Origin
Germany : English (eastern): habitational name from Middle English Germanie denoting the parts of Continental Europe inhabited by ancient Germanic peoples.
Abitz : East German:: 1: from a vernacular form of the personal name A(da)lbert (see Albert).2: habitational name from a placename in eastern Germany of Slavic origin.
Ach : 1: German: topographic name for someone who lived by a spring or stream from Old High German aha ‘running water’.2: German: habitational name from any of the places so named in southern Germany and Austria.3: Americanized form of Hungarian Ács ‘carpenter’ (see Acs) and of its Slovak variant Áč.
Achen : German and Luxembourgish: habitational name from the city of Aachen in western Germany near the Dutch and Belgian border. This surname is very rare in Germany; in North America it may thus (also) be an altered form of the more common German variant Aachen.
Achterberg : North German and Dutch: topographic name from any of several villages called Achterberg i.e. achter de berg ‘behind the hill’. Most families with this surname come from Achterberg near Rhenen by the Rhine river in Utrecht. Other possibilities are Achterberg a hamlet near Dongen in North Brabant Achterberg near Bad Bentheim across the border in Germany and (also in Germany) Achterberg near Tönisberg über Krefeld.
Adams : 1: English Dutch and German (mainly northwestern Germany): patronymic from the personal name Adam. In North America this surname has absorbed cognates from other languages e.g. Greek Adamopoulos Serbian and Croatian Adamović (see Adamovich) Polish (and Jewish) Adamski.2: Irish and Scottish: adopted for McAdam or a Scottish variant of Adam with excrescent -s.
Adelberg : 1: German: habitational name from a place in southwestern Germany called Adelberg named with Middle High German adel ‘noble’ + berg ‘mountain hill’.2: Jewish (Ashkenazic): artificial name composed of German adel ‘noble’ + berg ‘mountain hill’.
Aderholt : German: variant of Aderhold and in North America probably also an altered form of this. The surname Aderholt is very rare in Germany.
Adolphus : English German African American Guyanese and African (mainly Nigeria): from the personal name Adolphus Latinized form of ancient Germanic name Adolf or a Latinized (humanistic) form of the same surname. The surname Adolphus is virtually non-existing in Germany.
Aebersold : Swiss German and South German: topographic or habitational name from Middle High German eber ‘wild boar’ + sol ‘wallow(ing place)’ also used in placenames. The surname Aebersold is very rare in Germany. Compare Abersold Ebersohl Ebersol Ebersold and Ebersole.
Agen : 1: Altered form of Irish Egan.2: East Frisian: variant of Aggen and Agena. The surname Agen is very rare in Germany.
Aken : 1: German (of Dutch origin; van Aken): habitational name from the Dutch name of the city of Aachen in Germany. This may also be an American shortened form of the Dutch cognate Van Aken.2: English: variant of Akin.
Akes : German: possibly a variant of Ax. The surname Akes is virtually non-existing in Germany.
Alderfer : Americanized form of German (mainly Baden-Württemberg) Altdörfer a habitational name for someone from any of the many places in Switzerland Austria and southern Germany named Altdorf ‘old village’.
Aleman : 1: Spanish (Alemán): from alemán an ethnic name for a German also used as a nickname for a Spanish person having some connection with Germany. Compare Alleman 4 and Allemand 2.2: English and Dutch: ethnic name from Old French aleman(d) ‘German’ (compare 1 above see also French Allemand and English Allman).3: Swiss German and German: rare variant of Allemann.
Allenbach : German and Swiss German: habitational name from any of several places called Allenbach e.g. in Rhineland-Palatinate in Germany. Compare Allebach Allenbaugh and Alumbaugh.
Allwein : South German: from the personal name Alwin Adelwin from ancient Germanic adal ‘noble’ + win ‘friend’. This surname is very rare in Germany. Compare Allwine and Alwine.
Almendinger : German and Swiss German: habitational name for someone from a place called Allmendingen of which there are two examples in Switzerland in Bern canton and one in Baden-Württemberg in Germany.
Altemus : Altered form of South German Altmoos or of its variant Altemoos: topographic name meaning ‘old swamp’ or ‘old fen’ from Middle High German alt ‘old’ + mōs ‘swamp fen’ for someone living near swampy land. The surnames Altmoos and Altemoos are very rare in Germany. Compare Altemose and Altimus.
Altendorf : German: habitational name from any of numerous places in Germany Austria and Switzerland named Altendorf (literally ‘old village’).
Altland : German: name composed of elements meaning ‘old’ + ‘land’. This surname is rare in Germany.
Ammer : German:: 1: from Middle High German amer ‘bunting’ (the bird) hence a nickname for someone with a fine voice.2: in southern Germany possibly a topographic name for someone living by the Ammer river.
Andreasen : Danish and Norwegian: patronymic from the personal name Andreas. This surname is most common in Denmark; it is also found in Germany but it is very rare there. In North America this surname is also an altered form of the variant Andreassen. Compare Andreason.
Andreassen : Norwegian and Danish: patronymic from the personal name Andreas. This surname is most common in Norway; it is also found in Germany but it is very rare there. Compare Andreasen and Andreason.
Angell : 1: English: variant of Angel.2: Norwegian (of German origin): habitational name from the placename Angeln in Schleswig-Holstein in Germany. The surname is known in Norway from the 17th century.3: American shortened and altered form of Greek Angelis or of any other derivative of the personal name Angelos (see Angelos). Compare Angel.4: Americanized form of German and Slovenian Angel and possibly also of the Croatian cognate Anđel.
Anger : 1: German: topographic name for a dweller by a meadow or village green from Middle High German anger ‘grassland field’ or a habitational name from any of several places in Germany and Austria named with this word.2: French and English (of Norman origin): from a variant of the personal name Angier.3: French: variant of Angers.4: Jewish (eastern Ashkenazic): artificial from German Anger ‘meadow pasture’ (compare 1 above).
Anstine : 1: Americanized form of German Anstein: topographic name meaning ‘at the rock’ from Middle High German an ‘at’ + stein ‘rock’. The surname Anstein is very rare in Germany.2: Alternatively an Americanized form of German and Jewish (Ashkenazic) Einstein.
Apgar : Americanized form of North German Epgert: habitational name from a village in the Rhineland called Epgert. The surname Epgert is very rare in Germany. Compare Apker.
Appenrodt : German: habitational name from any of several places in Germany which are so named from the personal name Aben + Middle German rot ‘cleared land’. Compare Abendroth.
Archer : 1: English and French: from Middle English archere Anglo-Norman French archer Old French archier ‘bowman’ hence an occupational name for an archer. This Norman French word partially replaced the native English word bowman in the 14th century. In North America this surname may have absorbed some cases of European cognates such as French Archier. Compare Larcher.2: German: from an agent derivative of Old High German archa ‘mill-race’ (from Latin arca ‘chest box’). This surname is rare in Germany.3: Germanized form of Slovenian Arhar: German-influenced patronymic from the personal name Arh (see Arch 3) an old vernacular equivalent of Henry. Alternatively perhaps a topographic name derived from Old High German archa ‘mill-race’ (see 2 above) hence a cognate of Slovenian Rakar (see Raker 4).
Argenbright : Americanized form of German Erkenbrecht or Erckenbrecht: from an ancient Germanic personal name composed of Old High German erkan ‘pure perfect’ + berht ‘bright famous’. The surnames Erkenbrecht and Erckenbrecht are very rare in Germany. Compare Argabright Arganbright and Ercanbrack.
Arndorfer : South German (Arndörfer) and Austrian German: habitational name for someone from a place called Arndorf of which there are three examples in Bavaria and one in Styria Austria. The surname Arndörfer is very rare in Germany.
Arnholt : German: variant of Arnold and Arnhold. The surname Arnholt is very rare in Germany. Compare Aronhalt.
Arnot : 1: Scottish: variant of Arnott.2: German: variant of Arnold. This surname is very rare in Germany. In North America it may also be an altered form of the variant Arnodt.
Arnsdorf : German: habitational name from a place called Arnsdorf near Bautzen Saxony. This surname is very rare in Germany. Compare Arnsdorff.
Arnsdorff : German and Austrian German: habitational name from a place called Arnsdorf one near Bautzen Saxony another near Salzburg Austria. This surname is very rare in Germany and is apparently no longer found in Austria where it may have been originally spelled Arnsdorf.
Aschenbrener : German: variant of Aschenbrenner. This form of the surname is very rare in Germany.
Ashkenazi : 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 placename (Genesis 10:3 Jeremiah 527) etymologically related to Greek Skythia ‘Scythia’. However since the 9th century AD if not earlier it has been applied to Germany.
Asper : 1: Swiss German German and Norwegian: topographic name for someone living by aspen trees from Middle High German aspe or a habitational name for someone from a place called with this word (compare Asp). This surname is rare in Germany and virtually non-existing in Switzerland.2: Americanized form of Arabic Esber 1 or Esper 4.
Astor : 1: German: from Occitan astor ‘goshawk’ (from Latin acceptor a variant of accipiter ‘hawk’) used as a nickname characterizing a predacious or otherwise hawklike man. The name was taken to southwestern Germany by 17th-century Waldensian refugees from their Alpine valleys above Italian Piedmont.2: English: variant of Aster itself a variant of Easter 2.
Aswegan : Americanized form of North German Aswegen: habitational name from Aschwege a hamlet near Oldenburg in Lower Saxony. The surname Aswegen is very rare in Germany.
Ater : German: variant or altered form of Eder or Ader. The surname Ater is very rare in Germany. Compare Ator.
Au : 1: Chinese: alternative Mandarin form of the surname 敖 see Ao.2: Chinese: Cantonese form of the surnames 歐 and 區 see Ou 1 and 2.3: Vietnamese (Âu): from the Chinese surname 歐 see Ou 1 and 2 above.4: Vietnamese (Ấu): written 幼 in Chinese of unexplained etymology.5: South German: topographic name from Au ‘water meadow stream’ (see Aue) or a habitational name from any of several places so named in Germany Austria and Switzerland.
Aubert : French and English (mainly of Huguenot origin): from the Old French (and Middle English) personal name Aubert a variant of Albert. It is also found in Germany where it indicates Huguenot descent too. Compare Aube 2 and 3 and Obert 2 and 3.
Aue : German: topographic name from Middle High German ouwe ‘water meadow stream’ (modern German Au(e)) or a habitational name from any of numerous places in southern Germany Austria and Switzerland named with this word.
Auerbach : 1: German: habitational name from any of several places in southern Germany and Austria called Auerbach ‘the stream at the water meadow’. See also 2 Au and Bach.2: Jewish (Ashkenazic): habitational name from the town of Auerbach in the Upper Palatinate Bavaria. Compare Averbach.
Augustus : Dutch German English Welsh West Indian (mainly Trinidad and Tobago) and African (mainly Nigeria): from the Latin personal name Augustus (from the adjective augustus ‘consecrated majestic venerable’) or a Latinized (humanistic) form of German and English August. It was the Emperor Augustus (63 BC–AD 14) after whom it became conventional for Roman emperors to adopt Augustus as a title on their accession and in whose honor the month of August was named. The personal name became popular among early Christians who read into it the implication that the bearer had become greater by being baptized. The surname Augustus is virtually non-existing in Germany.
Aurand : 1: French: from the ancient Germanic personal name Alahramn composed of the elements ala ‘all’ and hramn ‘raven’. This surname is also found in Germany.2: Americanized form of German Aurandt a surname of French origin (see 1 above).
Aurandt : German (of French origin): altered form of French Aurand 1. This surname is very rare in Germany. Compare Aurand 2.
Aven : 1: English: altered form of Avent.2: Norwegian: habitational name from a farm named from ave ‘dam pool eddy in a river’.3: East Frisian: patronymic from the Frisian personal name Ave. This surname is very rare in Germany.
Bacharach : German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): habitational name from a place on the Rhine near Koblenz recorded in the earliest Latin documents as Bacaraca; the placename is of Celtic origin but unknown meaning. This surname is very rare in Germany.
Bachrach : German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): variant of Bacharach. This surname is very rare in Germany.
Badenhorst : from a place called Badenhorst in Elsdorf (Lower Saxony Germany).
Baehler : German (Bähler):: 1: habitational name for someone from a place called Bahlen of which there are several examples in northern Germany.2: variant of Behler or Böhler (see Boehler).
Baerwald : German (Bärwald):: 1: variant of Berwald 1.2: habitational name from any of several places called Bärwalde in the eastern parts of Germany.
Baessler : German:: 1: habitational name for someone from Basel in Switzerland (see Besler) or from any of various places called Basse or Bassen in northern Germany.2: alternatively perhaps from a derivative of Middle Low German baseln ‘to act in a confused manner’ hence a nickname for someone who was absent-minded or forgetful.
Bahnson : Danish and North German: variant of Bahnsen. This surname is very rare in Germany.
Baitz : 1: East German: habitational name from a place in eastern Germany named Baitz. Compare Beitz.2: South German: variant of Beitz.3: Germanized or Americanized form of Slovenian Bajc or Bajec: nickname from bajec a derivative of bajati ‘to narrate (unbelievable stories)’ also ‘to cast a spell’.
Baldinger : 1: German: habitational name for someone from a place called Baldingen either in Württemberg Germany or Aargau Switzerland.2: Jewish (eastern Ashkenazic): artificial name from German baldiger ‘quick speedy’.
Balius : 1: Catalan: nickname derived from batlliu ‘governor’.2: German: Latinized (humanistic) form of Bahl a surname which is in part of Sorbian origin or perhaps of some other similar (like-sounding) surname. This surname is not found in Germany.
Ballin : 1: German and Danish: habitational name from a place so named near Neubrandenburg Germany.2: Jewish (western Ashkenazic): most likely metronymic from the hypocoristic form (using the suffix -lin) of the Yiddish female personal name Be(y)le (see Balin 1). Earliest bearers of the name spelling Bal(l)in or Bellin appear in available sources of Switzerland at the turn of the 14th–15th centuries.3: Hispanic: altered form of Asturian-Leonese Vallín (see Vallin).4: French: metonymic occupational name for a maker of straw mattresses Old French ballin.5: French: variant of Balin a derivative of Bal.6: English (of Norman origin): variant of Balaam (see Ballam).
Bally : 1: French and Swiss French: variant of Bailly. This surname is also found in Germany.2: English: perhaps a variant of Bailey.3: English: habitational name from Bale in Norfolk which was originally Old English batha-lēah from Old English bæth ‘bath a bathing-place’ + lēah ‘woodland clearing’.
Balthis : Altered form of German Balthas: from a short form of the personal name Balthasar (see Baltazar). The surname Balthas is no longer found in Germany.
Baltzell : Americanized form of Alsatian Balzel: from a German pet form of the personal name Balthasar (see Baltazar). The surname Balzel is very rare in France and is not found in Germany.
Bambach : German: probably a variant of Baumbach or a habitational name from a lost place in northern Germany.
Bangert : German:: 1: shortened form of Baumgarten.2: in southern Germany also in Alsace occupational name from Banwart ‘field and forest ranger’.3: in some cases a nickname from a variant of Bankert ‘child born out of wedlock’ for a child fathered on a bench (Middle High German banc).
Banick : 1: Americanized or Germanized form of Polish Banik 2 Slovak Rusyn (from Slovakia) and Czech (Moravian) Baník Bánik or Banik 1 and Ukrainian and Rusyn Banyk (see Banik 3).2: Americanized form of Slovenian and Slovak Banič Croatian and Serbian Banić (see Banic). Compare Bannick.3: North German: probably a variant of Bannick. This surname is very rare in Germany.
Barch : 2: North German: topographic name from a Low German dialect form of Berg ‘mountain hill’ (see Barg). This surname is very rare in Germany.3: Americanized form of Hungarian Barcs: from the old personal name Barcs.1: Americanized form of German Bartsch.4: Americanized form of Czech Barč a cognate of German Bartsch.
Bardes : 1: German: unexplained. This surname which originates from Eich in Rhineland-Palatinate is rare in Germany.2: French (southern) and Catalan: from a derivative of Occitan and Catalan barda Old French barde ‘pack-saddle’.3: French (Bardès): habitational name for someone from any of several minor places called Bard from the Gaulish element barro ‘height hill’.4: Catalan: topographic name from the plural of barda ‘fence’.
Barger : 1: North German and Dutch: variant of Berger 1 and in North America (also) an altered form of this. The surname Barger is rare in Germany and the Netherlands.2: German: habitational name for someone from any of several places called Barg(e) see Barg. This surname is rare in Germany.3: French: variant of Berger ‘shepherd’.
Barkus : 1: English: shortened form of Barkhouse a topographic name for someone who lived by a house where oak bark (or the bark of certain other trees) was stored for use in tanning leather.2: Lithuanian: variant of Bartkus. This surname is also found in Germany. Compare Barcus.
Barre : 1: French: topographic name for someone who lived by a gateway or barrier or in a house encircled by a fence from Old French barre ‘bar obstruction’ (of obscure origin possibly akin to the Celtic element barr ‘height’); or a habitational name from any of various places called with this word e.g. Barre-en-Ouche in Eure or Barre-de-Semilly in Manche. Compare Labarre.2: French: probably also a habitational name from Barre in Lozère named with the Celtic element barr ‘height’.3: French (Barré): from Old French barré ‘striped’ referring to a habitual wearer of striped clothing or probably of a piece of striped cloth worn around the helmet for identification in battle. In the Middle Ages the term was also applied to the Carmelite Friars who wore habits striped in black yellow and white and it may have been used as a nickname for someone thought to resemble a Carmelite in some way. This surname is also found in Germany attested as a Huguenot name for example in Magdeburg in 1703. Compare Barry 7 and Bora 4.4: French (Barré): possibly also a habitational name from (Le) Barré the name of several places mainly in the northern part of France.5: English: variant of Barr.6: Somali: from the personal name Barre meaning ‘teacher’. — Note: Since Somalis traditionally do not have hereditary surnames this name was in most cases registered as such only after immigration of its bearers to the US.
Bartell : 1: English: from the Middle English and Old French personal name Bartel a medieval pet form of Bartholomew. See Bartle.2: German: variant of Bartel and in North America (also) an altered form of this. The surname Bartell is very rare in Germany.3: Americanized form of Polish Czech and Slovak Bartel and of the Slovenian cognate Bartelj.
Bartelme : German: from the genitive form Bartholomaei of the Latin personal name Bartholomaeus (see Bartholomew). This surname is very rare in Germany. In part it is a Gottscheerish (i.e. Gottschee German) surname originating from the Kočevsko region in Lower Carniola Slovenia (see Kocevar).
Barton : 1: English: habitational name from any of numerous places called with Old English bere or bær ‘barley’ + tūn ‘enclosure settlement’ i.e. an outlying grange. Compare Barwick. The name is also found in Ireland where it has been Gaelicized as de Bartún.2: Polish (Bartoń); Czech and Slovak (mainly Bartoň): from a pet form of the personal name Polish Bartłomiej Czech Bartoloměj Slovak Bartolomej from Latin Bartholomaeus (see Bartholomew). This surname is also found in Germany.
Bartos : 1: Czech and Croatian (Bartoš); Slovak (mainly Bartoš); Polish (also Bartoś); Hungarian: from a pet form of local equivalents of the Latin personal name Bartholomaeus (Czech Bartoloměj Slovak and Croatian Bartolomej Polish Bartłomiej Hungarian Bartalan an archaic variant of Bertalan); see Bartholomew. The surname Bartoš is also found in Serbia (Vojvodina) where it is of Hungarian Czech and/or Slovak origin. In Croatia it is largely of Czech origin. The surname Bartos is also found in Germany. The homonymous Sorbian cognate Bartoš is found in a Germanized form only (see Bartosch).2: American shortened (and altered) form of Polish Bartosiewicz and Bartoszewski and probably also of some other surnames ultimately derived from the Latin personal name Bartholomaeus (see 1 and Bartosz).
Bartow : 1: Americanized form of French Barteau.2: East German: habitational name from a place so named north of Neubrandenburg which is of Slavic origin. This surname is very rare in Germany.
Basgall : German: from a dialect variant of the personal name Pascall (see Pasquale). This surname is very rare in Germany.
Bashore : Americanized form of German Böshaar: apparently a nickname from Middle High German boese ‘bad’ and hār ‘hair’. The surname Böshaar is very rare in Germany. Compare Basehore Basore Beshore and Pasour.
Bason : 1: English: shortened form of Bateson.2: German: of French (Huguenot) origin a variant of Basson. This surname is very rare in Germany. Compare Posson.
Bassin : 1: Jewish (eastern Ashkenazic): metronymic formed with the Slavic possessive suffix -in from the Yiddish female personal name Basye a pet form of the Biblical name Bath Sheba under the influence of Polish Basia a pet form of Barbara.2: French: from bassin ‘small basin or ladle’ hence a metonymic occupational name for a maker or seller of such vessels. This surname is also found in Germany.3: Italian (Veneto; Bassìn): from a diminutive of Basso.
Basson : 1: English (Oxfordshire): variant of Basham.2: French: from the ancient Germanic personal name Basso based on the element bad (from badhuo) ‘battle’.3: German: of French (Huguenot) origin (see 2 above). This surname is very rare in Germany. Compare Posson.
Bat : 1: English: variant of Batt.2: English: variant of Bate.3: German: variant of Batt. This surname is very rare in Germany.
Batcher : 1: North German (Bätcher): dialect variant of Böttcher (see Boettcher) or the North German and North Frisian cognate Bätjer. The surname Bätcher is very rare in Germany.2: English: topographic name for someone who lived by a stream from a derivative of Middle English bach bech(e) ‘stream’. Compare Bach 3 and Bache.
Batenhorst : German: habitational name from a place near Gütersloh Westphalia named Batenhorst. This surname is very rare in Germany.
Batt : 1: English: from the Middle English personal name Bat(te) probably a pet form of Middle English Bartelmew (see Bartholomew) or perhaps the rarer Bartram (see Bertram).2: English: probably in many cases a variant of Back 2 ‘bat’ (the winged animal) applied as a nickname. The alteration of Middle English bakke to bat is not on record before 1580 but the frequency with which le Bat occurs in medieval documents suggests that this is a likely source of the name. Alternatively it may be from Middle English bat(te) (Old English batt) ‘cudgel club bat’ perhaps for someone of stout appearance or for one who wielded a bat.3: English: topographic name of uncertain meaning. That it is a topographic name seems clear from examples such as Walter atte Batte (Somerset 1327) but the meaning of the term is in doubt although it is found in medieval field names.4: German: from a medieval personal name (from Latin Beatus ‘blessed’) bestowed in honor of the apostle who was reputed to have brought Christianity to Switzerland and southern Germany.
Baublitz : Americanized form of German Boblitz: habitational name from a place near Bautzen in Lusatia or an altered form of Bublitz. The surname Boblitz is rare in Germany. Compare Boblett and Boblitt.
Bavaro : Italian: ethnic name from bavaro ‘Bavarian’ i.e. someone from Bavaria now part of Germany but formerly an independent kingdom.
Bayer : 1: German Scandinavian and Jewish (Ashkenazic): habitational name for someone from Bavaria (German Bayern). This region of southern Germany derives its name from that of the Celtic tribe of the Boii who once inhabited this area. They were displaced in the 6th century AD by an ancient Germanic people the Boioarii or Baiuarii whose name is derived from that of their Celtic predecessors. This surname is also found in France (Alsace and Lorraine) Hungary Czechia Slovakia and Poland. Compare Beyer and Payer.2: English (Lincolnshire): occupational name for a maker of baize cloth from an agent derivative of Old French baies Middle English bayes (from the adjective bai ‘reddish-brown bay’) probably so called because of its original color. This material was said to have been introduced into Britain by immigrants from France and the Netherlands in the 16th century but the word certainly appears much earlier in English. The surname may also be topographic denoting a ‘dweller by the bend’ from an agent derivative of Old English bēag ‘bend’.3: Dutch: variant of Baijer a cognate of 1 above.
Beacher : 1: English: variant of Becher and in northern England probably a variant of Beardsall a habitational name from Buersill in Rochdale Lancashire.2: Americanized form of German (Bavaria) Bitscher which is unexplained or of some other like-sounding surname. The surname Bitscher is very rare in Germany.
Beau : French: nickname for a handsome man (perhaps also ironically for an ugly one) from Old French beu bel ‘beautiful handsome’ (from Late Latin bellus). This surname is also found in Germany. Compare Bel and Lebeau.
Bechel : South German: topographic name for someone who lived by a stream from a diminutive of Bach 1. This surname is rare in Germany.
Becking : Dutch and German: farm name mainly in the border region of East Netherlands (Overijssel) and Germany (North Rhine-Westphalia) indicating its location ‘beside a stream’ (see Beck 6).
Beckius : 1: Swedish: ornamental name composed of the element beck a variant of bäck ‘stream’ + the Latin suffix -ius.2: German: Latinized (humanistic) form of Beck ‘baker’ or ‘stream’. The surname Beckius is very rare in Germany.
Bedel : 1: English (Middlesex and Surrey): variant of Beadle a cognate of 2 below.2: French: occupational name from Old French bedel ‘beadle bailiff janitor’ also ‘soldier’ (from Late Latin pedellus bedellus ‘messenger servant’). This surname is also found in Germany.
Bedinghaus : Americanized form of German Böddinghaus: habitational name from a place called Böddinghausen near Altena Westphalia. The surname Böddinghaus is very rare in Germany.
Behler : German:: 1: habitational name for someone from either of two places called Behla near Donau-Eschingen or on the Netze river in eastern Germany.2: variant of Böhling (see Bohling).
Beinbrech : German: literally ‘bone break’ but the name probably refers to the plant and might have been used as a metonymic occupational name for a herbalist. The surname Beinbrech is very rare in Germany. Compare Bonebrake.
Beitz : 1: East German: habitational name from any of the places in eastern Germany named Baitz (compare Baitz) or Beitzsch.2: German: variant of Beitler 2.3: South German: from Middle High German beiz ‘tanning liquid lye’ or ‘falcon hunt’ hence a metonymic occupational name for a tanner or someone who hunted with falcons.
Belke : 1: German: possibly a habitational name from Belkau in eastern Germany (near Stendal) or from Belecke in North Rhine-Westphalia.2: Germanized form of Sorbian Bělka B'elka (see Belka 3) and Polish Belka 1 and probably also of some other similar (and cognate) Slavic surname.3: Altered form of German Boehlke Boelke.
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Source : DAFN2 : Dictionary of American Family Names 2nd edition, ©2022 by Patrick Hanks and Oxford University Press
FANBI : The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain, ©2021, University of the West of England
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