IN European countries, as in the rest of the world, a person’s identity has been identified for many centuries by his name. An example is the son of God Jesus himself, who was named Emmanuel at birth and then called Yeshua. Need to differentiate different people with one name required explanatory additions. This is how the Savior began to be called Jesus of Nazareth.

When did the Germans get surnames?

German surnames arose according to the same principle as in other countries. Their formation among the peasantry of various lands continued until the 19th century, that is, it coincided in time with the completion of state construction. The formation of a united Germany required a clearer and more unambiguous definition of who is who.

However, already in the 12th century, nobility existed on the territory of the current Federal Republic of Germany, and it was then that German surnames. As in other European countries, patronymics are not used for personal identification here. But at birth, a baby is usually given two names. You can address any person by adding a word indicating their gender. Women's German surnames are no different from men's, they just use the prefix “Frau” in front of them.

Types of German surnames

According to linguistic origin, German surnames can be divided into groups. The first and most common is formed from names, mostly male. This is explained by the fact that the mass assignment of surnames occurred in a fairly short period (in historical sense) period, and there was simply no time for the manifestation of any sophisticated imagination.

Surnames derived from given names

The simplest of them are those in the creation of which they did not think for a long time, but simply formed them on behalf of their first owner. Some peasant's name was Walter, and so his descendants received that surname. We also have Ivanovs, Sidorovs and Petrovs, and their origin is similar to the German Johannes, Peters or Hermanns. From the point of view of historical background, such popular German surnames say little, except that some ancient ancestor was called Peters.

Profession as a morphological basis of a surname

Somewhat less common are German surnames that speak of professional affiliation their first owner, one might say, the ancestor. But the diversity of this group is much wider. The most famous surname in it is Müller, which means “miller” in translation. The English equivalent is Miller, and in Russia or Ukraine it is Melnik, Melnikov or Melnichenko.

The famous composer Richard Wagner could assume that one of his ancestors was engaged in freight transportation on his own cart, the ancestor of the storyteller Hoffmann owned his own farm yard, and the great-grandfather of the pianist Richter was a judge. The Schneiders and Schroeders once did tailoring, and the Singers loved to sing. There are other interesting German male surnames. The list continues with Fischer (fisherman), Becker (baker), Bauer (peasant), Weber (weaver), Zimmerman (carpenter), Schmidt (blacksmith) and many others.

Once upon a time during the war there was a Gauleiter Koch, the same one who was blown up by underground partisans. Translated, his surname means “cook.” Yes, he made some porridge...

Surnames as a description of appearance and character

Some male and possibly female German surnames are derived from the appearance or character of their first owner. For example, the word “lange” means “long” in translation, and it can be assumed that its original founder was tall, for which he received such a nickname. Klein (little) is his complete opposite. Krause means “curly”; such an attractive feature of the hair of some Frau who lived a couple of centuries ago can be inherited. Fuchs' ancestors were most likely as cunning as foxes. The ancestors of Weiss, Brown or Schwartz were, respectively, blonde, brown-haired or brunette. The Hartmans were distinguished by excellent health and strength.

Slavic origin of German surnames

The German lands in the east always bordered on and this created conditions for the mutual penetration of cultures. Well-known German surnames with the endings “-itz”, “-ov”, “-of”, “-ek”, “-ke” or “-ski” have a distinct Russian or Polish origin.

Lützow, Disterhoff, Dennitz, Modrow, Janke, Radecki and many others have long become familiar, and their total share is one fifth of the total number of German surnames. In Germany they are perceived as one of their own.

The same applies to the ending “-er”, which comes from the word “yar”, meaning a person in the Old Slavic language. A painter, a carpenter, a fisherman, a baker are obvious examples of such cases.

During the period of Germanization, many similar surnames were simply translated into German, choosing the appropriate roots or replacing the ending with “-er”, and now nothing reminds of the Slavic origin of their owners (Smolyar - Smoler, Sokolov - Sokol - Falk).

Background Barons

There are very beautiful German surnames, consisting of two parts: the main and a prefix, usually “von” or “der”. They contain information not only about unique appearance features, but also about famous historical events in which the owners of these nicknames took part, sometimes actively. Therefore, descendants are proud of such names and often remember their ancestors when they want to emphasize their own birth. Walter von der Vogelweid - it sounds! Or von Richthoffen, pilot and "Red Baron".

However, not only former glory becomes the reason for such complications in writing. The origin of German surnames can be much more prosaic and talk about the area in which the person was born. What, for example, does Dietrich von Bern mean? Everything is clear: his ancestors came from the capital of Switzerland.

German surnames of Russian people

Germans have lived in Russia since pre-Petrine times, populating entire areas called “settlements” according to ethnic principles. However, then all Europeans were called that way, but under the great reformer emperor the influx of immigrants from German lands was encouraged in every possible way. The process gained momentum during the reign of Catherine the Great.

German colonists settled in the Volga region (Saratov and Tsaritsin provinces), as well as in Novorossiya. Big number Lutherans later converted to Orthodoxy and assimilated, but they retained their German surnames. For the most part, they are the same as those worn by settlers who came to the Russian Empire during the 16th-18th centuries, with the exception of those cases when the clerks who prepared the documents made clerical errors and mistakes.

Surnames considered Jewish

Rubinstein, Hoffman, Aizenstein, Weisberg, Rosenthal and many other names of citizens Russian Empire, the USSR and post-Soviet countries are mistakenly considered Jewish by many. This is wrong. However, there is some truth in this statement.

The fact is that Russia, starting from late XVII century, became the country where every enterprising and hard-working person could find his place in life. There was enough work for everyone, new cities were built at an accelerated pace, especially in Novorossiya, which had been conquered from Ottoman Empire. It was then that Nikolaev, Ovidiopol, Kherson and, of course, the pearl of the south of Russia - Odessa - appeared on the map.

Extremely favorable economic conditions were created for foreigners coming to the country, as well as for its own citizens who wished to develop new lands, and political stability, supported by the military power of the regional leader, guaranteed that this situation would last for a long time.

Currently, Lustdorf (Jolly Village) has become one of the Odessa suburbs, and then it was a German colony, the main occupation of which was Agriculture, mainly viticulture. They also knew how to brew beer here.

Jews, famous for their business savvy, trading spirit and craft skills, also did not remain indifferent to the call of the Russian Empress Catherine. In addition, musicians, artists and other artists of this nationality came from Germany. Most of them had German surnames, and they spoke Yiddish, which in essence is one of the dialects of the German language.

At that time there was a “Pale of Settlement”, which, however, outlined a fairly large and not the worst part of the empire. In addition to the Black Sea region, Jews chose many areas of the current Kyiv region, Bessarabia and other fertile lands, building small towns. It is also important that living outside the Pale of Settlement was mandatory only for those Jews who remained faithful to Judaism. Having converted to Orthodoxy, everyone could settle in any part of the vast country.

Thus, immigrants from Germany of two nationalities became bearers of German surnames.

Unusual German surnames

In addition to the indicated groups of German surnames, derived from professions, hair color, and appearance features, there is one more, rare, but wonderful. And she talks about the glorious qualities of character, good disposition and fun for which the ancestors of the person bearing this name were famous. An example is Alisa Freundlich, who worthily confirms the reputation of her ancestors. “Kind”, “friendly” - this is how this German surname is translated.

Or Neumann. " New person" - isn’t it beautiful? How great it is to delight those around you, and yourself, every day with freshness and novelty!

Or economic Wirtz. Or Luther with pure thoughts and an open heart. Or Jung is young, regardless of the number of years he has lived.

Such interesting German surnames, the list of which can be continued endlessly!

Such a maneuver can hardly be called deception - most likely it is a pseudonym, a way to use your favorite names and surnames.

The most popular nicknames for social networking accounts are German surnames.

Girls especially often use German surnames. By monitoring the accounts, you can identify particularly popular options.

List of popular German surnames for girls with translation

Before using a specific German surname, it is worth knowing the exact translation. Sometimes funny stories happen when the “carrier” learns the translation from friends or acquaintances.

The peculiarity of German surnames lies in their origin. Each option has historical origins: profession, social status, habits.

Note! It is worth knowing the ethics regarding the compilation of surnames German. Some options cannot be used by a girl, others are not suitable for men.

Thanks to the lists, you can choose a surname not only with a normal meaning, but also a beautiful sounding one. There are lists of the most popular options, compiled according to statistics from German institutions.

Translation for German surnames:

German surnames for girls	List in Russian
Müller	Miller. Has ancient roots. The translation itself speaks of the craft that the family has been engaged in for a long time
Schmidt	Blacksmith. Included in the 30 most popular options and also determines the artisanal past of the family
Schneider	Fisherman. This value determines more about a person’s passion. It happened that this was the name given to fish or seafood merchants
König	King. The owners of such property were the closest relatives of the monarch
Schwarz	Black or black-haired. Appeared as a nickname for people who had features and appearance that were non-standard for the German people
Brown	Brown. Sometimes this was the name given to people who wore exclusively brown clothes or had brown hair and brown eyes
Hartmann	Derived from male name Hartmann. The clan received such a surname if the family did not have any special differences, occupations, or privileges
Wagner	Wagner
Richter	Judge. Previously, only noble people who administered justice

Beautiful German names and their meanings

German female names very beautiful and sonorous, as they combine Latin, Greek, Scandinavian and English motifs.

Some of them are inherent Slavic peoples and are actively used. It is considered fashionable to give children foreign names. Especially if it's a girl.

Some variants of names are also popular in our country, but they are sweet-sounding and do not hurt the ear with their non-standard pronunciation.

When choosing foreign name It is important for a girl to know the meaning and translation.

Beautiful female names and their meanings:

1. Amalia is translated as work. Assigned to hardworking and diligent girls.
2. Beata has ecclesiastical origins and literally means blessed.
3. Bertha is magnificent, the most wonderful and charming.
4. Irma has a direct translation: dedicated to the god of war. There are Roman roots here.
5. Katarina or Katherine means pure maiden. The owners were the daughters of shepherds and clergy.
6. Laura was the name given to people in Rome who received a laurel wreath - a sign of greatness and victory.
7. Malvina has a literal translation - friend of justice.
8. Sophie and everything that comes from him are defined as wisdom.
9. Teresa is translated from German as beloved or strong. Borrowed from Greek, where it means female hunters.
10. Eleanor has two meanings. The first is foreign, and the second is different.
11. Elvira is the protector of everyone.
12. Jadwiga is the name of a rich warrior who glorified one of the Scandinavian villages.

There are options for double names that combine Slavic and German names.

Many believe that this combination activates energy centers that are responsible for certain areas of human activity.

Which German surname and first name should I choose for the VKontakte network?

It is also important that this account I didn’t meet on VKontakte too often.

1. According to statistics The most harmonious and interesting are the following German surnames: Mayer, Weber, Braun, Werner, Lehmann.

   Their popularity is indicated by their speakers - all of them famous people art, science.

2. Most Popular names in Germany according to registry office statistics for the last 30 years: Sophie, Marie, Hannah.

   Over the past year, the most frequently registered girls are the following names: Mia, Emma, ​​Lilly, Emilia, Maya, Sarah.

3. Can interpret your name as foreign, changing the ending, stress, and pronunciation inherent in the language.

   For example, Sofia sounds like Sophie in a foreign way; Maria, like Marie.

If the account contains German name and last name, then when choosing it is worth working on consonance. Even the simplest and popular names and surnames often do not go together.

Attention! An interesting option would be the German version of the surname with the real name of the owner of the page on the social network. This technique is most popular among teenagers.

The advantage of German names is that they all have certain meaning and meaning.

There are no fictional options that do not carry any semantic meaning. Therefore, the choice for a social network must be thoughtful.

Related Posts

1. Mueller (0.95%) (miller)
2. Schmidt (0.69%) (blacksmith)
3. Schneider (0.40%) (tailor)
4. Fischer (0.35%) (fisherman)
5. Meyer (0.33%) (from Latin major - “big”, official (elder, law enforcement officer, zemstvo chief, etc.), or from Jewish surname Meir; also: Meier, 0.15%; Maier, 0.13%; Mayer, 0.13%)
6. Weber (0.30%) (weaver)
7. Schulz (0.27%) (judge)
8. Wagner (0.27%) (cart worker)
9. Becker (0.27%) (baker)
10. Hoffmann (0.26%) (yard owner)
11. Schaefer (shepherd)
12. Koch (cook)
13. Bauer (peasant)
14. Richter (judge)
15. Klein (small)
16. Schroeder (tailor)
17. Wolf (wolf)
18. Neumann (new man)
19. Schwarz (black)
20. Zimmermann (carpenter)
21. Krueger (innkeeper)
22. Braun (brown)
23. Hofmann (yard owner)
24. Schmitz (blacksmith)
25. Hartmann (strong or forest man)
26. Lange (long)
27. Schmitt (blacksmith)
28. Werner (fighter)
29. Krause (curly)
30. Meier (see Meyer)
31. Schmid (blacksmith)
32. Lehmann (len holder)
33. Schultze (judge)
34. Maier (see Meyer)
35. Koehler (coal miner)
36. Herrmann (warrior)
37. Walter (messenger)
38. Koenig (king)
39. Mayer (see Meyer)
40. Huber (peasant)
41. Kaiser (emperor)
42. Fuchs (fox)
43. Peters (Petrov)
44. Moeller (miller)
45. Scholz (judge)
46. ​​Lang (long)
47. Weiss (white)
48. Jung (young)
49. Hahn (rooster)
50. Vogel (bird)

The most common Russian surnames

1. Smirnov
2. Ivanov
3. Kuznetsov
4. Popov
5. Sokolov
6. Lebedev
7. Kozlov
8. Novikov
9. Morozov
10. Petrov
11. Volkov
12. Soloviev
13. Vasiliev
14. Zaitsev
15. Pavlov
16. Semenov
17. Golubev
18. Vinogradov
19. Bogdanov
20. Vorobiev
21. Fedorov
22. Mikhailov
23. Belyaev
24. Tarasov
25. Belov
26. Komarov
27. Orlov
28. Kiselev
29. Makarov
30. Andreev
31. Kovalev
32. Ilyin
33. Gusev
34. Titov
35. Kuzmin
36. Kudryavtsev
37. Baranov
38. Kulikov
39. Alekseev
40. Stepanov
41. Yakovlev
42. Sorokin
43. Sergeev
44. Romanov
45. Zakharov
46. ​​Borisov
47. Korolev
48. Gerasimov
49. Ponomarev
50. Grigoriev

Sources of Russian surnames:
Surnames formed from the names: Ivanov, Petrov, Vasiliev, Pavlov, Semenov, Bogdanov, Fedorov, Mikhailov, Tarasov, Makarov, Andreev, Ilyin, Titov, Kuzmin, Alekseev, Stepanov, Yakovlev, Sergeev, Romanov, Zakharov, Borisov, Gerasimov, Grigoriev (23)
Surnames derived from the names of animals: Sokolov, Lebedev, Kozlov, Volkov, Soloviev, Zaitsev, Golubev, Vorobyov, Komarov, Orlov, Gusev, Baranov, Kulikov, Sorokin (14)
Surnames formed from natural or psychological traits: Smirnov, Morozov (?), Belyaev, Belov, Kiselev (?), Kudryavtsev, Korolev (?) (7)
Surnames derived from occupation: Kuznetsov, Popov, Novikov (?), Kovalev, Ponomarev (5)
Surnames derived from plant names: Vinogradov (1)

Sources of German surnames:
Surnames derived from occupation: Mueller + Moeller, Schmidt + Schmitz + Schmitt + Schmid, Schneider, Fischer, Meyer + Meier + Maier + Mayer, Weber, Schulz + Schultze + Scholz, Wagner, Becker, Hoffmann + Hofmann, Schaefer, Koch , Bauer, Richter, Schroeder, Neumann (?), Zimmermann, Krueger, Werner, Lehmann, Koehler, Herrmann, Walter, Huber (34)
Surnames derived from physical or psychological traits: Klein, Schwarz, Braun, Hartmann, Lange, Krause, Koenig (?), Kaiser (?), Lang, Weiss, Jung (11)
Surnames derived from animal names: Wolf, Fuchs, Hahn, Vogel (4)
Surnames derived from given names: Peters (1)

The predominance in the Russian list of surnames formed from given names is striking (twenty-three). IN German list There is only one such surname. In second place in the Russian list are surnames derived from the names of animals. There are also significantly fewer of them on the German list (four versus fourteen). The number of surnames derived from physical or psychological traits in the lists is approximately comparable (seven and eleven). In the German list, surnames derived from occupation absolutely predominate (thirty-four versus five in the Russian list). Coincidences between the lists: Kuznetsov-Kovalev (Schmidt + Schmitz + Schmitt + Schmid), Novikov (Neumann), Belyaev-Belov (Weiss), Kudryavtsev (Krause), Korolev (Koenig), Petrov (Peters), Volkov (Wolf).

Oleg and Valentina Svetovid are mystics, specialists in esotericism and occultism, authors of 14 books.

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German surnames

German surnames

List of famous German surnames.

German surnames appeared in the 12th century and developed from nicknames that indicated their origin. Family names were assigned primarily to feudal lords. At first, ordinary people were addressed simply by name. By the 20th century, all Germans already had surnames, the distinction between the nobility and common people disappeared.

Aristocratic titles became parts of compound surnames in Germany. Such surnames often include the particle “von”, “von der”, “von dem”.

Most German surnames consists of one word. In 1993, a law came into force in Germany prohibiting three-syllable and polysyllabic surnames that may arise as a result of marriage.

The most common German surnames

Muller

Schmidt

Schneider

Fischer

Meier

Weber

Wagner

Becker

Schulz

Hofmann, Hoffmann

Schafer

Koch

Bauer

Richter

Klein

Wolf

Schroder

Neumann

Stellmacher

Schwarz

Zimmermann

Brown

Kruger

Hartmann

Lange

Werner

Krause

Lehmann

Kohler

Hermann

Konig

Schlosser

Richtengden

German surnames (list)

Eisenberger

Arendt

Auer

Baldwin

Baldauf

Becker

Berthold

Bickel

Bissing

Bitner

Blumentrost

Borman

Bromberg

Brueggemann

Burkhard

Burkel

Weinzierl

Weiss

Veise

Wigman

Witte

Vlah

Wolf

Wulf

Hartwig

Geibel

Heinrich

Gerkan

Gerster

Hertz

Goethe

Ghislaine

Himmler

Hirsch

Glauber

Hoffman

Goffman

Gref

Grimm

Gutzeit

Gunther

Dice

Dummer

Days

Dippel

Seidel

Zaks

Sauer

Zeeman

Zooter

Cantor

Kaufman

Kautz

Cowher

Körbers

Koester

Kirchner

Klee

Koblenz

Kolb

Kolbe

Kopp

Cossman

Krampe

Kraus

Cracker

Kromberg

Kromberger

Kronberg

Kronberger

Kugler

Kunz

Kunze

Lamprecht

Lange

Langen

Langman

Laube

Lehmann

Lechner

Libert

Lipps

Mayer

Major

Mauthner

Mobius

Möllendorf

Merder

Milch

Muller

Notbeck

Osthoff

Ohman

Pearl

Peterman

Preyer

Preysler

Propper

Pressler

Purgold

Rauch

Ribs

Rennes

Rieger

Riedel

Rosenberg

Rohau

Rutzen

Rustov

Tappert

Tausig

Toeplitz

Till

Theurer

Ulbricht

Umlauf

Fisher

Von Feuerbach

Franc

Haase

Hellberg

Hippel

Hopp

Hoffman

Hoffmann

Christmann

Zapf

Zipser

Schauman

Schonau

Shetelikh

Schildknecht

Spindler

Spitta

Spurs

Schreyer

Schreyer

Stange

Strecker

Schultz

Schumacher

Schuppe

Erkert

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German surnames

Attention!

Sites and blogs have appeared on the Internet that are not our official sites, but use our name. Be careful. Fraudsters are using our name, our email addresses for your newsletters, information from our books and our websites. Using our name, they lure people to various magical forums and deceive (they give advice and recommendations that can harm, or lure money for conducting magical rituals, making amulets and teaching magic).

On our websites we do not provide links to magic forums or websites of magic healers. We do not participate in any forums. We do not give consultations over the phone, we do not have time for this.

Note! We do not engage in healing or magic, we do not make or sell talismans and amulets. We do not engage in magical and healing practices at all, we have not offered and do not offer such services.

The only direction of our work is correspondence consultations in written form, training through an esoteric club and writing books.

Sometimes people write to us that they saw information on some websites that we allegedly deceived someone - they took money for healing sessions or making amulets. We officially declare that this is slander and not true. In our entire life, we have never deceived anyone. On the pages of our website, in the club materials, we always write that you need to be honest decent person. For us, an honest name is not an empty phrase.

People who write slander about us are guided by the basest motives - envy, greed, they have black souls. The times have come when slander pays well. Now many people are ready to sell their homeland for three kopecks, and it is even easier to slander decent people. People who write slander do not understand that they are seriously worsening their karma, worsening their fate and the fate of their loved ones. It is pointless to talk with such people about conscience and faith in God. They do not believe in God, because a believer will never make a deal with his conscience, will never engage in deception, slander, or fraud.

There are a lot of scammers, pseudo-magicians, charlatans, envious people, people without conscience and honor who are hungry for money. The police and other regulatory authorities have not yet been able to cope with the growing influx of "Deception for profit" madness.

Therefore, please be careful!

Sincerely – Oleg and Valentina Svetovid

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German surnames connected with general process formation of hereditary family name V Western Europe. As usual, the feudal lords were the first to acquire them in order to legitimize their rights to their possessions. Then these were nicknames that added special characteristics to personal names (Friedrich Barbarossa received his nickname for his red beard). Surnames and nicknames first began to appear in the 12th century in western Germany and slowly spread throughout the rest of the territory. Only eight centuries later did all the inhabitants of the country have surnames; the last to receive them were representatives of the lower strata of the population of Northern Germany by end of the 19th century century. Since German surnames are passed down through the male line, they have no differences in gender - the surnames of both men and women are pronounced and spelled the same. However, modern German women who pay attention to the harmonious combination of first and last names cannot be satisfied with such a combination as Anna Fischer (Anna the Fisherman). Then they take their mother's surname or create a double surname.

It's interesting that in dictionary of German surnames There are surnames with the ending -ov or –ev, which makes them similar to Russian surnames (Badrov, Dorov, Masov). Declension these and others German surnames in Russian it obeys general rules changes in surnames by case.

Classification of German surnames and their meaning

List of German surnames makes it possible to divide them into several groups according to origin. As in other European countries, many German surnames were formed from personal names (Walter, Peters). The other group reflects the individual characteristics of the first owner of the surname (Klein-small, Neumann-black-haired). Meaning parts German surnames corresponds geographical names, for example, Bayer (from Bavaria), Boehm (from the Czech region of Bohemia). Often people received surnames from the name of a building or piece of land. So Rosenbauer is a peasant who lived on a farm called “Rose”. If you look list of German surnames in alphabetical order, then you can see how many surnames were formed from the names of professions and positions - Schmidt (blacksmith), Mayer (farm manager), Tepfer (potter), Müller (miller). Some German surnames are influenced by local dialects or foreign languages. In this case, their interpretation is somewhat difficult.

List of German surnames shows which surnames are the most common in Germany at the moment.

Popular German surnames and their translation

The list below shows how the German surnames most often found in Germany are translated. These surnames are the most famous and common in this country.
Muller(Müller) - miller
Schmidt(Schmidt) - blacksmith
Schneider(Schneider) - tailor
Fisher(Fischer) - fisherman
Mayer(Meier) - property manager
Weber(Weber) - weaver
Wagner(Wagner) - carriage maker, carriage maker
Becker(Becker) - baker
Schultz(Schulz) - headman
Hofmann, Hoffman(Hoffmann) - courtier
Schaefer(Schäfer) - shepherd-sheepdog
Koch(Koch) - cook
Bauer(Bauer) - peasant
Richter(Richter) - judge
Klein(Klein) - small
Wolf(Wolf) - wolf
Schroeder(Schröder) - tailor
Neumann(Neumann) - new person
Schwartz(Schwarz) - black (black-haired)
Zimmermann(Zimmermann) - carpenter
Brown(Braun) - brown
Kruger(Krüger) - potter
Hartmann(Hartmann) - from the male name Hartmann
Lange(Lange) - long (large)
Werner(Werner) - from the male name Werner
Krause(Krause) - curly
Lehmann(Lehmann) - landowner
Köhler(Köhler) - coal miner
Herman(Hermann) - from the male name Herrmann
Koenig(König) - king