Schumacher and others: the meaning and origin of famous German families

Have you ever thought about the meanings of German surnames that you have read or heard? What do they mean? As it is easy to guess, the meaning and origin of the surname may not be the same as it seems at first glance. Most often German names and place names have references to ancient Germanic words that have changed their meaning or are simply not used anymore. For example, the importance of the name of the famous writer Gunter Grass seems obvious. However, although Grass is translated from German as "grass," the surname of the writer has nothing to do with grass. The meaning of his name goes back to another ancient German word, the meaning of which is absolutely different. German connoisseurs can say that people with the surname Gottschalk are "God's outcasts or scoundrels", but the well-known TV presenter Thomas Gottschalk, fortunately, has a much more pleasant meaning for his name. Similar errors and misunderstandings can arise because words change their meaning and writing over time. And the same name Gottschalk has more than three hundred years of history, and in those days the word Schalk had a completely different meaning than today. Arnold Schwarzenegger is another person whose surname is misunderstood by many and even racist. Although the error in this case allows those who do not speak German well. You can be sure that the surname of the actor has nothing to do with black people. The correct pronunciation of the surname in German is "Schwarzen-Egger". There are many names that are treated absolutely wrong.

Konrad Adenauer - First Chancellor of Germany

Many names come from geographical names and cities. In this case, Adenauer, who was the first Bundeskancler in Bonn, has a surname originating from a small town near Bonn-Adenau. In accordance with the rules of the German language, a resident of the city of Adenau is called Adenauer.

John Sebastian Bach - German composer

Sometimes the surname means exactly what it should mean. In the case of the famous composer, the surname hides the German word Bach, which means that his ancestors lived next to a stream or stream.

Boris Becker is a German tennis player

This surname is "professional", that is, related to the profession that its owners had. However, Becker's true profession is far from what his last name Backer means (that is, a baker).

Karl Benz is one of the inventors of the car

Many surnames were once (or are still) names. Karl Benz has a surname, which was once an abbreviation for the names Bernhard or Berthold.

Gottfried Wilhelm Daimler - one of the inventors of the car

Older variants of the name Daimler - Doymler, Taimler and Toimler. Of course, this is not the meaning that such a famous person would like to have, but his last name came from the German word Taumler, which means "swindler".

Thomas Gottschalk - German TV presenter

Surname Gottschalk literally means "God's servant," although today the word Schalk has a completely different meaning - "outcast", "scoundrel". Like Gottlieb ("God's love"), the surname of Gottschalk was originally a name.

Stefanie "Steffi" Count - German tennis player

In this case, everything is quite simple - the German word Graf means the same as the Russian word "count".

Günther Grass - German writer, Nobel Prize winner

This is a great example of a surname, the meaning of which seems obvious, but in fact it is not. The name of the famous writer comes from the ancient Germanic language, which existed between the 11th and 14th centuries. It was the word Graz, which meant "evil" or "stressful". And as soon as you learn it, you immediately understand how this name suits the writer.

Henry Kissinger - former US Secretary of State, Nobel Prize winner

The surname of Heinz Alfred Kissinger, better known as Henry Kissinger, comes from the place and literally means "a man from the city of Bad Kissingen" - this is the city famous for its spa resorts in Bavaria. Kissinger's great-grandfather got this name from the city in 1817. Even today, a man born in this city will be known as Kissinger.

Heidi Klum - German model, actress

Ironically, the name of the Heidi Klum model comes from the Satro-German words klumm (low, short, limited) and klamm (suffering from a lack of money). Being known to the whole world as a model, Heidi has no problems with either growth or money.

Helmut Kohl - former German Chancellor

And again the name appears on the list, which came from the profession, in German Kohl means "cabbage," and the ancestors of the chancellor most likely engaged in either growing or selling cabbage.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart is an Austrian composer

For the first time a family name in the form of Mozahrt was registered in the 14th century in South Germany and it originated from the ancient German word motzen, which means "ride in the mud". Originally these words (mozahrt) were used to describe someone careless, untidy, dirty.

Ferdinand Porsche - Austrian automotive engineer and designer

Surname Porsche has Slavic roots and, most likely, descended from the abbreviated form of the name Borislav.

Maria and Maximilian Schell - Austro-Swiss actor and actress

In the ancient German language, the word schell meant "exciting" or "wild."

Claudia Schiffer - German model, actress

One of the ancestors of Claudia, most likely, was a sailor or skipper, since schiffer from German translates as "skipper".

Oscar Schindler is a German factory owner

Another last name, which came from the profession - schindelhauer, which translates as "roofer."

Arnold Schwarzenegger - Austrian actor, director, politician

The name of the former bodybuilder is not only a little long and unusual, it also often remains misunderstood by others. Arnold's surname consists of two words - schwarzen, which means "black", and egger, which translates as "angle." Thus, his name can be translated as a "black corner", which gives a hint that his ancestors lived somewhere in the forest, which at the same time was dark.

Til Schweiger - German actor, director, producer

Although it seems that this name refers to the verb schweigen, which means "to keep silence", in fact it originated from the ancient German word sweige, which translates as "farm".