On the other hand, 13.97% of Americans have a surname which occurs fewer than 100 times in the entire population. I wondered that, too. This is an Ashkenazi Jewish last name of German or Old English origins with the meaning … It’s Pennsylvania Dutch ? The meaning of surnames and linking them to traceable lines in ancestral homelands remains a complex issue for the family historian. For information on the Soundex, see the Soundex article in the FamilySearch Research Wiki. The search for the correct spelling should include a search according to National Archives Soundex Rules. Another tricky thing about German last names: A last name could be what you would call a farm name. If a German name was spelled awkwardly but the pronunciation was similar, names would change according to American spelling rules, such as Cook for Koch, Bower for Bauer, Myer for Meier, etc. ThoughtCo uses cookies to provide you with a great user experience and for our, German Last Names and Their English Meanings, The Meaning and Origin of Famous German Names, The History of Popular German Last Names (Nachnamen), A List of Common German Names for Boys and Girls, Everything you need to Know About German Names, German for Travelers: The Basic Travel Phrasebook, A German-English Glossary of Popular German Abbreviations, "Young Frankenstein" and Those Whinnying Horses, German First Names and Their English Equivalents, Difference Between Samstag, Sonnabend, and Sonntag, Learn How to Say the Days of the Week in German, Roy Black's Version of "Jingle Bells" in German. Just before the civil war is when my relative came from Bavaria Germany to New York not sure what the original name was. Adalbert, Low German) Pronunciation : case sensitive: see the pronunciation key for a guide on how to write the sounds; sounds can only be searched in names that have been assigned pronunciations * is a wildcard that will match zero or more letters in the pronunciation example: *lee matches names which end with the sound lee _ is a wildcard that will match exactly one letter in the pronunciation The largest single ethnicity/ancestry group in America is German. Charts by Village. German Genealogy Tip #8: German Umlaut Names Became Double-Vowels in America. Thank you for your time in reading my reply. The table below includes last names ranked 16,001-20,000 in America. The most common German surname, Müller (miller), is shared by around 700,000 people. A famous bearer of this surname was the German composer Johannes Brahms (1833-1897). Find out how surnames are ranked in popularity, how many people in the United States of America bear a particular name, and how the statistics change between 1990 and 2000 US Censuses. Many German surnames are self-explanatory as they were derived from people’s jobs. German surnames Anglicization of family surnames occurred frequently among children of German citizens born in the anglosphere, notably to German immigrants in America. An “umlaut” a “double dot” mark over a vowel, to indicate a more fronted or rounded pronunciation. I have many ancestors in the 1800s with different English-sounding surnames in the DC area. At least that is what the family tree book shows. 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. The meanings of German last names are those as defined initially when these names became surnames. 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. Old German Script Transcriber (alte deutsche Handschriften):See your family names in the script of the era. And have a great day. Notify me of follow-up comments by email. Hoffmann surname first appeared in Silesia in the German-speaking world during the 14th century. She asks, Could the name Davis be an American form or a German name? Gideon Adlon – actress. For instance, Schmidt, which is ranked No. Casey Affleck – actor and director. If a German moved onto someone else's farm, it was not uncommon to change his last name to that of the farm. Their surnames often sound Spanish, Latin, Hebrew, or Arab – usually not German. 2, also appears as Schmitt (No. © 2020 by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved. Do you know what an “umlaut” is? This is a list of the most common surnames (also called last names or family names) in North America. Ingrid Bauer, who is fluent in German, has been teaching and tutoring the German language since 1996. List of the least common surnames [last names] in America, rank 16,001-20,000 The following tables include all surnames with over 0.001% frequency in the US population during the 1990 census. Thus, when interpreting a family name, the preservation of the original pronunciation should be kept in mind. my fathers side was thorpe from london to footscray victoria australia. Any ideas where it came from exactly? This is in response to the post of Gwynne Geyer. German Americans (German: Deutschamerikaner, pronounced [ˈdɔʏ̯tʃʔameʁiˌkaːnɐ]) are Americans who have full or partial German ancestry. Achen. 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. 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. She has a teaching degree and an M.A. If a name was translatable, sooner or later family members would use such terms as Carpenter for Zimmermann, Taylor for Schneider, etc. This is especially true for Germans immigrating to the United States in the 19th century when the insistence on spelling family names the German way was much more prevalent. According to the above table, from the 2000 Census, 17.11% of Americans have a surname among the top 100. Even with less transparent names, a lingering knowledge about the meaning of the family name is handed down from generation to generation in most families. Because of this, German last names can be found throughout bordering countries, including Poland, Austria, France and Spain. Jensen Ackles – actor. The author Clifford Neal Smith gives some suggestions of what to look for when tracing German immigrants in the United States. 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. BRAND (2) German From Old High German brant "fire", originally a name for a person who lived near an area that had been cleared by fire. Type your name or other word into the font generator tool. Discover the ethnic origin and meaning of last names. If a name was translatable, sooner or later family members would use such terms as Carpenter for Zimmermann, Taylor for Schneider, etc. Some of the most common last names that are unforgettable are Graf, Einstein, Becker, Kahn, Klose, Ballack, Bach, and so on. But the name Byers is what they translated it to. The table below includes the 1000 most common last names in America. Often an ancestor’s name is distorted in such ways that even at close analysis it is difficult to find a German origin in it. Actors. Surname A-G. Surname H-K. Surname L-R. Surname S-Z. In the table, the German name is listed on the left, with its origin (and explanation if needed) on the right. 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 ? This German surname derives from the Middle High German word ‘noll’ meaning ‘hill’. Your email address will not be published. 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. The acronyms are noted because you won't find the translations for these names in standard online translators or even most German dictionaries. Some 50 million people there are primarily of German descent. They all trace their lineage back to one couple whose name was DAVIS. Few of the latter are on the following list, but examples include Brinkmann, Berger, and Frank. Updated data Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Division, Population Analysis & Evaluation Staff This list is different than one showing popular German surnames with their English translations. It may be used to contact other members who are interested in the same surnames or geographic regions (directly contacting other members of the GGG is a Members Only feature). Most German surnames derive either from archaic professions (such as Schmidt, Müller, Weber, or Schäfer) or places. The German-speaking world during the 1990 Census, early-day officials who were Scotch-Irish translated German ending. 8, 2014 Josiah Schmidt German Genealogy Tip # 8: German umlaut names became in!, Scottish, French, German last names in German, Dutch, Richardsbach! 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