Origin and popularity of the name BERNHARD

Origin

Bernhard : German Dutch Danish Swedish Norwegian and Jewish (Ashkenazic): from the ancient Germanic personal name Bernhard composed of the elements ber(n) ‘bear’ + hard ‘brave hardy strong’. As a Jewish name this is an adoption of the German name because it has the same beginning as the Jewish name Ber. The surname of German origin is also found in France (Alsace and Lorraine). See also Bernard compare Barnard Barnhard Barnhart and Bernhardt.

Barnston : 1: from Barnardiston (Suffolk) which is recorded as Bernardeston in 1194 and Barneston in 1524 (Subsidy Rolls). The place-name derives from either the Old English personal name Beornheard (genitive Beornheardes) or the Continental Germanic personal name Bernhard (Middle English Bernard genitive Bernardes) + Old English tūn Middle English toun ‘farmstead settlement’. 2: from Barnston (Cheshire) which is recorded as Bernestone in 1086 Berlestona in 1150 and Bernuston in 1348. The medieval bearers cited below shed light on the etymology of the place-name which derives from either the Old English personal name Beornwulf (genitive Beornwulfes) or the Old Scandinavian personal name Bjǫrnúlfr (genitive Bjǫrnúlfs) + Old English tūn ‘farmstead settlement’. 3: perhaps occasionally from one or more of a number of other places with similar names such as Barnston (Essex) which is recorded as Bernestuna in 1086 and Berneston in 1221 and Barnstone in Langar cum Barnstone (Notts) recorded as Bernestune in 1086 and Berniston in 1298. These two place-names derive from the Old English personal name Beorn (genitive Beornes) + tūn ‘farmstead settlement’. Some of the bearers cited here may belong to (1) or (2).

Besnard : from an altered form of the Old French personal name Bernart (Continental Germanic Bernhard) with intrusive -s-. Compare Barnard and Bernhardt.

Pen : 1: English: variant of Penn.2: Dutch: metonymic occupational name for a clerk or penman from pen ‘pen’ or for a craftsman using pins from pen ‘pin’ (compare Pin).3: Breton (mainly Le Pen): topographic name or nickname from penn ‘head’. Alternatively perhaps a cognate of French Payen (compare Pean). Compare also Pene 2 and Penn 8.4: Slovenian: nickname or ethnic name of the same origin as German Böhm (see Boehm) meaning ‘Bohemian’ (i.e. ‘Czech’). Alternatively from an old short form of the personal name Pernhart an old South German variant of Bernhard (see Bernard).5: Cambodian: written ប៉ែន of Chinese origin (see Bin 1).

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Last name frequency

Geographic distribution of the 43,626 individuals with the name BERNHARD on Geneanet.

This last name in the family trees

See below the Geneanet members' family trees which contain the last name BERNHARD