What does the prefix von mean? German surnames for men and women. List of beautiful and famous German surnames with translation

The meaning and origin of male and female German names and surnames. Ancient and modern German names. Interesting facts about German names.

4.08.2016 / 14:19 | Varvara Pokrovskaya

You have acquaintances, friends, business partners from Germany and you want to know more about their names and surnames. Then this article will surely be useful to you.

Features of German names

German names formed in several stages under the influence of political, historical, cultural processes. Based on their origin, they can be divided into three groups:

• ancient Germanic names

They were formed back in the 7th–4th centuries. BC e. Closely associated with magic, mythology, totemic, military symbols and were intended to influence future fate and the character of a person. Some of them are of Scandinavian origin. Consist of two parts. In modern use there are no more than several hundred of them. The rest are long outdated.

• Latin, Greek, Hebrew (Biblical) names

They are still widespread today due to their versatility. They are familiar to representatives of any country and go well with surnames. They are used both in their original form and with some phonetic changes characteristic of the German language. For example: Victor, Katharina (Ekaterina), Nicholas (Nikolai), Alexander, Johann (Ivan), Joseph (Joseph), etc.

• foreign names used in abbreviated form

Fashion for them appeared in the middle of the last century. At first they were French - Marie, Annette, Catherine. Later they were joined by Russians (Sasha, Natasha, Vera, Vadim) and Arabic/Turkic variants Jem (Jamil), Abu (Abdullah) and others.

The meanings of some ancient Germanic names

There is still a tradition in Germany to give a newborn several names, sometimes there are up to ten. Upon reaching adulthood, this number can be reduced at your discretion. The usual practice is 1-2 first names + last names. Middle names are not used.

Did you know that full name the legendary Catherine I - Sophie Auguste Friederike von Anhalt-Zerbst-Dornburg), the brilliant Mozart - Johann Chrysostom Wolfgang Theophilus Mozart, the current Vice-Chancellor of Germany - Angela Dorothea Merkel (Kasner) - Angela Dorothea Merkel (Kasner)?

But they are far from the record holder. In 1904, one baby was given a name of 740 letters at birth. It looked something like this: Adolph Blaine Charles David Earl Frederick Gerald Hubert Irwin John Kenneth Lloyd Martin Nero Oliver Paul Quincy Randolph Sherman Thomas Juncas Victor William Xerxes Yancy Zeus Wolfe schlegelsteinhausenbergerdor + several hundred more difficult-to-read and practically untranslatable letter combinations. It was accompanied by an equally impressive surname, but a little more modest - only 540 letters.

Restrictions

German society is known for its conservatism and pedantry. This also affected names. Unlike Russia and the CIS countries, which are liberal in this regard, where registry offices quite officially register children with the names Tsar, Cinderella, Dolphin and even Lucifer, such a number will not work in Germany. Parents who love exotic things will have to defend their opinion in court, the decision of which is unlikely to be comforting for them. Exists a whole series restrictions enshrined at the legislative level + list of allowed names.

Forbidden:

• Giving a name without a clear gender characteristic, i.e. calling a boy a female name or a girl a male name. The exception is the name Maria. It can be chosen as the second male: Paul Maria, Hans Maria, Otto Maria.
• Use topographic names - cities, towns, countries.
• Religious taboos - Allah, Judas, Demon, Christ, Buddha.
• Offensive, controversial names. For example, Peter Silie - Parsley.
• Surnames of famous people.
• Titles.
• Brand names - Porsche, Pampers, Joghurt.
• Call children from the same family the same name. But this ban can be easily circumvented if desired. It is enough to register double names with the same first names, but different second names: Anna-Maria and Anna-Martha, Karl-Richard and Karl-Stefan.

For obvious reasons, to this day the name Adolf is an unspoken taboo.

Phonetics

Incorrect: Heinrich Heine, Wilhelm Hohenzollern

Right: Heinrich Heine, Wilhelm Hohenzollern

Error: Hans, Helmut

Right: Hans, Helmut

But: Herbert, Gerwig, Gerda, Herman

German female names

In modern Germany, abbreviated female names have become widespread. Instead of Katarina - Katya, Margarita - Margot. You can often find forms formed by merging two different names: Anna + Margaret = Annagret, Maria + Magdalena = Marlena, Anna + Maria = Annamaria, Anna + Lisa = Anneliese, Hannah + Laura (Laurin) = Hannelore. German female names end in -lind(a), -hild(a), -held(a), -a, ine, -i. An exception is the name Erdmut (Erdmute).

List of common German female names:

• Agna, Agnetta, Agnes - chaste, holy;
• Anna, Annie - mercy (of God), grace;
• Astrid - beautiful, goddess of beauty;
• Beata - blessed;
• Bertha - brilliant, magnificent;
• Wilda - wild;
• Ida - kind;
• Laura - laurel;
• Margareta, Greta is a pearl;
• Rosemary - reminder;
• Sophie, Sophia - wisdom;
• Teresa - strong and loved;
• Ursula - bear;
• Hannah - God is merciful;
• Helga - divine;
• Helena - torch;
• Hilda - practical;
• Frida - peace-loving;

Erma is harmonious.

German male names

In the 20th century, the majestic names of German kings and emperors - Albert, Karl, Wilhelm, Friedrich, Heinrich - were replaced by simpler ones - Andreas, Alexander, Alex, Michael, Klaus, Peter, Eric, Frank. Names have become widespread literary heroes and characters from films: Til, Daniel, Chris, Emil, Otto, Arno, Felix, Rocky. Most German male names end with consonants, often ending with letter combinations -brand, -ger, -bert, -hart, -mut. Less often - oh.

German names and surnames

The first German surnames appeared in the Middle Ages and belonged exclusively to aristocrats. They indicated a person’s origin, personal qualities, and family names. Ordinary people were addressed simply by name. By the beginning of the 20th century, all Germans had surnames, regardless of class.

In modern Germany, surnames mostly consist of one word, occasionally two. The law of 1993 abolished three-syllable or more constructions. Aristocratic prefixes - von der, von, der, von und zu are written together with the main part of the surname: von Berne - Vonbern, der Löwe - Derlöwe. The indication of titles was abolished back in 1919.

Surnames Slavic origin in Germany they do not change their ending, regardless of whether they belong to a man or a woman. Upon marriage, both spouses receive a common surname. Traditionally this is the husband's surname. It is also given to children. Changing surnames in Germany by at will not allowed. The exception is cases with discordant variants. In German identity documents, the main name is indicated first, then the second, and then the last name: Michael Stefan Haase, Mari Stefani Klain, Hanns Gerbert Rosenberg.

Common German surnames

German boy names

In the family, when communicating with peers or in informal settings, diminutives and affectionate terms are used to address boys. short forms names formed by adding the suffixes -lein, -le, -cher, Heinz - Heinzle, Klaus - Klauslein, Peter - Peterle (by analogy with the Russians -chka, -chek-, -enka, - ochka: Vovochka, Vanechka, Petenka).

German girl names

The same rule applies when creating girlish diminutive names: Petra, Velma, Irma - Petralein, Velmacher, Irmachen, Rosechen. When formally addressing girls over 15 years old, Fraeulein is added before the name, to lovely lady younger age- Maedchen.

Beautiful German names

The harsh sound characteristic of the German language gives uniqueness and unique charm to both native German names and borrowed ones, such as Italian or Russian. Beauty and euphony, of course, are subjective concepts, but we managed to compile the top most beautiful German names according to users of social networks.

Top 10 most beautiful female German names

1. Alma
2. Angelica
3. Iolanta
4. Isolde
5. Louise
6. Mirabella
7. Emily
8. Paula
9. Silvia
10. Frederica

Top 10 most beautiful male German names:

1. Stephen
2. Elias
3. Lucas
4. Martin
5. Jurgen
6. Gabriel
7. Emil
8. Ralph
9. Theodore (Theo)

Meaning of German names

Biblical names are found quite often in Germany, only in a slightly modified form. Their meaning corresponds to the original source.

Bible names

Popular German names

According to data obtained from several hundred German birth registration offices, the Standesamt, the most popular in 2015 female names became Sophie, Marie, Mia. Among the men, the leaders are Lucas, Alexander, Max, Ben. Also, many parents are increasingly choosing somewhat old-fashioned names for their newborns: Karl, Julius, Otto, Oswald.

Names for German Shepherd

A correctly chosen dog name will greatly facilitate the process of training and everyday interaction with the animal. The best option is a name with one or two syllables, with voiced consonants, partially characterizing the character or appearance of the pet. It is recommended to name puppies from the same litter with names starting with one letter.

For German Shepherds - smart, disciplined, stately - nicknames-titles such as Kaiser, Count, Lord, King, Milady are suitable. You can use words in German: Schwarz - black, Brown - brown, Schnell - fast, Spock - Calm, Edel - noble. The names of various German provinces in full or abbreviated form sound beautiful - Westphalia, Lorraine (Lori, Lota), Bavaria, Alsace.

In today's episode of the program we will talk about what the prefix “von” means before German surnames, whether the title of nobility exists in Germany today and what privileges it gives to its owner.

For lovers of long-distance reception next issue DH rubrics.

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German history, international politics, cultural life modern Germany - these are just some of the topics that interest me and are covered in your programs. I am also very interested in the German media's coverage of events taking place in Russia and other countries of the former Soviet Union. Very interesting, in particular, are the messages from your Moscow correspondent Anatoly Dotsenko...

And Igor Disumabaev from Tashkent thanks for the materials received - printouts of the texts of the desired programs, asks to send the next ones, wishes us not to get sick and work.. Thank you, Igor, we will try!

The following letter from Kyiv from Sergei Satsyk (I hope I pronounce it correctly):

I really like the Deutsche Welle programs, which have become especially good lately. Most of all I like the program “Culture Today”. Special attention I was drawn to the program about the Bayreuth Wagner Festival, which interested me in a new look at classical German music.

Another resident of Kyiv, N. Guseletova, shares the same opinion (unfortunately, you did not write your name in full). Thank you for your interest in Deutsche Welle programs.

We received the following letter by email. Eleonora Dobrinevskaya from Belarus writes to us in German. We translated it for our listeners:

I'm delighted, hello! Yours new page on the Internet - upper class! I want to say that I am delighted that Germany said “no” to the war in Iraq! I wish Germany a happy future and always be a strong country.

Our radio listener from the Russian city of Rtishchev Bondarev K. (unfortunately, I don’t know your full name) writes:

I started listening to you recently, but I am convinced that you are the best radio station. The only thing I don't like is the timing of your broadcast. Why don't you go on air during the day from 12 to 18? That would be great! I really like the program “Pages of History”. I especially love the programs: “Mailbox”, “COOL”, “Weekend”.

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When I first tuned in to Deutsche Welle, I was very happy, and when I found out that there were also German lessons, I immediately programmed the Wave’s broadcast frequency, and now it turns on automatically. Additional lessons are interesting because you can get to know better the habits of the Germans, their culture, get acquainted with their manner of behavior, etc. I like it since childhood German and the Germans in general, I am amazed by their neatness, politeness, and friendliness. They are wonderful role models!

Vasily Ivanovich Kuts from the city of Zhitomir once served in the GDR in an aviation division near Berlin and has been listening to our programs for more than 15 years. Vasily Ivanovich addressed us with the following question:

“Are there any noble titles left in Germany, for example, Baron von Straube, and what does the prefix “von” mean? I asked Elizabeth Wiebe to answer this question.

Nobility in Germany

First, about the meaning of the word “background”. This is, in the grammatical sense, an ordinary preposition indicating a starting point in space or a starting geographical point. Der Zug von Berlin – (train from Berlin). Der König von Schweden (King of Sweden), der Präsident von Russland (President of Russia). When combined with a surname, von means a title of nobility.

It seems to me that the title of nobility in our time does not play any role. Legally, it is part of the name, just like the Doctor of Science degree. But if you compare, Dr. Mayer means high professional qualifications. When applying for a job, a doctor will be given preference over a non-doctor. What does the prefix “background” do? If von so-and-so has not achieved anything in life, then a noble title will not improve his position in society. An example is our Cologne street musician Klaus der Geiger - Klaus the violinist. He is of noble blood. He has a vagabond lifestyle. Almost homeless.

Yes, you are right. People noble origin in Germany can be found among any professions. The nobles no longer have privileges. They were abolished more than eighty years ago, after the First World War. Then the Constitution of the country stated that all people are equal from birth. Before this, for many centuries the nobles were a privileged class. In the 16th century, under Kaiser Charles the Fifth, in addition to the family aristocracy, nobility appeared, granted a charter from the king or the Kaiser. Among the ancient hereditary families, such nobility was considered unreal, second-class. And since 1919 in Germany, the title of nobility cannot be granted.

But can you buy this noble console for yourself? Sometimes something like this appears in the press.

- Buying does not mean that you pay someone and receive a certificate. A man who wants to become a nobleman must find someone who will adopt him, that is, he will live under the name of his adoptive father, albeit a noble one, but someone else’s. Adopting an adult is a complex procedure, and the nobility is false, even if everything is legally correct.

I think this is rare.

- Yes, it happens much more often that representatives of ancient aristocratic families do not advertise their high origins. For example, a prominent politician from the Free Democratic Liberal Party, Hermann Otto Solms, is actually Prince zu Solms-Hohensolms-Lich. The real name of the scholar-historian Dominik Lieven is Dominik Prince von Lieven, but “prince” and “von,” his graduate students say, Professor Lieven calls “unmodern nonsense (unzeitgemäßer Unfug).” Another representative of this genus, a biologist, insists that he be named Alexander Prince von Lieven.

Well then. If such a name, such a surname. I think it sounds beautiful. And since you have inherited a noble surname from your ancestors, then wear it with honor, so that it is not shameful to pass it on to your children and grandchildren. Do the descendants of the last German Kaiser still live in Germany?

- Yes. This big family. Even a few families that don't get along very well. Prince Georg Friedrich of Prussia recently made headlines due to the fact that he sold at auction 17 thousand items from the Kaiser's heritage: porcelain, silver. He needs the money to pay inheritance tax to the financial department. After the death of his grandfather, Georg (he was 26 years old) became the head of the House of Hohenzollern and the main heir. But he must pay a share of the inheritance to six relatives - uncles and aunts. By the way, the potential Kaiser is studying at the university and his fellow students simply call him Georg, and not “Highness.”

To summarize: the noble prefix in Germany is part of the surname, it does not give privileges, the title of nobility - unlike England - is no longer assigned to anyone. Nevertheless, the descendants of nobles are often rightfully proud of their ancestors and their surname. Thanks for the information, Elizabeth Wiebe.

Our radio listener from Kyiv, Afanasy Serebryansky, congratulates us on the 12th anniversary of the reunification of Germany and complains that we rarely answer him. Dear Afanasy, thank you very much for your congratulations! We get huge amount letters that Deutsche Welle employees try not to leave unanswered. But letters sometimes travel a very long way – in both directions. But Afanasy Serebryansky’s request to include in the program one of the songs performed by famous group“Backstreet boys” we gladly perform.

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Hello dears.
Have you ever paid attention to complex surnames? On all sorts of backgrounds and tsu? Personally, these things have always stood out to me. And I understood that this is not always connected with noble origin or titles. Because it happens in different ways :-) Let's look at some examples.

Ursula von der Leyen
Let's start with the German ones themselves. The most famous prefix to a surname is actually von (von). Most often this is a truly aristocratic surname. It can be translated as “from.” The prefix “von” indicates the place of origin of the surname, although there were cases when the surname was not associated with the place of residence. Well, Otto von Bismarck, for example. Alternatively, there is not “von”, but “fom”. These are abbreviations for variants with the articles “von der”, “von dem”. The essence is the same


Vladimir Fedorovich von der Launitz
Another option for aristocratic surnames was the prefix tsu (variants “tsum”, “tsur”, etc.). It can be translated as "in". And most often it was used in the mixed version “von und zu”, for example, Hartmann von und zu Lichtenstein.

The combination of the prefixes “von” and “zu” in the form “von und zu” indicates that person of noble origin, whose ancestors have lived in a given territory since the Middle Ages, that is, this territory is in the possession of the clan at the time the surname is “fixed”. In addition, the prefix “tsu” was worn primarily by the so-called “ruling princes”, who, due to the mediatization of 1803-1806, did not lose princely title, but lost their “territorial” supremacy (for example, Zu Isenburg, Zu Stolberg). Thus, they differed from those princes who ruled after 1815 and bore the prefix “von”.
Here are the options
in, im, inder, an der, am, auf, auf der, aus, aus dem, aus den were not at all a sign of a noble family. Unless they were part of the ownership title. Although they also meant “from”. So-and-so is from such a place.
Here is a famous German hockey goalkeeper, for example, whose last name is Danny aus den Birken

Meanings close to German in Scandinavia and Finland. This or natural noble families, or altered after receiving the title of nobility. For example, Carl von Linné. Before he was given the title, he was simply Carl Linnaeus :-)

Although other prefixes were sometimes used. For example, af, or even the French de or de la (though rarely).
But Swedish hockey player Jacob de la Rose plays in the NHL


They followed a similar path in Lithuania. The conferment of some awards equates to receiving a knighthood, that is, nobility and thus can change the surname. The famous media personality Anastasia von Kalmanovich changed her last name after her late (alas) most interesting husband Shabtai Kolmanovich received the Order of Grand Duke Gediminas.

To be continued...
Have a nice time of day.

Due to their sonority and beauty, German family nicknames are very popular among the people of many countries. Each of the proper names is unique and has a specific origin. Anyone who wants to join the culture of the peoples of Germany will be able to choose a nickname to their liking, beautiful in sound or with sacred meaning.

German names and surnames

The history of the appearance of German names and surnames begins in ancient times. Personal names were intended to carry not only a beautiful combination, but also a magical meaning that endowed the owner with certain character qualities. The family nicknames of the Germans had a slightly different character of formation. They began to emerge from the meanings of nicknames, which reflected:

• already existing bright qualities of a person (Braun - brown, Schwarz - black, Klein - small);
• the area where he lived (von Berne, von der Vogelweide);
• the profession of the owner or his type of activity (Becker - baker, Koch - cook, Bauer - peasant);
• many were formed from personal names (Peters, Walter).

Gradually, peculiar nicknames began to be written down in official documents and acquired the meaning of the first German surnames, which were adopted by all the descendants of the people who bore them. Business papers began to distribute them widely. In many modern German families, it is customary to address servants simply by name, without using the addresses that are familiar to this European country and have a respectful meaning:

• Herr – for men;
• Frau – for women.

The prefix "von" in German surnames

Many Germanic surnames have the prefix “von” at the beginning. It was very honorable to have one, since it was assigned exclusively to people of noble blood - aristocrats. In ancient times, only feudal lords - people who owned servants and land plots - could have such a registration. Today, the prefix “von” in German surnames can be found among people of any kind of activity, since all noble privileges have been abolished.

German surnames for girls

Having sonorous names girls can assign themselves a second foreign origin. To address women with respect, the word "Frau" is used in Germany, meaning "mistress." Beautiful German female surnames with their meaning for girls:

• Kaufman - merchant;
• Becker - baker;
• Riger – from Riga;
• Klee – clover;
• Hertz - courage;
• Reuss - on behalf of;
• Schultz – headman;
• Mayer – farmer, burgomaster;
• Till is a strong ruler;
• Junghans - on behalf of the family.

German male surnames

German male surnames should have a noble and majestic meaning. Representatives of the stronger sex can choose them by translation, in accordance with their profession or appearance. To emphasize significance, the word “Herr” should be used when addressing. List of popular beautiful male German proper names with their meaning:

• Fisher - fisherman;
• Schmidt – blacksmith;
• Becker - baker;
• Koch is a cook;
• Richter – judge;
• Brown - brown;
• Lange – big;
• Klein – small;
• Schroeder - tailor;
• Koehler - coal miner;
• Kening is the king;
• Krause – curly;
• Lehmann is a landowner.

Popular German surnames

Common German surnames are often used as nicknames. They are beautiful, noble, sonorous. Many people have such family nicknames. famous people. List of popular beautiful Germanic proper names with meanings:

• Muller - miller;
• Mayer - land manager;
• Weber - weaver;
• Wagner - carriage maker;
• Schultz – headman;
• Hoffmann - courtier;
• Schaefer - shepherd;
• Bauer is a peasant;
• Wolf - wolf;
• Neumann – new person;
• Zimmerman – carpenter;
• Kruger is a potter;
• Schwartz – black;
• Hartmann - from a male personal name.

There are other beautiful nicknames:

• Walter;
• Berg;
• Borman;
• Bremer;
• Brunner;
• Ganz;
• Gruber;
• Geller;
• Seiler;
• Simmel;
• Singer;
• Keller;
• Kramer;
• Liebknecht;
• Leitner;
• Merkel;
• Meyer;
• Moritz;
• Neller;
• Osterman;
• Pearl;
• Preuss;
• Riedel;
• Rogge;
• Rothman;
• Frieze;
• Fuchs;
• Hoffman;
• Zuckerman;
• Schwartz;
• Schiller;
• Schmidt;
• Schneider;
• Shredder;
• Matte;
• Ebel.