German briuwer ‘brewer’. BRENDER  Jewish (Ashkenazic): variant of Brander. Perhaps an occupational name for fireman or distiller, from German Brand, Yiddish brand ‘conflagration’. BUCHBINDER  German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): occupational name for a bookbinder, German Buchbinder. BUECHLER from the common field name Büchle ‘beech stand’, the -er suffix denoting an inhabitant. BURG Jewish: variant of Burger. German, English, and Dutch: status name for a freeman of a borough, especially one who was a member of its governing council, a derivative of Middle High German burc, Middle English burg ‘(fortified) town’, Middle Dutch burch. The English name is found occasionally as a surname from the 13th century onwards but is not recorded as a vocabulary word until the 16th century. The usual English term was the Old French word burgeis ‘burgess’. This name is frequent throughout central and eastern Europe. It also occurs as an Ashkenazic Jewish family name, but the reasons for its adoption are uncertain. CAHANE Jewish (from Romania): variant of Cohen, from Hebrew kohen ‘priest’. Priests are traditionally regarded as members of a hereditary caste descended from Aaron, brother of Moses. CLASSEN Dutch, North German, and Danish: patronymic from the personal name Klaas, a reduced form of Nik(o)laas COHEN Jewish: from Hebrew kohen ‘priest’. Priests are traditionally regarded as members of a hereditary caste descended from Aaron, brother of Moses. COHN Variant spelling of Cohen. : from Hebrew kohen ‘priest’. Priests are traditionally regarded as members of a hereditary caste descended from Aaron, brother of Moses. DACHNER DALFIN DALFINER DANKNER DASKEL Jewish (from Romania and Moldova): occupational name from Romanian dascal ‘teacher’, ‘cantor’ (in a synagogue). DAUBER Variant of Tauber or a habitational name from Dauba, near Aussig, now in Czech Republic. German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): variant of Taub, with the strong inflectional ending -er, originally used before a male personal name. DAWIDOWICZ From David, the son of David DERBARMDIKER DERMER German: from an old personal name, Terrimar, a variant of Därr. German: variant of Dörmer (standard German Türmer), an occupational name for a watchman on a tower (of a castle or town), from an agent derivative of Middle Low German torn or Middle High German turn ‘tower’. Jewish: unexplained. DISTENFELD DOLBERG Dutch: habitational name from Dolberg in Klimmen, Netherlands, or possibly from Dolberg in North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany. DOLINER DONNENFELD DRASINOVER DRUCKMAN  Jewish (Ashkenazic): occupational name for a printer. EBENSTEIN  ECKHAUS  Jewish (Ashkenazic): topographic or ornamental name from German Eckhaus ‘corner house’. EDELSTEIN  Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name, from German Edelstein ‘gem’, ‘precious stone’. EGER  Hungarian: habitational name for someone from any of various places called Eger, in Fehér, Heves, and Zala counties, or former Nyitra County, now in Slovakia. In some cases the name may derive from éger ‘alder’. German: habitational name from Eger in western Bohemia (Czech name Cheb). EHRLICH  Jewish (Ashkenazic): nickname or ornamental name from German ehrlich ‘honorable’, ‘honest’, or Yiddish erlekh ‘honest’, ‘virtuous’. EIDINGER  EIFERMANN  EISENKRAFT  ELLENBOGEN  German: topographic name for someone who lived by a bend in a river, from Middle High German el(l)enboge ‘elbow’, or habitational name from any of several places named Ellenbogen or Ehlenbogen from this word. Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name from German Ellenbogen ‘elbow’. ELOSOVAR  ENGLER South German: patronymic from Engel, Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name from German Engel ‘angel’  ESSNER  German: probably a reduced form of Essener, a habitational name for someone from a place named Essen, of which there are several in northern Germany. FALIK  FASSLER  German (also Fässler): occupational name for a cooper, from Middle High German vaz, vezzel ‘keg’ (a diminutive of vaz ‘barrel’) + the agent suffix -er. FAUST German, Jewish (Ashkenazic), and French (Alsace-Lorraine): from Middle High German fust ‘fist’, presumably a nickname for a strong or pugnacious person or for someone with a club hand or other deformity of the hand. FEDER German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): metonymic occupational name for a trader in feathers or in quill pens, from Middle High German veder(e), German Feder ‘feather’, ‘quill’, ‘pen’. FEIBISCH  FEIBUS  FEIGER  FEINGOLD Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name composed of German fein ‘fine’ + Gold ‘gold’. FEINHOLZ  FEIT nickname from Middle High German feit ‘adorned’, ‘pretty’ FELDHAMMER  FELDMANN  German: topographic name for someone who lived in open country; a variant of Feld, with the addition of Middle High German man ‘man’. FELDSTEIN Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name composed of German Feld ‘field’ + Stein ‘stone’.  FEUCHLANDER  FEUER  FEUERWERKER FICHMAN  FINKLER  Jewish (Ashkenazic): variant of Finkel, Jewish (eastern Ashkenazic): ornamental name from Yiddish finkl ‘sparkle’. FISCHEL  Jewish (Ashkenazic): from the Yiddish personal name Fishl, Jewish (Ashkenazic): from the Yiddish personal name Fishl, literally ‘little fish’, used as a vernacular equivalent for the Biblical Efraym (Ephraim). Ephraim became associated with the fish because he was blessed by his father Jacob (Genesis 48:16) with the words veyidgu larov ‘Let them grow into a multitude’, the verb yidgu, containing the root letters of Hebrew dag ‘fish’ FISCHER  German, Danish, and Jewish (Ashkenazic): occupational name for a fisherman, from Fisch + the agent suffix -er. This name is widespread throughout central and eastern Europe. FISCHLER South German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): variant of Fischer. FIUL  FLEISCHER  German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): occupational name for a butcher, from Fleisch ‘flesh’, ‘meat’ + the agent suffix -er. FRANKEL German (also Fränkel) and Jewish (Ashkenazic): diminutive of Frank, ethnic or regional name for someone from Franconia (German Franken), a region of southwestern Germany so called from its early settlement by the Franks, a Germanic people who inhabited the lands around the river Rhine in Roman times.  FREIER Status name of the feudal system denoting a free man, as opposed to a bondsman, from an inflected form of Middle High German vri ‘free’. Archaic occupational name, from Middle High German, Middle Low German vrier, vriger, denoting a man who had the ceremonial duty of asking guests to a wedding.  FREMINGER FREUNDLICH German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): nickname meaning ‘friendly’, a derivative of Freund. Among Jews this is mainly an ornamental name. Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name from German Freund ‘friend’. FRIDEL FRIEDMAN Jewish (Ashkenazic): elaborated form of Fried. Jewish (Ashkenazic): from Yiddish frid ‘peace’. Compare modern German Friede, which was sometimes chosen as a translation of the Hebrew personal name Shlomo, whose root letters are the same as those of shalom ‘peace’, although in most cases it is simply an ornamental name. FRITZ German: from a pet form of Friedrich. It is also found as a surname in Denmark, Sweden, and elsewhere. FRONER FUCHS German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): from Middle High German vuhs, German Fuchs ‘fox’, nickname for a sly or cunning person, or for someone with red hair. This name is widespread throughout central Europe. As a Jewish name, it is mainly an ornamental name. FUHRER (Führer): occupational name for a carrier or carter, a driver of horse-drawn vehicles, Middle High German vüerer FUHRMAN Respelling of German Fuhrmann. German: from Middle High German vuorman ‘carter’, ‘driver’. FUKSS FUND  Jewish (Ashkenazic): from German Pfund ‘pound’, either a nickname or one of the names chosen at random from vocabulary words in the 18th and 19th centuries by government officials at the time when surnames became compulsory. FURMANN GABA From Gabe, German: from a short form of Germanic personal name formed with geba ‘gift’. Compare Gebhardt. GÄNSER German: occupational name for a breeder or keeper of geese, from an agent derivative of Middle High German gans ‘goose’. GABOR Hungarian (Gábor) and Jewish (from Hungary): from the personal name Gábor, Hungarian form of Gabriel. GARTENLAUB GELBER   Jewish (Ashkenazic): inflected form of Gelb, Jewish (Ashkenazic): nickname for a man with red hair.  GELLER Jewish (Ashkenazic): nickname for a man with red hair, from the strong form of Yiddish gel ‘red-headed’ (Middle High German gel ‘yellow’). There has been considerable confusion with German gelb ‘yellow’, since the meaning change from ‘yellow’ to ‘red’ took place only in Yiddish and only with reference to people’s complexion or hair coloring. Jewish (eastern Ashkenazic): variant of Heller , originating under Russian influence, since Russian has no h and alters h in borrowed words to g. GENSER  German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): occupational name for someone who kept, tended, or sold geese, from Middle High German gans ‘goose’. GENSLER  Jewish (Ashkenazic): occupational name for a breeder of geese, from an agent derivative of German Gans ‘goose’. GERSCHONOWICZ GERTLER German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): variant of Gürtler, German (Gürtler): occupational name for a maker of straps and belts, from Middle High German gurtel ‘belt’ (specifically a leather belt with brass fittings, from which a purse would be hung). GEWIRER  GHELMAN Jewish (Ashkenazic): variant of Geller, Jewish (Ashkenazic): nickname for a man with red hair, from the strong form of Yiddish gel ‘red-headed’ (Middle High German gel ‘yellow’). There has been considerable confusion with German gelb ‘yellow’, since the meaning change from ‘yellow’ to ‘red’ took place only in Yiddish and only with reference to people’s complexion or hair coloring. Jewish (eastern Ashkenazic): variant of Heller, originating under Russian influence, since Russian has no h and alters h in borrowed words to g. Jewish (Ashkenazic): nickname for a person with fair hair or a light complexion, from an inflected form, used before a male personal name, of German hell ‘light’, ‘bright’, Yiddish hel. GHIMPOVICI GIMPEL German: from a pet form of the personal name Gumprecht. Jewish (Ashkenazic): from the Yiddish personal name Gimpl, a derivative of German Gumprecht. GINGOLD Jewish (eastern Ashkenazic): ornamental name from Yiddish gingold ‘fine gold’. GINSBERG Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental variant of Ginsburg. Jewish (Ashkenazic): habitational name for someone from Günzburg in Swabia, which derives its name from the river Günz (in early Latin records Guntia, probably of Celtic origin) + Old High German burg ‘fortress’, ‘walled town’. GISELNIK GLASBERG  GLUECKSTERN  GOLDAPER  GOLDENBERG  Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name, a compound of German golden ‘golden’ + Berg ‘mountain’, ‘hill’. GOLDFARB  Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name composed of German Gold ‘gold’ + Farbe ‘color’. GOLDHAGEN GOLDHIRSCH  GOLDSCHEIN GOLDSCHMIDT  German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): occupational name for a worker in gold, Middle High German goltsmit, German Goldschmied. GOLDSCLHLAGER  GOLDSTEIN Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name composed of German Gold ‘gold’ + Stein ‘stone’. German: from a medieval personal name, nickname, or occupational name from Middle High German, Middle Low German golste(i)n ‘gold stone’, ‘precious stone’, (probably chrysolite or topaz, which was used as a testing stone by alchemists). GOTESMAN  GOTTFRIED German: from a Germanic personal name composed of the elements god, got ‘god’ + frid(u) ‘peace’. Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name composed of German Gott ‘God’ + Friede ‘peace’, or ornamental adoption of the German personal name as a surname. GOTTLIEB German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): from the personal name Gottlieb. As a German personal name this is for the most part a translation of Greek Theophilos (‘one who loves God’) that became very popular in the 17th and 18th centuries with the rise of the Pietist movement. Among German Jews, it existed, independently from German Christians, since the Middle Ages. German: from the personal name Goteleib, based on Old High German god, got ‘god’ + leiba ‘offspring’, ‘son’. GRABER German: from an agent derivative of Middle High German graben ‘to dig or excavate’, hence an occupational name for a digger of graves or ditches, or an engraver of seals. This name is also found in the German-speaking part of Switzerland. Jewish (Ashkenazic): occupational name for a grave-digger, either from German Gräber or from a Yiddishized form of Polish grabarz. GRAF Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name selected, like Herzog and other words denoting titles, because of their aristocratic connotations GRATZ habitational name from several places so named in Austria, Bohemia, and Moravia. From a short form of a Germanic personal name reflected by Old High German gratag ‘greedy’. GRIMBERG GRINBERG Jewish (eastern Ashkenazic): variant of Grünberg, Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name from German grün ‘green’ + Berg ‘mountain’, ‘hill’. GRONICH GROPPER German: occupational name for someone who fished for grouper, from Gropp + -er suffix denoting human agency. North German (Gröpper): Westphalian occupational name for a maker of metal or earthenware vessels, from Middle Low German grope ‘pot’ + agent suffix -er. GROSMAN Jewish (Ashkenazic): elaborated form of Gross. German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): nickname for a big man, from Middle High German groz ‘large’, ‘thick’, ‘corpulent’, German gross. The Jewish name has been Hebraicized as Gadol, from Hebrew gadol ‘large’. This name is widespread throughout central and eastern Europe, not only in German-speaking countries. GROSS German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): nickname for a big man, from Middle High German groz ‘large’, ‘thick’, ‘corpulent’, German gross. The Jewish name has been Hebraicized as Gadol, from Hebrew gadol ‘large’. This name is widespread throughout central and eastern Europe, not only in German-speaking countries. GRUENFELD Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name composed of German grün ‘green’ + Feld ‘field’ GRÜNBERG GRUNFELD Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name composed of German grün ‘green’ + Feld ‘field’. GUTTMAN  Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name or nickname from German, Yiddish gut ‘good’ + man(n) ‘man’; it was also used as a male personal name, from which the surname may be derived in some cases. HAAR German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): nickname for someone with a copious or otherwise noticeable head of hair, from Middle High German har ‘hair’, German Haar ‘hair’. HALEVI Jewish (Ashkenazic and Sephardic): from the Biblical personal name Levi, from a Hebrew word meaning ‘joining’. This was borne by a son of Jacob and Leah (Genesis 29: 34). Bearers of this name are Levites, members of the tribe of Levi, who form a hereditary caste who assist the kohanim in their priestly duties. HALLER German: variant of Heller, Jewish (Ashkenazic): nickname for a person with fair hair or a light complexion, from an inflected form, used before a male personal name, of German hell ‘light’, ‘bright’, Yiddish hel. Jewish (Ashkenazic): habitational name for someone from Schwäbisch Hall. HALPERIN Jewish (Ashkenazic): variant of Halpern. Jewish (Ashkenazic): habitational name from the city of Heilbronn in Württemberg, which had a large and influential Jewish population in medieval times. HALSTUCH HARTH Jewish (Ashkenazic): variant of Hart, ornamental name or a nickname from German and Yiddish hart ‘hard’. .HEIER South German: generally a variant of Hauer, but in some cases an occupational name from Middle High German heie ‘ranger’, ‘guard’. HENNER  German: patronymic from Henne German: nickname or metonymic occupational name for a poultry keeper from Middle High German henne ‘hen’, ‘chicken’. German: habitational name from Hänner in Säckingen, HELLER Jewish (Ashkenazic): habitational name for someone from Schwäbisch Hall. Jewish (Ashkenazic): nickname for a person with fair hair or a light complexion, from an inflected form, used before a male personal name, of German hell ‘light’, ‘bright’, Yiddish hel. German: nickname from the small medieval coin known as the häller or heller because it was first minted (in 1208) at the Swabian town of (Schwäbisch) Hall. Compare Hall. HELLMAN  Jewish (Ashkenazic): variant of Hellerman. Jewish (Ashkenazic): nickname for a person with fair hair or a light complexion, a derivative of Heller HENDLER  German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): occupational name for a merchant or trader, Middle High German hendeler, German Händler. HERLING Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name from German Herling ‘unripe grapes’. HESS German, Dutch, Danish, and Jewish (Ashkenazic): regional name for someone from the territory of Hesse (German Hessen). HOCHSTÄTD HOFFER German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): variant of Hofer, South German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): topographic name for someone who lived at, worked on, or managed a farm, from Middle High German hof ‘farmstead’, ‘manor farm’, ‘court’ + the agent suffix -er. HOFFMANN German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): status name for a steward on a farm or estate, from German hof(f) ‘manorfarm’, ‘courtyard’ + Mann ‘man’. Originally, this was a status name for a farmer who owned his own land as opposed to holding it by rent or feudal obligation, but the name soon came to denote the manager or steward of a manor farm, in which sense it is extremely frequent throughout central and eastern Europe; also among Jews, since many Jews held managerial positions on non-Jewish estates. This name is widespread throughout central and eastern Europe, not only in German-speaking lands.  HOLZER German (also Hölzer) and Jewish (Ashkenazic): variant spelling of Holtzer, Jewish (Ashkenazic): occupational name for a woodcutter or someone who sold wood, from an agent derivative of German Holz ‘wood’. HOROWITZ  Jewish (Ashkenazic): habitational name from Horovice in central Bohemia, now in the Czech Republic, which is named with a short form of a personal name formed with Hor, as for example Horimir, Horislav. HORTNER  HUBER  Jewish (Ashkenazic): from a southern Yiddish pronunciation of Yiddish hober ‘oats’, German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): metonymic occupational name for a grower of or dealer in oats, from Middle High German haber(e) ‘oats’, modern German Hafer. As a Jewish surname, it is in many cases ornamental. HUTTMAN  IACOB  Jewish, derivative, via Latin Jacobus, from the Hebrew personal name ya‘aqobh (Yaakov). In the Bible, this is the name of the younger twin brother of Esau (Genesis 25:26), who took advantage of the latter’s hunger and impetuousness to persuade him to part with his birthright ‘for a mess of potage’. The name is traditionally interpreted as coming from Hebrew akev ‘heel’, and Jacob is said to have been born holding on to Esau’s heel. ISAK  IUNI  IWANIER  IZAK JAEGER  German (mostly Jäger) and Jewish (Ashkenazic): occupational name for a hunter, Middle High German jeger(e), Middle Low German jeger(e) (agent derivatives of jagen ‘to hunt’); as a Jewish surname, it is mainly ornamental, derived from German Jäger. The surname is also established in Scandinavia (Swedish Jäger; Danish and Norwegian Jæger) and has been Latinized as Venator. JERES JURAN  Czech and Slovak (Juran, Jurán) and Croatian: from a derivative of the personal name, Czech (Moravian dialect) Jura, Croatian Juraj, vernacular forms of Greek Georgios JURGRAU KABRAN  KAHAN ·        Jewish (eastern Ashkenazic): one of the many forms of Cohen, Jewish: from Hebrew kohen ‘priest’. Priests are traditionally regarded as members of a hereditary caste descended from Aaron, brother of Moses.  KAHN  Jewish (eastern Ashkenazic): one of the many forms of Cohen, Jewish: from Hebrew kohen ‘priest’. Priests are traditionally regarded as members of a hereditary caste descended from Aaron, brother of Moses. KALMAN Jewish (Ashkenazic): from the Yiddish personal name Kalmen, an everyday form of Kloynemes (from Hebrew Kalonimos, which is from Greek kalos ‘lovely’ or kallos ‘beauty’ + onyma ‘name’). This Hebrew name is first recorded in the Talmud and has been used continuously since then. KARPEL German and Polish: from a personal name, a diminutive of Karp. Jewish (Ashkenazic): from the Yiddish personal name karpl, a pet form of Karp. German, Polish, and Jewish (eastern Ashkenazic): from Middle High German karp(f)e, Middle Low German karpe, or Slavic (Russian and Polish) and Yiddish karp ‘carp’, hence a metonymic occupational name for a carp fisherman or seller of these fish, or a nickname for someone thought to resemble the fish. As a Jewish surname it is often of ornamental origin. Altered form of Polish Karpiel ‘rutabago’, a metonymic nickname for a peasant farmer. KATZ Jewish (Ashkenazic): acronym from the Hebrew phrase kohen tsedek ‘priest of righteousness’ (see Cohen). KAUFMANN   Jewish (Ashkenazic): from the personal name Kaufman, Yiddish koyfman, meaning ‘merchant’. KELLNER German, Dutch, and Jewish (Ashkenazic): occupational name from Middle High German kelnære, Middle Dutch kel(le)nare, German Kellner ‘cellarman’. This term developed various specialized senses: a steward, an overseer in a castle, monastery, or the like, and in modern usage, a wine waiter. KERKER South German: variant of Kercher, but also from the dialect word Kerker ‘prison’ (Latin carcer), hence a metonymic occupational name for a prison warder or possibly a topographic name. North German: topographic name for someone who lived near a church, from Low German kerke ‘church’, or possibly an occupational name from a reduced form of Low German Kerkener ‘sexton’. KERZNER South German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): occupational name for a candlemaker, from Middle High German kerze ‘candle’, German Kerze + the agent suffix -(n)er. KIMEL  Variant of German and Jewish (Ashkenazic) Kimmel. German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): from Middle High German kumin, German Kümmel ‘caraway’ (related to Latin cuminum, a word of Oriental origin, like the plant itself), hence a metonymic occupational name for a spicer, literally a supplier of caraway seeds. KIMELMANN  Variant of German and Jewish (Ashkenazic) Kimmel. German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): from Middle High German kumin, German Kümmel ‘caraway’ (related to Latin cuminum, a word of Oriental origin, like the plant itself), hence a metonymic occupational name for a spicer, literally a supplier of caraway seeds. KINIK  KINSBRUNER  KIRSCHENBAUM German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): variant of Kirschbaum. German: topographic name from Kirschbaum ‘cherry tree’. KISSMANN  KLANG Swedish: soldier’s name from klang ‘clang’, ‘ringing noise’. Possibly also German: from an altered and reduced form of the personal name Nikolaus, vernacular form of Greek Nikolaos KLECKNER Respelling of German Klöckner, North German, Rhineland, and Westphalian (Klöckner): occupational name for a bell ringer, sexton, or the like, from an agent derivative of  Klock. KLEIN German, Dutch (also de Klein(e)) and Jewish (Ashkenazic): from Middle High German, Dutch, German klein ‘small’, or Yiddish kleyn. This was a nickname for a person of small stature, but is also often found as a distinguishing name for a junior male, usually a son, in names such as Kleinhans and Kleinpeter. This name is common and widespread throughout central and eastern Europe. KLEINBERGER From Kleinberg, Jewish: ornamental name from German klein ‘small’ + Berg ‘mountain’, ‘hill’. KLEKNER KLIFFER KLINGHOFER KNAUER (Silesian) nickname for a gnarled person, from Middle High German knur(e) ‘knot’, ‘gnarl’. habitational name for someone from either of two places in Thuringia called Knau. KNOBLER KOBER German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): from a derivative of the personal name Jakob or Yakov. German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): from German Kober ‘basket’, Middle High German kober, hence a metonymic occupational name for a basket maker or perhaps a nickname for someone who carried a basket on his back. German (Köber): habitational name for someone from a place called Köben. KOBRIN Jewish (from Belarus): habitational name from Kobrin, now in Belarus. KOCH German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): occupational name from Middle High German koch, German Koch ‘cook’ (cognate with Latin coquus). The name in this sense is widespread throughout eastern and central Europe, and is also well established in Denmark. KOERNER Occupational name for a grain merchant or possibly for the administrator of a granary, Middle High German körner. Nickname for a miller, from a noun derivative of Middle High German kürne ‘mill’. KOFFLER South German (also Köf(f)ler): topographic name for someone living by a rounded hilltop KOHN Jewish (Ashkenazic): variant of Cohen. KÖNIG German (König) and Jewish (Ashkenazic): from Middle High German kunic, German König ‘king’, hence a German nickname for a servant or retainer of a king (for example, a farmer on a royal demesne); or alternatively a status name for the head of a craftmen’s guild, or a society of sharpshooters or minstrels. As a Jewish surname, it was ornamental, one of several such Ashkenazic names based on European titles of nobility or royalty. KOPPELMANN   KORBER  German (also Körber) and Jewish (Ashkenazic): occupational name for a basketmaker, from an agent derivative of Korb, German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): from Middle High German korb, German Korb ‘basket’, applied as a metonymic occupational name for a basketmaker or for a peddler who carried his wares around in a basket. KORN German: from Middle High German korn ‘grain’, a metonymic occupational name for a factor or dealer in grain or a nickname for a peasant. KÖRNER Occupational name for a grain merchant or possibly for the administrator of a granary, Middle High German körner. Nickname for a miller, from a noun derivative of Middle High German kürne ‘mill’. KOSTINER KRAFT German (also Kräft), Danish, Swedish, and Jewish (Ashkenazic): nickname for a strong man, from Old High German kraft, German Kraft ‘strength’, ‘power’. The Swedish name probably originated as a soldier’s name. In part the German and Danish names possibly also derive from a late survival of the same word used as a byname, Old High German Chraft(o), Old Norse Kraptr. KRAKAUER German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): habitational name for someone from the Polish city of Kraków, from its German name Krakau. KREIMER  Jewish (from Ukraine and Poland): occupational name from Yiddish dialect kreymer ‘shopkeeper’ KRIMSKI  KRONENFELD KRUMHOLZ  German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): from Krumbholz ‘bent timber’, ‘mountain pine’, hence probably a metonymic occupational name for a cartwright or wheelwright. As a Jewish surname it is ornamental. KULA  Polish, Czech, Slovak, and Jewish (from Poland): nickname for a rotund person, from Polish kula ‘ball’, Czech dialect kula (standard Czech koule). Jewish (from Belarus): habitational name from Kulya, now in Belarus. KURZ  German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): variant spelling of Kurtz. German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): nickname for someone who was short in stature, from Middle High German kur(t)z, German kurz ‘short’. KURZBERG  LACHMANN Jewish (Ashkenazic): from the Yiddish personal name lakhman, a variant of Nachman. LADENHEIM LAMPNER LANDAU German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): habitational name from either of two places called Landau, in the Palatinate and in Alsace, named with Old High German lant ‘land’, ‘territory’ + auwa ‘damp valley’. According to family history, the Jewish surname originated from the Palatinate. LANDMANN German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): variant of Lander, German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): topographic name from Middle High German lant, German Land ‘land’, ‘territory’ used originally to denote either someone who was a native of the area in which he lived, in contrast to a newcomer ,or someone who lived in the countryside as opposed to a town. LANDSBERG  German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): habitational name from any of several places so named. LANDWEHR  German: from a Germanic personal name, Lantwer, composed of the elements lant ‘land’ + wer ‘defender’. LANG German, and Jewish (Ashkenazic): nickname for a tall person. LANGER  German, and Jewish (Ashkenazic): nickname for a tall person. LANZET  LASTER LAUFER  German (Läufer) and Jewish (Ashkenazic): occupational name for a messenger or a nickname for a fast runner, from an agent derivative of Middle High German loufen, German laufen ‘to run’. LAUFMANN  German (Laufmann) or Jewish (Ashkenazic): variant of Laufer.  LAZAR  Jewish, German, Hungarian (Lázár), Slovenian, and Polish: from a personal name of Aramaic origin, a reduced form of the Hebrew male personal name Elazar, composed of the elements El ‘God’ + azar ‘help’, and meaning ‘may God help him’ or ‘God has helped (i.e., by granting a son)’. This was well established in central Europe as a Jewish name. LEBENSCHUSS LECKER German: derogatory nickname a sycophant or sponger, from an agent derivative of lecken ‘to lick’. LEDER German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): metonymic occupational name for a tanner or leatherworker, from Middle High German and Yiddish leder, German Leder ‘leather’. LEHRER Jewish (Ashkenazic): occupational name for a teacher, from modern German Lehrer, Yiddish lerer ‘teacher’. LEIB Jewish (Ashkenazic): from the Yiddish personal name Leyb, meaning ‘lion’, traditional Yiddish translation equivalent of the Hebrew name Yehuda (Judah), with reference to the Old Testament description of Judah as ‘a lion’s whelp’ (Genesis 49: 9). LEIBOWICH LEIMSIDER LEISER Jewish (Ashkenazic): from the Yiddish personal name Leyzer, from the Biblical name Eliezer (Genesis 15: 2). LENZ Jewish (Ashkenazic): from German Lenz ‘spring’ (see 2), one of the class of ornamental names adopted from words denoting the seasons LESSNER German: habitational name for someone from any of several places named Lessen. LETTICH LIBRUS LIEBERMAN Jewish (Ashkenazic): variant of Liberman. Jewish (Ashkenazic): from the Yiddish personal name Liberman, meaning ‘beloved man’. LIMZIDAR  LINDER German: habitational name from any of numerous places called Linden or Lindern, named with German Linden ‘lime trees’. LIPP  German: from a pet form of the personal name Philipp LÖBEL German (Löb) and Jewish (Ashkenazic): nickname for a strong man, from Middle High German lebe, lewe ‘lion’, or a habitational name for someone living at a house distinguished by the sign of a lion. Jewish (western Ashkenazic): variant of Leib. LOCKER From Lecker, German: derogatory nickname a sycophant or sponger, from an agent derivative of lecken ‘to lick’. LÖWENSCHUSS  LOWIN  Jewish (Ashkenazic): German and Polish spelling of Levin, Jewish (Ashkenazic and Sephardic): from the Biblical personal name Levi, from a Hebrew word meaning ‘joining’. This was borne by a son of Jacob and Leah (Genesis 29: 34). Bearers of this name are Levites, members of the tribe of Levi, who form a hereditary caste who assist the kohanim. Jewish (Ashkenazic) and German: from the personal name Levin, which was also used by German Christians as a derivative of Liebwin. As a Jewish name it sometimes represents a pet form of western Yiddish ‘lion’ LUTWAK  LEWIN  Jewish (Ashkenazic): German and Polish spelling of Levin, Jewish (Ashkenazic and Sephardic): from the Biblical personal name Levi, from a Hebrew word meaning ‘joining’. This was borne by a son of Jacob and Leah (Genesis 29: 34). Bearers of this name are Levites, members of the tribe of Levi, who form a hereditary caste who assist the kohanim. Jewish (Ashkenazic) and German: from the personal name Levin, which was also used by German Christians as a derivative of Liebwin. As a Jewish name it sometimes represents a pet form of western Yiddish ‘lion’ MAIDANEK  MAIER Jewish (Ashkenazic): from the Yiddish personal name Meyer (from Hebrew Meir ‘enlightener’, a derivative of Hebrew or ‘light’). MARCOWICZ  MARGULIES  Jewish (from Ukraine and Poland): variant of Margolis. Jewish (from Belarus, Lithuania, and northeastern Poland): from the female personal name Margolis, meaning ‘pearls’ in Hebrew. The Hebrew word is ultimately of Greek origin, as in Greek margaron, margarites ‘pearl’ MARIAN  Romanian: from the personal name Marian, from Latin Marianus MARKUS  German, Dutch, and Hungarian (Márkus): from the personal name, from Latin Marcus, Jewish from Mordechai. MARMORISCH  MECHLOWITZ  MEHLER Jewish (Ashkenazic): occupational name for a miller or flour merchant, from an agent derivative of German Mehl ‘flour’. MEIER Jewish (Ashkenazic): from the Yiddish personal name Meyer (from Hebrew Meir ‘enlightener’, a derivative of Hebrew or ‘light’). MEISELES  MEISTER  German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): status name for someone who was master of his craft, from Middle High German meister ‘master’ (from Latin magister). The surname Meister is established throughout central Europe; in Poland it is also spelled Majster. As an Ashkenazic Jewish surname it denoted a rabbi as a leading figure in a Jewish community. MELAMED  Jewish (Ashkenazic and Sephardic): Hebrew occupational name for a primary school teacher. MELZER  German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): variant of Meltzer ‘maltster’. German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): occupational name for a maltster, a brewer who used malt, from German Meltzer (an agent derivative of Middle High German malt ‘malt’, ‘germinated barley’), Yiddish meltser ‘maltster’. This surname is also established in Poland. MENASCHES  Jewish: from the Biblical male personal name Menashe MENDELEWICZ Jewish (Ashkenazic): from the Yiddish personal name Mendl, a diminutive of Man MERDLER  MERLAUB  MILRAD  MINTZ  German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): habitational name from the city of Mainz in Germany. MITTELMAN  Jewish (Ashkenazic): nickname from Yiddish mitlman ‘man of moderate means’. MOLDIWER  MONTAG  German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): from Middle High German mantac, German Montag ‘Monday’. As a German name, this was a nickname for someone who had a particular association with this day of the week, probably because he owed feudal service then. As a Jewish name, it is either ornamental or it may have been adopted or given with reference to the day of registration of the surname. MORDLER  MORGENSTEIN  Altered form of Morgenstern. Jewish (Ashkenazic): from German Morgenstern ‘morning star’, Yiddish morgn-shtern, one of the Jewish ornamental names taken from natural phenomena. Ornamental name compound from German Morgen ‘morning’ + Stein ‘stone’. MOSBERG  MOSER South German: topographic name for someone who lived near a peat bog, Middle High German mos, or a habitational name from a place named with this word. North German (Möser): metonymic occupational name for a vegetable grower or seller, from an agent noun based on Middle Low German mos ‘vegetable’. MOSZKOWICZ MÜCK  German (also Mück(e)): nickname from Middle High German mucke ‘midge’, ‘gnat’, denoting a small person, an irritating person, or someone considered to be of no importance. MÜLLER  German (Müller) and Jewish (Ashkenazic): occupational name for a miller, Middle High German müller, German Müller. In Germany Müller, Mueller is the most frequent of all surnames; in the U.S. it is often changed to Miller. MÜNSTER German and Dutch (Munster, Münster): habitational name from places called Munster or Münster, derived from Latin monasterium ‘monastery’, or a topographic name for someone who lived near a monastery. MÜNZER German (Münzer) and Jewish (Ashkenazic): occupational name for a moneyer, Middle High German münzære, GermanMünzer. NEUMAN Jewish (Ashkenazic): variant of Neumann. German, Danish, and Jewish (Ashkenazic): nickname for a newcomer to a place, from Middle High German niuwe, German neu ‘new’ + Middle High German man, German Mann ‘man’. NOE English, German, Dutch, French (Noé, Noë), Spanish (Noé), Catalan (Noè): from the Biblical personal name Noach ‘Noah’, which means ‘comfort’ in Hebrew. According to the Book of Genesis, Noah, having been forewarned by God, built an ark into which he took his family and representatives of every species of animal, and so was saved from the flood that God sent to destroy the world because of human wickedness. The personal name was not common among non-Jews in the Middle Ages, but the Biblical story was an extremely popular subject for miracle plays. In many cases, therefore, the surname probably derives from a nickname referring to someone who had played the part of Noah in a miracle play or pageant, rather than from a personal name. NORMAN Jewish (Ashkenazic): variant of Nordman. German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): topographic name from German Nord ‘north’ + man ‘man’ NUS  OBERLAENDER  OLIGER Occupational name for an oil merchant, from Middle High German oleier ‘oil miller’ (i.e. someone who extracted olive oil from olives). habitational name for someone from either of two places called Ohlig, in the Sieg district or in the Rhineland. OSTFELD  PÄCHT German (of Slavic origin): from a pet form of Petr, Czech form of Peter. PANKNER  PASTERNAK  Polish, Ukrainian, and Jewish (eastern Ashkenazic): from Polish, Ukrainian, and eastern Yiddish pasternak ‘parsnip’ (via Middle High German from Latin pastinaca), apparently a nickname or in the case of the Jewish surname, an ornamental name. PATATU  PAUKER  PEREZ  Jewish: from a Biblical name, borne by a grandson of the patriarch Jacob, meaning ‘burst forth’ (Genesis 38:29). PERLMAN  Elaborated form of Pearl, with the addition of Yiddish man ‘man’. From the Yiddish female personal name Perl + man ‘man’, in the sense ‘husband of Perl’. PERLMUTER PISTINER  POLAK  Polish, Czech (Polák), and Jewish (Ashkenazic): ethnic name for someone from Poland. In the case of the Ashkenazic name, the reference is to a Jew from Poland. The name of the country (Polish Polska) derives from a Slavic element pole ‘open country’, ‘cleared land’. This surname is found throughout central and eastern Europe. PREISS German, Dutch, and Jewish (Ashkenazic): nickname for a laudable or celebrated person, from Middle High German pris, Dutch prijs, German Preis ‘praise’, ‘fame’, ‘worth’. Southern German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): regional name for someone from Prussia, from a southern German variant of Preuss or from Yiddish prays ‘Prussia’. PREMINGER RACHMUTH RAIZ RAPPAPORT Jewish (Ashkenazic): most people bearing this name are descended from Avrom-Menakhem Ben-Yankev Hakoyen Rapa, who lived in Porto, Italy, at the beginning of the 16th century. The etymology of his name is uncertain but possibly from German Rappe ‘raven’. Compare Rapp. According to one explanation his descendants added the name of their city, Porto, in order to distinguish themselves from unrelated Jews surnamed Rapa; according to another, there was a marriage between the Rapa and Porto families, and the issue of this union took the compound name. RAUCH Variant of Rau. German: nickname for a ruffian, earlier for a hairy person, from Middle High German ruch, ruhe, rouch ‘hairy’, ‘shaggy’, ‘rough’. perhaps an occupational nickname for a blacksmith or charcoal burner, from Middle High German rouch, German Rauch ‘smoke’, or, in the case of the German name, a status name or nickname relating to a hearth tax (i.e. a tax that was calculated according to the number of fireplaces in each individual home). REGENBOGEN REICHER German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): nickname for a wealthy or powerful man, from Middle High German rich ‘of noble descent’, ‘powerful’, ‘rich’, German reich ‘rich’. REICHMAN German (Reichmann) and Jewish (Ashkenazic): nickname for a powerful or wealthy man, from Middle High German rich, German reich ‘noble’, ‘powerful’, ‘rich’ + man, modern German Mann ‘man’. REIF Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name or nickname from German reif ‘mature’. REINISCH Eastern German (East Prussia): from a pet form of any of the various Germanic personal names with the first element ragin ‘counsel’, for example Reinhold or Reinhard REINSTEIN  Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental compound of German rein ‘pure’ + Stein ‘stone’. REISBERG  Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name compound from German Reis ‘rice’ + Berg ‘hill’. REISS Jewish (Ashkenazic): metonymic occupational name for a dealer in rice or an ornamental name from German Reis ‘rice’. Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name from German Reis ‘twig’, ‘branch’. RENMERT  RICZKER RIESEL  RINGEL from Middle High German ringel, diminutive of rinc, ring ‘ring’, hence a metonymic occupational name for a maker of bone, horn, or ivory rings Topographic name for someone who lived in or by a circular plot or settlement, from the same word. Metonymic occupational name for a cooper, from Middle Low German ringel ‘tub’. RINGLER  German: occupational name for a maker of bone, horn, or ivory rings, from an agent derivative of Middle High German ringelen ‘to provide with rings’.