By
Karl R. Mesloh, New
Those of you who
have German ancestors, did you ever wonder what your surname (last name) means,
or how it originated? Dr. George F.
Jones wrote a most interesting and informative book on the subject titled,
"German American Names", in which he interpreted 12,700 names.
In this and four ensuing articles, a look will be taken at the origins,
and an attempt will be made to interpret as many of the German names on “The
Towpath" mailing list as possible. (Incidentally, Wayne Wenning, of the
"Evening Leader", placed a copy of Dr. Jones’ book in each of
the four local libraries: New Bremen, New Knoxville, Minster and St. Marys.)
The earliest
German names were just a single name, it was not a first name, or a last
name, it was just a "name". This "name" was composed
of two syllables with each syllable representing a "root", and each
"root" having a specific meaning. This name was very important
to the Germans, for it represented that whatever they were today,
whatever they would be tomorrow, and whatever virtues they would pass along to
their namesakes, all lay in that "name" and so the Germans
chose their name very carefully.
Whenever the Germans wanted to
emphasize some particular aspect of their “being”, they used a tautological
name; by tautological, it is meant that the name consisted of two different
roots, but with each root having the same meaning. For example, an expert or adept swordsman
might choose or be given the name "Schwerdecke" by his fellow
warriors; "schwerd" meaning sword, and "ecke" meaning sword
so the name meant, sword-sword. Another example would be the name
"Richwald" as "rich" meant ruler and "wald" meant
ruler and so the name meant, ruler-ruler (please note, the ancient root
"wald" meant ruler but today "wald” means forest). There are at
least three such tautological names in the local area: Mesloh meaning
"swampy low forest" or simply "swampy forest", (the tautology
being that a "low forest" grows in a
swamp; Huckriede meaning "marsh-reed marsh";
Klipfels meaning "cliff-cliff" and so one would conclude that
the Meslohs lived in or near a very swampy place; the Huckriedes, in or
near a very marshy place and the Klipfels on a very
high or steep or prominent (in some aspect) cliff.
There are various suffixes (or root endings)
of interest, which earlier were of considerable importance:
1) "er" originally meant
that the person whose name ended in "er" was an owner of a
farm at the terrain feature indicated by the two "roots", for
example, the name, "Rothenberger" would mean that a person by the
name of Rothenberg owned a farm at "red mountain"; in time it also
meant a dweller at, or near, or on red mountain. "Er" can
also mean that the person “is a
doer of something", for example, the name "Becker" can
mean a "baker" (as well as
a dweller, or farm owner on a stream). From these
several examples it is seen that the specific geographical location is
both necessary and important for an accurate interpretation of one's
name. Incidentally, some names end in
"ert" but the addition of the "t” neither adds nor subtracts
anything from the meaning of the name; the "t" was added to help in
pronounciation indicating that the "r" was not to be trilled.
2) The suffix "en" essentially
meant "at" the terrain feature the "en" followed. An
interesting name in which this suffix is highlighted is the name,
"Ziegenbusch". The ancient root, "Ziege" means
"goat" and although a literal translation of "Ziegenbusch"
can be "goat bush" there is yet another, and even more interesting!
In ancient days, whenever the wine of the new harvest was ready for drinking,
the inn or tavern keepers would hang a piece of greenery, such as a limb of a
bush, on their doorframe to so indicate the new wine was ready. Thus, early-on,
all inn or tavern keepers were called, Busch, or Buschers, or Buschman from
this hanging out of a green bush. If an Englishman were asked as to where he
was going, he would probably reply, "to the Red Lion" or "to the
Silver Chalice", or to whatever the name of his favorite pub might be. A
German so asked might reply, "Zum die Ziegen" or "at the
Goat" and thus the name Ziegenbusch translates, "tavern or inn keeper
at (or of) Goat Tavern". This
practice of hanging out some "greenery", whenever the wine of the new
harvest is ready to drink, is still followed today in some parts of Germany and
Austria; at least it was as late as July 1991, as this author can happily
attest!
3) The suffix
"ing" means "belonging to", for example, the name
"Kuenning" means "belonging to the Brave (family, or clan or
group of warriors, etc.)
4)
The suffix “ingen" means the place where the "root's" people
lived, for example, the village of Sulingen, in northern Germany, means
"the place where Sul's people lived".
5) The suffix "sen"
means "son of".
6) The suffix
"ssen" originally meant "the first generation 'son of' to bear
that particular name".
So much for
"root" endings, let us look at the "roots" themselves.
Essentially there are four major classifications of German name
"roots".
1.
Military
2.
Terrain and Its Features
3.
Professions
4.
Miscellaneous, such as nicknames, personal characteristics,
abnormalities etc.
Each of the above classifications of roots
will be explored in more detail in subsequent issues of the
"Towpath". In the Apr.-May-June 1993 "Towpath", a look will
be taken at Military Roots as well as those "Towpath" names having
military origins.
In
the Jan-Feb-Mar 1993 issue of the "Towpath", we saw that the olden
German name was a single name, composed of two syllables with each syllable representing
a root and each root having a specific meaning. Root classifications are mainly
Military, Terrain, Professional and Personal Characteristics (miscellaneous).
In this issue, a look will be taken at names having at least one Military Root.
The
early Germans lived in a tribal and agricultural culture, but they also
loved war. Cornelius Tacitus, a renowned Roman historian (55-120 AD) wrote in
98 AD that "the Germans were a rough, warlike barbarian people".
(Tacitus recorded his observations on German life and customs in one of his
histories titled, "
North
and central
Military
names consisted of roots designating anything military such as weapons,
military virtues, predatory birds and animals, victory, rule, fortresses,
treasure, etc. “Battle” furnished the
root, “Gund”; battleground, “wal”;
battle axe, "bart"; spear, "ger"; sword,
"ecke”, “bil”, “brand”, or “schwerd"; and
helmet, "helm"; eagle, "arn"; raven, "ram";
bear, "ber”; boar, "ebur"; lion, "leuew”,
“leon"; stag, "hirsch"; victory, "sieg";
fortress, "burg"; rule, "wald”, rich; treasure,
"od"; courage, "mut";
determination, "wille"; strong, "hart";
power, "macht"; and etc.
Very
little is known of German warriors earlier than 120 BC except for that related
in epics, eddas and sagas; however, some information was preserved by Roman
historians along with observations and comments by Julius Caesar, prior to
Tacitus's writing of his "Germania" history. It is
known, that Julius Caesar (102 - 44
BC) recruited German calvarymen from the German tribes, as they were
expert horsemen. Such horsemen were named, "Reiters" or
"Reuters" (in the Middle Ages, knights were named
"Ritters", a name reserved for the gentry). The German fighters were
mostly armed with a shield, ("lind”, “rand”, “schild”), a spear
("ger"), axe ("bart") and sometimes a sword
("ecke"). During the Bronze Age, German smiths were excellent
artisans and crafted magnificent, beautiful swords and battle axes. Since
bronze had to be imported, few such swords or battle axes were carried as a
result of their costliness; thus, spearmen outnumbered swordsmen. This is also
seen from the list of "Towpath" names below where "spear"
names outnumber the "sword" names 6-4. The expertise of the German
smiths did not carry over from the Bronze Age, (1800-800 BC) into the early
years of the Iron Age, (1000 BC - 1860
AD), so their iron swords were not very strong or dependable, breaking rather easily.
It was not until the centuries following Tacitus (100 AD) that swords became
commonplace in the hands of German warriors.
When reviewing the following names, please keep in mind that the
interpretation of such names is "generic"; one must know the circumstances
under which the name was "coined" to know its meaning, accurately. A
good example is the name "Luedeke", which has four meanings: Loud
Sword, Illustrious Sword, Loud Army or Illustrious Army. Was the sword of the
original Luedeke wielded with such vigor that it "sang" when
whirled or was its clamor loud upon contacting shield or armor? Was the sword
wielded in an illustrious manner or was its beauty illustrious to behold? Was
his army loud in battle, or in victory, or illustriously led? Such answers are
necessary for an accurate interpretation; in lieu of such source specifics,
namesakes are free of course, to choose whatever interpretation they find most
appealing.
Ahlers-
noble and bright
Barber-bear-bear,
strong warrior
Bertke-brilliant
and loyal and sword
Billger-
battle axe and spear
Bordewisch-
battle axe and white or meadow
Brandt-
sword
Busse-
protection and strong
Casebolt-
castle crossbow bolts maker
Conradi-
son of Conrad, brave and counsel
Dietrich-
folk and rule
Dilger-
folk and rule and spear
Egbert-
sword and brilliant
Erhardt-
honor and strong
Frey-
free
Gaerke-
little Gearhard, spear and strong
Garman-
spearman
Graf-
count
Greiwe-
count, overlord, governor, administrative official
Greber-
official of a free community
Harrod
(English) mighty in battle
Hartman-
strongman
Hartwig-
strong and guard
Heinfield-
home and master and field
Hellswarth-
army or battle blacksmith
Henkener-
home and master
Henning-
belonging to Heinrich, home and master
Hoffman-
courtier, or manager of a cloister farm
King-
from “Koenig” meaning “king”
Koenig-
king
Kuenning-
belonging to the brave (clan, tribe or family)
Kuhn-
brave
Kunning-
belonging to the brave (clan, tribe or family)
Lampert-
land and bright
Laut-
loud, lute
Ludka-
loud or illustrious wolf
Luedeke-
loud or illustrious sword or loud and illustrious army
Lunz-
fuze, harquebusier
Mackenback-
guardian of the brook boundary
Maze-
mousehawk
Meckstroth-
power and straw, road builder
Philpot-
??Phillip’s Messenger??
Rabe-
raven
Reiter-
calvaryman, rider
Reynolds-
counsel and rule
Ritter-
knight
Roediger-
illustrious and spear
Roettger-
illustrious and spear
Schmidt-
smith
Schweissguth-
blood, sweat and property, estate
Siferd-
victory and guardian
Smith-
from “Schmidt” meaning smith
Thieman-
folk and man
Turner-
tower dweller or keeper
Victor-
victor
Ward-
watchman and lookout
Warner-
protection and army, an alerter or warner
Watkins-
clothes, battle and army
Wehrman-
defenseman
Weseli-
??protection and army??
Wessel-
protection and army
Wierwille-
determination and fish pond
Will-
determination
Beer-
bear
Bruns-
from “Bruno” meaning bear
Burke-
castle
Cron-
from “Kron” meaning “crown”
Falk-
falcon
Frysinger-
belonging to the free
Germann-
spearman
Giere-
“gerfalcon”
Hartings-
army and battle
Heinrich-
home and master
Heyne-
home and master
Homan-
courtier
Hoying-
belonging to the guard
Kemp-
champion
Kuckerman-
cook, army and man
Leugers-
lion and spear
Manger-
spearman
Ruppert-
famous and bright
Sietz-
victory and protection
Walter-
rule and army
Wenning-
protection and army
Wente-
protection and army
Willhoff-
determination and court
In
the July-Aug-Sept issue of “The "Towpath", a look will be
taken at those names composed of Terrain Roots.
THEIR MEANING & ORIGIN
PART THREE--TERRAIN ROOTS
In
the April-May-June issue of the "Towpath", we saw that the earliest
German names were predominantly military as, although the Germans lived in a tribal
and agricultural culture, they loved war; it was their main occupation. As the
population expanded, the need for sufficient and dependable food supplies as
well as war equipment gave rise to those engaged specifically in farming and
"smithing", thus introducing names involving terrain and professional
roots. In this issue of “The "Towpath", a look will be taken at names
derived from "terrain" features and those from
"professions" will be discussed in the Oct-Nov-Dec issue.
When
it was learned that the name "Mesloh" meant "swamp dweller"
(actually "swampy low forest", but more fun is had with "swamp
dweller"!), I became interested in the geography of North Germany. My ancestors came from the area of Barnstorf
& Diepholz in the duchy of Hannover. A little village is there yet today
called "Mesloh", about 15 miles east of Barnstorf, home to 34
residents with several having the name "Mesloh". Cornelius Tacitus, the same Roman historian
who wrote that the Germans were a “rough, warlike barbarian people", also
wrote in 98 AD that the Northern European Plain, a portion of which we know now
as North Germany, was "a land of vast swamps". Other reference
sources report that North Germany was at one time, "a vast
swampland". Although Germany has been dry for the past several hundred
years, the early North German "terrain" names would predominantly
connote some aspect of "water"--swamps, marshes, reeds, ponds, dikes,
dams, thickets, hursts, streams, brooks, rivers, bogs, fens, moors, etc. Charlemagne
started building the first canals in Germany in the year 800 AD to facilitate
transportation between the Rhine and the Danube rivers in the south, between
the Rhine and the Main rivers in central Germany, and between the Rhine and the
Maas rivers in the north. As the population continued to increase, the need for
additional farmland grew and canals were built to drain the swampy lands, a
technique in which the Germans became quite expert. In fact, when the word
spread throughout Europe in the early 1800's that land in the "Great Black
Swamp" (New Bremen is on the southern edge), was available, Germans
flocked to this area, as they had the expertise to drain the swamps converting
them to rich farmlands (as we all know!). Their work on the Miami and Erie
Canal and other drainage projects is also well known in this area.
Central
Germany is much like Pennsylvania and names originating there would reflect the
rolling hills, gentle slopes, shallow valleys, meadows, groves, extensive
farmlands, etc. Names originating in
south Germany would reflect the high mountains, peaks,
crags, cliffs, rocks, deep
valleys, heavy forests, etc. Second only
to war, the Germans loved freedom. Their military tactics were "attack
oriented", with little or no thought given to defensive positions. Their
living, although tribal, was also freedom minded--they shunned villages,
fortified sites, walled cities and so those not militarily named took or were
given names of the nearest prominent terrain feature nearest their living site.
For example, a man living near a pile of rocks would be called
"Steinler", a mountain dweller would be a "Bergman", a
dweller near a reedy site would be a "Riethman", a dweller along a
stream, a "Becker" and so on. But what about a name that apparently
has no logical connection such as "Hemmert" which means "swamp
dweller"? James Bruns’ maternal ancestors by the name of
"Hemmert" originated in Bavaria, essentially a land of no swamps, so
how did a person get a "swamp dweller" name? Although there are no
swamps in Bavaria today, the Hemmerts could have lived on a farm that hundreds
of years previously was swampy land, and that knowledge passed along through
the generations would be enough to name the first resident on that land,
"swamp dweller"! Another interesting name is, "Bordewisch"
meaning Battle Axe & Meadow.
Undoubtedly a Bordewisch ancestor excelled or distinguished himself
wielding a battle axe(s)in a particular meadow and was given his name by his
fellow warriors; crossed battle axes in the family's crest and seal would
attest to such honor.
In
the Jan-Feb-Mar issue of “The Towpath", the usage of tautological names
was explained, which at the time of writing numbered only three in this area.
Since then (and with thanks given to James Bordewisch, of Dayton, Ohio, for his
insight into the root, "wisch")" a fourth tautological name has
been added, "Feldwisch" meaning "Field-Meadow' which indicates
the meadow was exceptionally large. So, to the very swampy (Mesloh). the very
marshy (Huckriede), the very steep or otherwise prominent cliff (Klipfels), the
large meadow (Feldwisch) is added.
The
suffix "er" originally meant an owner of a farm at the terrain
feature named, but today, the "er” means a dweller at that terrain
feature. Sometimes a "t" is added to the "er" but an
"ert" suffix has no different meaning than the simple "er".
Likewise, the root "man" can also mean a dweller, but there is no
significance in the root's meaning, whether it is spelled "man" or
"mann". At other times some consonants are doubled, but the doubling
does not result in any change in the name's meaning, so an olden spelling of
"Mesloh" was "Messloh or even Messlow" but all three
interpret the same, as per Dr. Jones.
When reviewing the following names, please
keep in mind that the interpretation of such is "generic"; one must
know the site or circumstances under which the name was coined to know its
exact meaning.
Ashbaugh :
Brook Among The Ash Trees
Beal :
Hill
Beck :
Brook or Stream
Bell :
White Poplar; Part Of Ship
Belton :
White Poplar & Fir
Boecker :
Dweller By A Stream; baker
Boesel :
Village Name
Borderwisch :
Battle Axe Meadow
Bornhorst : Spring
Thicket
Braddock : Broad Drydock
Brandt :
Forest Clearing; Sword
Brantly :
Dweller In Forest Clearing
Brookhart
: Brake Forest
Brucken : Dweller At
The Bridge
Bruns :
Dweller Near A Spring
Dicke :
Dweller Near A Thicket
Dickman :
Dweller By A Pond; Fat Man
Donnerberg :
Thunder Mountain
Elsass :
Alsatian
Gilberg :
Scion Mountain .
Griesdorn :
Gravel Thicket
Grover :Dweller In
A Hollow
Hagens :
Enclosure; Hedge.
Hagerstrand :
Dweller In A Enclosure & ?
Headapohl : Swampy Pond
Heinfeld : Grove &
Field; Home&Master
Heitkamp : Heath Field
Hemmert :Swamp Dweller, wet spot in woods or
meadow, home and bright, dweller of Hemme
Hertenstein :Wooded Mountain
Hickman :Enclosure Dweller
Hirschfeld :Stag or Deer Field
Hogenkamp :Enclosed Field
Holcomb :Elder
Tree & Comb
Holleman : Dweller
Among Elder Trees
Holmer : Island Dweller
Huckriede : Marsh-Reed
Marsh
Lesher : Dweller On
The Lesch River
Malik : Boundary
Marker
Mansperger : Mountain Dweller; Sparrowhawk Man
Mesloh : Swampy Low
Forest
Nedderman : Dweller On The Nette River
Niekamp : New Field
Pulskamp : Pool Field
Quellhorst : Spring Near A Thicket
Ratchford : Swift Ford (Possibly)
Reed : Reed;
Marshland
Sauerland :
Southern Land (Mountain Range In Westphalia)
Schwieterman : Swissman
Slade
: Reed Bank
Slattery :Dweller Near A Swamp
Sollman :Dweller Near Muddy or Bog Land; A
Tollman
Staubitz : Dust
Village,
Stauffer : Crag Dweller; Cup (Mug) Maker
Stegall : Foot Bridge; Eel
Steinecker : Farmer On A Stony River; Stone Corner
Steinke :
Little Stone; Stone Corner
Strasburg :
City Name; Road Castle
Sunderman : South Farmer or Dweller
Tomhafe :At The Oats
Uetrecht : City Name
Vonderhueval : From The Hill
Weinberg : Vinyard
Wellman : Dweller By A Marsh; Well Man
Westerheide : West Marsh
Wisner : Dweller On A
Meadow
Wittenbrink : White Grassy Raised Ground
Wourms : City Name
Aufderhaar :
On The Marsh
Brockert : Brake Dweller
Dammeyer : Farmer At The
Dike
Dearbaugh :
Animal Brook
Dorsten :
Doorstone
Feldwisch :
Field-Meadow
Griesenger
: Gravel & Spear
Honigford
: Beekeeper At The Ford
Haberkamp : Oat Field
Haeseker : Dweller Among The Hazels
Heidt :
Heath
Hittepole :
Heath Pond
Hoge
: Enclosure; Hedge
Holtzapple
: Crab Apple
Huelsman :
Dweller Among The Hollies
Katterheinrich : Master Of A Fenced Home
Klipfels :Cliff-Cliff
Morgendal
: Morning Valley
Newman
: Proprietor Of The Neuhoff (New
Farm)
Scharfenberger: Dweller On Sharp Mountain
Stellhorn
: Mountain Peak
Steinbrugge
: Dweller At Stone Bridge
Waesch : Washing; Bleaching
In
the Oct-Nov-Dec issue of the "Towpath", a look will be taken at those
names composed of Profession Roots. The author is greatly appreciative of
additional insights into names, roots and customs provided by James
Bordewisch of Dayton and Dr. John Dickman of Columbus.
THEIR MEANING & ORIGIN Part Four
In
the July-August-September issue of “The Towpath", it was seen that an
expanding population increased the need not only for military equipment but for
dependable food supplies as well, thus giving rise to those persons exclusively
engaged in farming and "smithing". In this issue, a look will be
taken at names deriving from profession roots.
The
two oldest professions of men are hunting and fishing which produced the names
of Jaeger (Yeager) and Fischer. Next, came the names of Schmidt (Smith) and
Müller (miller) with Meyer (farmer) close behind.
The
local "smith" was very highly respected as the German warriors
believed that "Der Schmidt" had mythical powers to impart magical
qualities into the weapons and armor they forged, giving that warrior an edge
in battle, a "little something extra", highly desired, of course.
German folk literature, such as "The Nibelungenlied", is full of magical
swords, impenetrable armor, cloaks of invisibility, mythical dwarfs and elves. There are,
thirteen different ways of spelling
"Schmidt" in German, which indicates the esteem the name “Schmidt”
once held.
Regarding
the name Miller. a frequently asked question has been, "Why do Millers
spell their names: Müller, Mueller, Möllar, Moeller?" The answer is twofold:
1) The Germans had various types and sizes of grain
mills. Some
were hand held, while
others were quite large. Möllar derives from the Latin
"molinarius"
meaning "miller"; Müller comes from the root "muhl" or
"muehl" meaning "mill".
2) The German spelling of
Möllar and Müller was with an umlaut (ö & ü) on the vowels. The umlaut superimposes an “e” on the vowel
sound for pronunciation, and is not generally used in America, Möllar became
Moeller and Müller became Mueller. (Of course, by simply dropping the umlaut,
Mollar and Muller remained the same, in America. If "Del' Muller" ground white
flour, he became a "Weissmiller" and if he ground brown flour, he
became a "Braunmiller". This system of naming also held true in the case
of leather tanning. A tanner of leather was a "Gerber"; if he tanned
white leather, he was a "Weisgerber "; and a tanner of red leather was a
"Rotgerber". The root "miller"
frequently appears as the second root: with the first root indicating
where the miller lived, or the location of the mill. Examples are Bahnmueller,
meaning “miller on the path”, Bachmueller (brook miller) Mosmueller (marsh
miller) Rismueller (swamp miller), and so on.
There
are numerous roots
designating “farmer”, some of which are: Meyer, Myer, Myrs, Meier,
Mayer, Mann. Hofer, Hoffner, Bauer, Baur, and Baumann. A German once told me
that the
Meyers and Millers of Germany are like the Smiths and
Joneses of America. The root, "meyer" often appears as the
second root, with the first root designating the location of the
farm. (Klingenmeyer or "farmer in
the gorge", Reitmeyer, or "farmer in the clearing".) The root
"meyer" can also mean "manager" and this can be seen in the
name of Kellermeyer which means "manager or keeper of the cellar",
Hoffman, or "manager of a cloister farm" while a Hoffmeyer is an "estate
manager".
There
are several interesting peculiarities regarding farmer
and other professional names. Whenever a man changed houses or professions, he
took the name
of the new farm, new house, or new profession to which he was moving while
leaving behind his old name. A similar
situation existed when the olden Germans changed houses. The German moving
took the name of
the new house
and left his old name behind. A
famous example of this procedure occurred in Maintz
in 1444 AD. A young
man by the name of "Gensfleilsch" (goose flesh) set up a printing press in the house
of "Guttenberg" (good mountain).
We know him today as "Guttenberg,The Father of Modern
Printing". There is yet another interesting item regarding
the perpetuation of the "house" or "farm" name. Farms were passed
along to sons which naturally bore the house's surname but if a farmer
had no sons and only daughters, whenever the daughter(s) married.
her new husband
then took the surname of the house (farm) thus keeping
the farm's name
intact. This custom is called "Stabrut" (Low German) or,
"Erbtochter" (High German), and, on occasion, is still practiced today, most
generally in North Germany.
Beck baker, stream
Boecker baker, dweller by the stream
Bowman bottom of the valley farmer
Brinkmeyer small farmer
Cook from koch, meaning cook
Cooper copper dealer
Dammeyer farmer at or on the dike
Eschmeyer farmer among ash trees
Fischer fisherman, fish seller
Fledderjohann cakebaker John
Gerber tanner of leather
Gruebmeyer farmer in the hollow
Hegemier enclosed farm proprietor
Henschen glove maker
Hoffman cloister farm manager, courtier
Hoffner farmer
Hott hat maker
Hudson son of Hut, also hat
Jagoditz hunter at the swamp
Kellermeyer keeper of the cellar
Kettler chain maker
Knapke miner, boy, page
Koeper cap maker
Kuck from koch meaning cook
Kuest sexton
Maurer mason
Meckstroth road builder, power and straw
Meyer farmer, or dairy farmer
Miller miller
Moehlenkamp miller and field
Moeller miller
Mowery mason
Mueller miller
Newman proprietor of the neuhoff (new farm)
Opperman sexton
Plattner armor maker
Riebel turnip farmer
Ruedebusch innkeeper of large hound tavern
Scheer barber, shearer
Schmitmeyer smith farmer
Schneider tailor
Schroeder tailor
Schroer tailor
Schrolucke tailor at swamp
Shinerdecker shingle roofer
Shroyer tailor
Sollman tollman, dweller near muddy land
Stauffer cup or mug maker, crag dweller
Steinecker farmer on a stony river
Steinman stone cutter
Steiner stone worker
Strickland land of knitter or rope maker
Taylor tailor
Tontrup village cooper, barrel or vat maker
Tostrick spice seller at or near water
Wagner wainwright (maker or repairer of
wagons)
Waterman wasserman - waterman
Wellemeyer marsh farmer
Ziegenbusch innkeeper at Goat Tavern
LOCAL
PROFESSION NAMES (Of Interest)
Beckett baker on the Ett River
Benner barrel or hoop maker
Bigler stirrup maker
Drescher thresher
Eiting burner; stoker; smelter
Gerstner barley dealer
Holtzhauer wood cutter
Honigford beekeeper at the ford
Koesters sexton
Kramer shopkeeper
Kunstler artist; artisan
Metz (ger) butcher; inhabitant of Metz
Millisor mill(er)
on the Iser River
Niemeyer new farmer
Overman chief bailiff, boss, superior
Piper fifer
Pleiman lead worker
Rempe strap
cutter