What are the names in German? German male names and their meanings

German names attract many people with their sonority and beauty. They go well with the surname and give the personality a certain style, making a person unique and inimitable.

If you have long been attracted to the culture of the peoples of Germany, then you should definitely study the important features of beautiful female names and surnames.

If you decide to study the history of German female names and surnames, then you should pay attention to their history. It originates from ancient times.

At the same time, personal names carried not only a beautiful and sonorous combination of letters, but also reflected a magical meaning that endowed the owner with certain character qualities.

Note! The surnames of the Germans, unlike their given names, had a completely different character.

They were formed from the meanings of various nicknames, and could be associated with the personality of the owner of a given surname.

Usually the nicknames of German surnames reflected:

They could reflect the bright qualities of a person. For example, Braun is brown, Schwarz is black, Klein is small.
The place of residence of a person is von Berne, von der Vogelweide.
The owner's profession or type of activity. Becker - baker, Koch - cook, Bauer - peasant.
Many surnames were formed from personal names. For example, Peters, Walter.

Gradually, after a certain time, nicknames began to be recorded in official documents.

They then acquired status and began to be used as the first German surnames. They stuck with all the descendants of the people who were their carriers.

List of popular female names

When considering German surnames and names for girls, women should pay attention to the popular ones.

Many of them are used on official VK pages, classmates, people thereby want to emphasize their personality, status, and originality.

Consider the list of popular female names:

Mia is short for Maria.
Maria – means bitter, serene, desired.
Hannah (Anna) – God’s mercy, brave.
Emma is precious, universal.
Sofia is wise.
Leonie is a lioness.
Joanna is gracious.
Lena – short for Helena, torch, torch.
Ursula is a bear.
Katrina is pure.
Helga is sacred, holy.
Renata is reborn, born again.
Sabina is a Sabine woman.
Ingrid is beautiful, fertile.
Monica is the only one.
Petra is made of stone.
Susanna is a water lily.
Brigid is strong.
Erica is powerful, a ruler.
Christina is a Christian.
Stephanie - crowned.
Gertrude – spear+beloved.
Elizabeth is my God - vow.
Angelica is angelic.
Gabriela is God's warrior.
Ilsa is short for Elizabeth.
Nicole is the conqueror of nations.

Below in the table there are beautiful female names in Russian spelled out with translation:

Letter	Names	Meaning
A	Agna	Chaste, holy
	Agnese	Chaste, holy
	Agnet	Chaste, holy
	Adala	Noble
	Aloysia	Famous warrior
	Albertina	Bright nobility
	Amalazuinta	Strong, working
Starting with the letter B	Barbel	Foreign, strange
	Belinda	Beautiful snake
	Benedicta	Blessed
	Bertilda	Vivid battle
	Bindi	Beautiful snake
	Bit	Blessed
	Brigitte
IN	Vibeck	War
	Vibk	War
	Wigberg	War and fortress
	Victoria	Conqueror, victory
	Wilda	wild
	Vilhelmain	Helmet
	Vilhelmina	Helmet
G	Genovefa	White race
	Gertie	Spear Power
	Gertraud	Spear Power
	Gertrude	Spear Power
	Gertrude	Spear Power
	Gretel	Pearl
	Grechen	Small pearl
D	Jisela	Pledge
	Jit	Majestic, exalted
	Jitta	Majestic, exalted
	Joseph	She will multiply
	Jolenta	purple flower
	Juliana	The youth
	Ditricha	Queen of Nations
Z	Zelda	Gray maiden
	Zenzi	Emerging, growing, thriving
	Zibille	Fortune Teller
	Zuzanne	Lily
AND	Imma	Weighty, whole, versatile
	Inj	Frontline
	Injeborg	Help, protection
	Irma	Whole, universal
	Irmalinda	Absolutely soft and tender
	Irmgard	Universal, whole and nested
	Irmtrod	Totally loved

Beautiful surnames for girls

In addition to a beautiful name, you need to choose a consonant surname. It should blend beautifully and reflect your personal style.

German surnames are fascinating with their euphony, despite the fact that many of them come from nicknames, personal names, names of colors and cities.

Below is a list of popular female German surnames and their meanings:

Kaufman is a merchant.
Becker is a baker.
Riger - from Riga.
Klee - clover.
Hertz - courage.
Reuss - on behalf of.
Schultz is the headman.
Mayer - farmer, burgomaster.
Till is a strong ruler.
Junghans - on behalf of the family.
Schaefer is a shepherd.
Koch is a chef.
Bauer is a peasant.
Richter is a judge.
Klein is small.
Wolf is a wolf.
Schroeder is a tailor.
Neumann is a new man.
Schwartz is black (black-haired).
Zimmermann is a carpenter.
Brown - brown.
Kruger is a potter.

Origin

Considering many German surnames and names, many simply do not think about their origin.

Indeed, where did they come from, what conditions influenced their occurrence.

Based on origin, there are five classes of surnames and given names:

Formed from vocative names. This group mostly includes patronymic and matronymic surnames.
For example, by connecting the suffixes –sen, -s, the mann component - Andersen, Jakobsen, Martensen, Paulsen, Bartels, Jacobs/Jakobs, Peters, Heinzmann, Petermann.
By origin. Surnames indicating which area the bearer came from.
Such surnames appeared very early, already in the 12th century. They are associated with natural population migrations in the Middle Ages.
At the place of residence. These are surnames that indicate the place of residence of their bearers.
Surnames by place of residence name a person according to his residence in his homeland (street, lane, block, etc.).
Various toponymic elements are present in the formation of surnames of this group.
For example, -au, -bach, -berg, -bruck, -thal, -wald and prepositions to indicate local-spatial relations: an, bei, in, auf, unter, vor.
By profession and type of activity. Surnames indicating a profession, rank or position are of cultural and historical interest.
For example, surnames derived from professions that no longer exist have partially reached us.
Derived from nicknames.

Meaning

The meaning of German surnames and given names is multifaceted. Often they indicate a person’s character, his behavioral characteristics, and the main personality qualities.

Many names reflect the external qualities of a girl and woman, her beauty.

Important! The meaning of surnames is based on the place of origin of a person, on the names of ancestors.

They may reflect the type of activity and names of professions that his relatives were engaged in in ancient times.

Many of them may contain nicknames, for example, Klein - small, Wolf - wolf, Brown - brown, Schwartz - black.

When choosing a German first and last name for a girl or woman, it is worth carefully studying their important features.

Many of them have interesting meanings that can indicate character and personality type. Even though they sound nice, they may not suit the person's character and behavior.

Useful video

Personal German names belong to the most ancient onyms. German surnames appeared much later.

The German personal names that we encounter today accumulated in it gradually and were borrowed from various sources. Some of them go back to ancient German onyms; many modern German names were borrowed from other peoples at different times. There is a particularly strong craving for foreign names these days.

In modern German-speaking culture, a person has two types of names: a personal name (Rufname) and a surname (Familienname). Patronymic (Vatersname) is absent in the German environment. In everyday life, the word der Name denotes a surname: “Mein Name ist Müller.”; "Wie war doch gleich der Name?" (“Your last name?” is a common question from a person who has forgotten the last name of the interlocutor): Der Name steht an der Wohnungstür. In official documents where a full name is required, there is a column “Vorname und Name”, i.e. personal name and surname.

Stories of German personal names

The oldest names of Germanic origin originated in the 7th–4th centuries. BC. As in other Indo-European languages, they are composed of two parts and were designed to magically “influence” a person’s fate, give him strength, courage, victory, protection of the gods, etc. This is reflected in the etymology of ancient names that exist today such as Eberhart (“stark wie ein Eber”), Bemhart (“stark wie der Bär”), Wolfgang, cf. Russians Svyatoslav, Gorisveta, Vladimir. From the oldest layer of personal names - about 2,000 of them have been discovered - today there are hardly a hundred active ones. Already in the early Middle Ages, the “magical meaning” of personal names was completely lost.

In the second half of the 8th century. names associated with Christianity begin to penetrate into the German language from Italy: first, names from the Old Testament - Adam (Hebrew “first-born”), Susanne (Hebrew “lily”), then Andreas (Greek “brave”), Agathe (“ kind"), Katharina (“pure”), from Latin – Viktor “winner”, Beata “happy”. Biblical names were borrowed especially actively in the 15th century. Moreover, in Catholic families preference was and is given to the names of saints - patrons of infants, in Lutheran families - to the names of biblical characters. Personal names with religious content were also created from German words and stems: Traugott, Fürchtegott, Gotthold, etc.

The choice of a personal name is often influenced by fashion
– then these are romantically “Nordic” (Knut, Olaf, Sven, Birgit), borrowed from ancient Germanic mythology or from the heroic epic (Siegfrid, Siegmund, etc.),
– those are French names (Annette, Claire, Nicole, Yvonne),
– either Russian (Vera, Natascha, Sascha), Italian or Anglo-American.
So, in 1983, in the Bern area (GDR, near Leipzig), the most common names for girls were Nicole, Anja, Susanne, Maudy, Christin, Yvonne. For boys - Christian, Thomas, Stefan, Patrick, Michael, Sebastian.

The fashion for names is largely shaped by imitation. In the old days, children were willingly given the names of monarchs (in Prussia - Friedrich, Wilhelm; in Saxony - August, Johann, Albert; in Austria - Joseph, Leopold, Maximilian), as well as the names of heroes of literary works.

Today, when choosing a name, there is a strong influence of cinema, television and pop music, and there is also a craving for originality, uniqueness, and unusualness of the name. Previously known names are often written in a foreign style: Elly, Sylvia, Gaby (instead of Elli, Silvia, Gabi). Some names have gone out of fashion. They are given very rarely today. People of the older generation have names that are no longer used today. (...)

In everyday life, many German personal names, especially long ones, are abbreviated, for example: Ulrich –> Ulli; Bertolt –> Bert(i); Bernhard –> Bernd; Katharina –> Kat(h)e; Friedrich –> Fritz; Heinrich –> Heinz, Harry; Johannes –> Hans; Susanne –> Susi. Some of these so-called hypocoristic names have now begun to be used on a par with the original ones, i.e. independently, for example: Fritz, Heinz, Hans.

German surnames

German surnames developed much later than German personal names. Origin of German surnames begins with the Middle Ages. They developed from so-called nicknames (Beinamen), which originally contained information
– about the origin of the bearer of the name,
– about his place of birth: Walter von der Vogelweide, Dietrich von Berne.

Many nicknames indicated some physical or other differences of a given person: Friedrich Barbarossa (= Rotbart, “Redbeard”), Heinrich der Lowe, etc. Over time, this nickname began to be passed on to the heirs and enshrined in official documents.

The famous German linguist W. Fleischer points out that from the 12th century. The appearance of German surnames begins first in large cities in the west. In the north, in the province of Hanover, they were introduced only at the beginning of the 19th century. by order of Napoleon. Family names and surnames were assigned primarily to feudal lords. (...) Fleischer gives as an example the characters in Lessing’s play “Minna von Barnhelm”: Fräulein von Barnhelm, Major von Tellheim are nobles, while the servants are Just, Franziska. And today it is customary to call domestic servants simply by name, in contrast to the usual address:

Frau + first or last name

Herr + first or last name

The overwhelming majority of modern German surnames were formed from personal names (Walter, Hermann30 most common German surnames

1. Müller - miller
2. Schmidt - blacksmith

4. Fischer - fisherman

6. Weber - weaver

8. Becker - baker

12. Koch - cook

16. Wolf (Wolf) - wolf

30. König - king
, Peters, Jacobi), nicknames (Bart, Stolz) and names of professions and occupations (Müller, Schmidt, Koch, Schulze, Schumacher).

The most popular German surnames. List of 30 surnames

1. Müller - miller
2. Schmidt - blacksmith
3. Schneider - tailor
4. Fischer - fisherman
5. Meier - property manager
6. Weber - weaver
7. Wagner - carriage maker, carriage maker
8. Becker - baker
9. Schulz - headman
10. Hofmann, Hoffmann - courtier
11. Schäfer - shepherd
12. Koch - cook
13. Bauer - peasant
14. Richter - judge
15. Klein (small)
16. Wolf (Wolf) - wolf
17. Schröder - tailor
18. Neumann - new man
19. Schwarz - black (black-haired)
20. Zimmermann - carpenter
21. Brown (Braun) - brown
22. Kruger - potter
23. Hartmann - from the male name Hartmann
24. Lange - long (large)
25. Werner - from the male name Werner
26. Krause - curly
27. Lehmann - landowner
28. Köhler - coal miner
29. Hermann - from the male name Herrmann
30. König - king

List of popular German surnames

* Abicht
* Adler
* Eikhenwald
* Albrecht
* Altman
* Appel
* Arnold

* Baade
* Baum
* Bauman
* Baumgarten
*Baur
* Bauer
* Bach
* Bachman
* Bebel
* Benz
* Berg
* Berger
* Bergman
* Berend
* Behrens
* Bilderling
* Form
* Block
* Blucher
* Bonke
* Borzig
* Borman
* Brandt
* Braunfels
* Bremer
* Brenner
* Brunner
* Brunet
* Burckhardt
* Bülow

* Wagner
* Weigl
* Weiss
* Walser
* Walter
* Wasserman
* Weber
* Wegener
* Veltman
* Wenzel
* Werner
* Winkelhock
* Winterhalter
* Virt
* Wolf
* Wolzogen
* Wulf

* Hasenclover
* Ganz
* Hardenberg
* Hartung
* Goebbels
* Haeckel
* Gehlen
* Geller
* Genkel
* Goering
* Hertz

* Hess
* Hesse
* Himmler (disambiguation)
* Hirsch
* Girshman
*Hitler
* Glazenap
* Grimm
* Grossman
* Gruber

* Delbrück
* Diels
* Drexler

*Zach
* Zaks
* Zaleman
* Seidemann
* Seydlitz
* Seiler
* Semper
* Sievers
* Siegel
* Zilberman
* Silberstein
* Simmel
* Singer
* Sommer

* Yeager
* Jens
* Jensen
* Jentsch
* Yerg
* Josef
* Jon
* Yost

* Kade
* Kallenberg
* Callisen
* Kalb
* Kalkbrenner
* Kaltenbrunner
* Cantor
* Carus
* Kaulbach
* Kaufman
* Cauer
* Katz
* Koehler
* Keller
* Kellerman
* Ker
* Kirchner
* Kirchner
*Kittel
* Cool
*Klee
* Klein
* Kleiner
* Kleinerman
* Kleinman
* Kleist
* Klemperer
* Klenze
* Klinger
* Klotz
* Kleiber

* Klein
* Kleiner
* Knecht
* Kolbe
* Kopp
* Corf
* Kramer
* Krause
* Kraus
* Krebs
* Krenz
* Kretschmer
* Kruse
* Kun
* Kurtz
* Küng
* Köhler
* Koehne
* Koenig
* Koestlin

* Lamprecht
* Landsberg
* Laufer
* Leitner
* Lenz
* Liebknecht
* Lipsius
* Lichtenberg
* Loos

* Mayer
* Mackensen
* Mahler
* Mann
*Mezières
* Meyendorff
* Meyer
* Meissner
* Meltzer
* Meltzer
* Merkel
* Merz
* Metzger
*Moderzon
* Morgner
* Moritz
* Mozart
*Müller
* Mobius

* Nagel
* Bernhard
* Nikolai
* Nolken
* Notbeck
* Nöller

* Overback
* Osterman

* Patkul
*Pearl
* Preuss

* Ratzenberger
* Rau
* Rausch
* Rebinder
* Reinhardt
* Rennenkampf
* Riedel
* Rickert
* Rogge
* Rosenbaum
* Romberg
* Rothman
* Rothschild
* Rumpf
* Rumpff

* Sartorius
* Segal

* Thyssen
* Tischbein

* Feigenbaum
* Feuerbach
* Finkelstein
* Fischer
* Fleischer
* Fleishman
* Voigt
* Von Richthofen
* Von Feuerbach
* Franke
* Frieze

* Frisch
* Fuchs
* Furstenberg

* Haas
* Hagen
* Huckle
* Hanke
* Herzog
* Honecker
* Hopp
* Hoffman

* Zimmerman
* Zuckerman
* Zurbriggen

* Schwartz
* Shvartsman
* Schweitzer
* Scheidemann
* Schelling
* Schaefer
* Schaeffer
* Shekhtel
* Schiller
* Shirman

* Slate
* Schlechter
* Schmidt
* Schmitz
* Schneider
* Shneiderman
* Scholl
* Spiegel
* Sprenger
* Schreyer
* Shredder
* Stackelberg
* Stein
* Stern
* Schubert
* Shulman
* Schultze
* Schulze
* Schumacher

* Ebel
* Ebert
* Erdman
* Etinger

German names, that is, names common in Germany combine Roman (Latin), Greek, Scandinavian and Anglo-Saxon names.

Male German names

Alf (Alfred)– council of elves

Adalbert– nobility

Adelmar– noble and famous

Adolf– noble wolf

Alard- noble strength

Andreas– courageous

Arman- brave, resilient

Arn– the power of the eagle

Arnold– the power of the eagle

Astor– hawk

Berthold- bright ruler

Benedict– blessed

Berkhard (Berhold)– brave, strong defense

Boulder– prince

Bruns- brown

Valdemar- owning the world

Walter

Wendel- movement, wanderer

Werner- army guard

Werther- decent army

Vig– abbreviation of longer names beginning with "Wigvar"

Wieland– military territory or battlefield

Wilbert– bright fortress

Willie- helmet

William- helmet

Witold- ruler of the forest

Wolf- wolf

Wolfgang– wolf road

Hans- God's mercy

Harold- power

Henry– head of the house

George- peasant

Herald- wielding a spear

Hermann- warrior, warrior

Herbert– bright army

Gotthard– strong by God

Gottlieb– love of God

Gottfried– the world of God

Hugo- soul

Gustav– military council

Gunther– military

Dederik (Dedric)- king of nations

Jacob– oppressor

Jerd– brave spear

Jerfried– world of the spear

Gerhardt– brave spear

Joseph- he will increase

Jorg- peasant

Dirk- king of nations

Dietlind- soft person

Ditmar- a famous person

Dietfried- peaceful person

Ers- bear

Johann- God's mercy

Joseph- increase, profit

Johan- God's mercy

Kaiser- tsar

Charles- courageous, courageous

Karsten– follower of Christ

Kert- bold meeting

Kiefer- pine

Clos- victory of the people

Coleman- pigeon

Conrad- bold meeting

Christophe- derived from Christ

Labbert- bright

Lammert– bright lands

Leonard- strong lion

Leopold- brave

Lorenz– from Laurentum

Lutz– famous warrior

Ludwig– famous warrior, glory in battle

Manfred– world of power

Marcus– warlike

Martin– dedicated to the god of war Mars

Mathis– a gift from God

Michel- godlike, divine

Moritz- dark-skinned, Moor

Nikolos- victory of the people

Eugen– noble

Olberic– elf power

Alberich– elf power

Aldrick– an old ruler who has ruled for a long time

Allard- noble strength

Oscar– divine spear

Otto- rich

Ottokar– cautious because of wealth

Parsifal- the valley into which they penetrate

Raymond– wise protector

Rainer- wise warrior

Reinhard- wise and strong

Reinhold- wise ruler

Ralph– wise wolf

Rhine- wise

Richard- powerful and brave

Richter- reliable

Robert- bright, shiny

Roger– famous spear

Roland- glory of the country

Rudolf- Red Wolf

Ruppert- famous

Severin- strict

Seagard– enduring victory

Stephen- crown

Tederik- king of nations

Till– abbreviation of longer names beginning with "Till"

Wilfred- will, desire

Ulmanas- difficult

Hugo- child

Walter- ruler of the army

Watts- prosperity and power

Wendell- movement, wanderer

Falbert– very bright, famous

Fed- peaceful ruler

Ferdinand- army, brave

Fester- from the forest

Florenc– blooming

Franz- free

Friedrich- rich

Fritz (Fritz)- peaceful ruler

Hagan- tall son

Heinrich– head of the house

Heinz- household ruler

Hunk- God is good

Harald- army ruler

Harman- brave, resilient person

Hartwig- strong battle

Hart- hard

Hartman- strong personality

Hartmut- brave, strong-willed

Hayden- pagan

Hake- household ruler

Heimerick- household ruler

Hein- household ruler

Hayner- household ruler

Hellmut– brave

Helfrid– helmet world

Henning- household ruler

Henrik- household ruler

Herman- army man

Hilbert- a brilliant battle

Hildebrand– sword of battle

Hladwig– famous warrior

Chlodomir- owning the world

Hraban- crow

Hrodrik– known power

Hrolf– famous wolf

Schmidt– blacksmith

Ab- strong as a hog

Eberard- strong as a hog

Ebert- strong as a hog

Eberhard- strong as a hog

Abner- father

Evert- strong as a hog

Edgar- wielding a spear

Edmund– property protection

Edward- guardian of possessions, property

Ecbert- sharp edge of a sword

Eckhard– strong sword

Eldric- old ruler

Emerick– power of work

Emil– competing

Emmerick– power of work

Erwin- honoring friend, friendship

Erdman- strong personality

Erdmut- brave and daring

Eric- venerable leader

Erich– ruler

Ernst– convinced, serious, fighter against death

Erhard- brave and noble

Etzel– noble

Julius– sheaf

Jurgen- peasant

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German names. German male names and their meanings

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The word "surname" is of Latin origin. This term appeared in the Roman Empire and denoted slaves who belonged to one owner. Later, not only slaves, but also all close and distant relatives of the head of the family began to be called this way. The surname in the meaning in which we understand it now originated in Italy in the 10th and 11th centuries. The catalysts for its birth were the development of the economy and an attempt to make the process of inheriting material values clearer and easier. Then the need to give middle names moved to France, England and Germany. And later to other countries.

Origin story

The surname as a phenomenon appeared in Germany in the 12th century. The names given to newborns began to lose their uniqueness and were often repeated. Therefore, in order not to confuse different people with the same names, the inhabitants of the country began to give each other original nicknames that characterized them from some aspect: their way of life, the craft they practiced or the place from which they came.

Unlike the surnames of most other European countries, where a high percentage of them are formed from given names, the most common German surnames were given according to professional and toponymic characteristics. Least popular among German residents are patronyms (derived from given names) and nicknames. First of all, noble and rich people gave themselves second names. Only some time later this practice was adopted by the lower strata of the population.

Professional

In the Middle Ages, German surnames derived from occupation became widespread. This is explained by the fact that in those days in Germany there was a flourishing of various urban and rural crafts. Workers and peasants fled from numerous feudal lords to the cities to gain complete independence. In the city, families went about their business, which eventually became their distinctive sign, and then their surname.

A parallel can be drawn with an interesting fact about the spread of surnames of German origin in Russia. When Peter the Great built St. Petersburg and the fleet, he needed good architects and shipbuilders. There were not enough of them in the Russian Empire, so the tsar invited specialists from Germany to the developing city. The Germans came with families and stayed in Russia forever. Entire settlements were built for visiting foreigners. In subsequent generations, foreigners became completely Russified, and only a foreign surname, more often associated with a profession, reminded of the homeland and ancestors of a person born and raised in Russia.

Below we will consider the most commonly used German surnames to this day, formed by occupation.

Mueller (Muller) - miller. Perhaps the most famous not only in Germany, but also in other countries.

Schneider (Schneider) - tailor.
Schulz (Schultz) - judge.
Becker (Becker) - baker.
Fischer (Fischer) - fisherman.
Schmidt (Schmitd) - blacksmith.
Wagner (Wagner) - cart worker.
Weber (Weber) - weaver.
Hoffmann (Hofman, Hoffman) - landowner, estate manager.
Meyer, Mayer, Maier (Mayer) - property manager for the landowner; zemstvo chief.
Zimmermann (Zimmerman) - carpenter.

Toponymic

German surnames, originating from the locality, were initially taken by nobles based on the names of the estates that were in their ownership. Often the prefix “von” (background) was attached to surnames, which is translated into Russian as “from”. With this addition to the second name, the rich showed their importance and significance. Quite a long time passed before nicknames similar in etymology began to be given to poor people from villages and villages, whose surnames were formed either from the place of residence or from the locality from which they arrived.

Well-known examples of surnames derived from local names:

Luxemburg (Luxembourg).
Habsburg (Habsburg).
Eichenwald (Aikhenwald).
Meiendorf (Meyendorf).
Schwarzenegger (Schwarznegger).
Braunfels (Braunfels).
Fürstenberg - fürst means "prince, ruler." Fürstenberg is a village in Lower Saxony.

Patronyms and nicknames

The most interesting are nicknamed German surnames and their meanings. Nicknames in medieval Germany were given according to the same principle as in other countries. It happened that a person had some conspicuous appearance feature, for example, black hair, short stature, or, conversely, was distinguished by impressive size. Perhaps this trait was not in an external sign, but in character or lifestyle. For example, a person was known to be a drunkard, or was caught stealing, or he did not have children. Then nicknames were used, which very accurately noted the peculiarity of each person, such that when they were mentioned, those around them immediately understood who they were talking about. Here are some examples:

Neumann (Neumann) is a new person.
Schwarz (Schwarz) - black.
Klein (Klein) - small.
Hartmann (Hartman) is a strong, strong person.
Weiss (Weiss) - white.
Krause (Krause) - curly.
Hahn (Gan) - rooster.

There are even fewer surnames derived from given names in Germany. They were given by the name of the father or an older male ancestor. Typically, personal names that become surnames are not declined and do not acquire new prefixes and suffixes. That is, they remain unchanged. Examples:

Balduin (Baldwin).
Günther (Gunther).
Peters (Peters).
Thill (Till).
Werner (Werner).

Long surnames

We all know that there are long German surnames that are sometimes difficult for us to read, much less say out loud. Most often they are formed from two simple concepts and are compound words. Complex surnames were often given to noble persons whose family spanned many generations. They contained a positive characteristic of a certain kind. Also formed in a toponymic way, and indicating the place where the bearer comes from. Here are some of them:

Stachelberg (Stackelberg) - the stem stachel means “thorn, thorn”, and berg translates as “mountain”.
Rennenkampff (Rennenkampf) - rennen - “to rush”, kampf - “fight, struggle”.
Kaltenbrunner (Kaltenbrunner) - kalt - “cold, frosty”, brunn - “fountain” or brenn - “burn, burn” /
Hasenclever - hase means “hare, rabbit”, clever - “smart” /
Winterhalter (Winterhalter, Wintergalter) - winter means “winter”, and halt - “exposure, endurance, parking”.
Bilderling - bild translates as “picture”, ling - “heather”.
Reichenbach (Reichenbach) - reich means “rich”, bach - “stream”.

German surnames are rare

This list includes many compound surnames. Some of them are described above.

Öttinger, Oetinger (Ettinger) - means belonging to the Bavarian locality of Oettingen.
Glasenapp (Glasenapp).
Lamprecht (Lamprecht) is a given name used as a surname.
Ratzenberger (Ratzenberger) - ratz - “rat”, berg - “mountain”.
Klee (Klee) - translated as “clover”.
Baade (Baade).
Callenberg (Callenberg) - surname-toponym.
Kalb (Kalb).
Tappert (Tappert).

Some more interesting facts about German surnames in Russia. It is interesting that the surname of the writer and philosopher A. I. Herzen is not of German origin at all. It was invented for the future writer by his father, who himself bore the usual Russian surname Yakovlev. Herzen's mother's name was Henriette Haag. She fled to Russia from her father's house in Germany with Herzen's father. But since Yakovlev was not married to her, he did not have the right to give his son his last name. Therefore, such an original and euphonious surname was born, which is based on the German word herz - “heart”.

German surnames and their meanings

This article on our website analyzes and studies German surnames. Here we will look at the history and origin of German surnames, get acquainted with the list of the most common German surnames and their meanings.

German surnames- story

The origin of German surnames is in many ways similar to the histories of surnames in other European countries. The first German surnames appeared in the 12th century in western Germany. This was the most economically developed part of the country, and the first surnames were acquired by German feudal lords. In this sense, the history of German surnames is similar to the history of Europe and Russia, where surnames also first appeared among the noble, privileged and wealthy part of society. The last place German surnames appeared was in the north of Germany in the province of Hanover, and this was at the beginning of the 19th century. That is, the time of formation and origin of German surnames can be considered the period from the 12th to the 19th centuries, when the bulk of the inhabitants of Germany received surnames.

In modern German society, a personal name - Rufname and a hereditary surname - Familienname are used to name a person. Patronymics are not used in German culture, but the following are used to address a person:

Frau + first or last name - for women;

Herr + first or last name - for men.

Now let's look at how the process of formation of German surnames went, what was the source and initial link for them.

Origin and meaning of German surnames

All German surnames can be divided into several groups according to their origin and meaning. The overwhelming majority of German surnames were formed from personal names. These are, for example, German surnames: Walter, Hermann, Peters, Jacobi, Werner, Hartmann. The other part comes from nicknames, which could in some way characterize and identify a person in those days when there were no surnames. This is, for example, the origin of the following German surnames: Klein - Klein (meaning small), Neumann - Neumann (meaning black, black-haired), Braun - Brown (meaning brown), Lange - Lange (meaning long), Krause - Krause (meaning curly) etc. Some German surnames are associated with the names of a locality, town or geographical name of an object. This method of forming German surnames is also identical to other European or Russian surnames.

In addition, a significant part of German surnames were formed from an occupation or profession, for example:

1. Müller - miller
2. Schmidt - blacksmith
4. Fischer - fisherman
6. Weber - weaver
8. Becker - baker
9. Schulz - headman

12. Koch - cook
14. Richter - judge
16. Wolf (Wolf) - wolf

22. Kruger - potter

30. König - king
, Peters, Jacobi), nicknames (Bart, Stolz) and names of professions and occupations (Müller, Schmidt, Koch, Schulze, Schumacher).