German Surnames
Germany is a country with a rich cultural diversity and a long history that is reflected in its most common surnames. These surnames are part of the identity of German citizens and allow us to understand their genealogy and roots a little more. In the following list, you can find some of the most popular surnames in Germany, which have endured throughout the centuries and have been passed down from generation to generation. These surnames are not only a reflection of German history and tradition, but also an example of the diversity and cultural richness of this fascinating country.
- Müller (945404)
- Schmidt (711024)
- Schneider (436230)
- Fischer (372558)
- Weber (325733)
- Meyer (323771)
- Wagner (298283)
- Becker (279689)
- Schulz (278306)
- Hoffmann (275089)
- Koch (229729)
- Richter (228926)
- Bauer (224180)
- Schäfer (222673)
- Klein (199652)
- Wolf (194405)
- Schröder (188859)
- Neumann (179675)
- Schwarz (166126)
- Braun (164772)
- Zimmermann (162733)
- Hofmann (159110)
- Lange (159049)
- Hartmann (155025)
- Krüger (154907)
- Krause (150983)
- Lehmann (149628)
- Schmitz (148465)
- Schmitt (147644)
- Meier (147597)
- Werner (145307)
- Schmid (141065)
- Schulze (137553)
- Maier (134372)
- Herrmann (130093)
- Mayer (125624)
- Köhler (125507)
- König (125182)
- Walter (124822)
- Huber (122614)
- Kaiser (121904)
- Peters (121871)
- Fuchs (117637)
- Möller (113584)
- Lang (112300)
- Scholz (111927)
- Jung (106330)
- Weiß (104983)
- Hahn (103492)
- Keller (101526)
- Berger (100333)
- Schubert (99839)
- Vogel (99746)
- Friedrich (98780)
- Frank (96568)
- Roth (95905)
- Winkler (95326)
- Günther (94874)
- Beck (94513)
- Lorenz (93306)
- Baumann (87598)
- Franke (85861)
- Albrecht (84739)
- Ludwig (81068)
- Winter (80908)
- Simon (80651)
- Schuster (80105)
- Schumacher (79777)
- Kraus (78896)
- Böhm (78636)
- Vogt (77061)
- Martin (76142)
- Stein (75376)
- Jäger (74486)
- Sommer (74064)
- Krämer (73859)
- Brandt (72387)
- Otto (72341)
- Heinrich (70993)
- Schulte (70537)
- Graf (69932)
- Seidel (69775)
- Haas (69637)
- Schreiber (68452)
- Groß (68355)
- Dietrich (66763)
- Engel (66006)
- Ziegler (64754)
- Horn (63294)
- Bergmann (62854)
- Pohl (62473)
- Kuhn (62351)
- Jansen (62349)
- Voigt (61931)
- Kühn (61689)
- Beyer (60765)
- Busch (60689)
- Thomas (60588)
- Hansen (60323)
- Arnold (59629)
- Lindner (59618)
- Sauer (59459)
- Kramer (59288)
- Wolff (58940)
- Hübner (58558)
- Seifert (58474)
- Ernst (58139)
- Pfeiffer (57890)
- Wenzel (55925)
- Franz (55280)
- Nagel (54858)
- Kern (54726)
- Barth (54592)
- Götz (54492)
- Peter (54363)
- Paul (53882)
- Hermann (53636)
- Kruse (53403)
- Riedel (53221)
- Ott (52430)
- Haase (52277)
- Petersen (52054)
- Lenz (51858)
- Langer (51816)
- Grimm (51427)
- Hoppe (51214)
- Arndt (51167)
- Bock (51081)
- Jahn (50962)
- Wilhelm (50917)
- Mohr (50700)
- Ritter (50570)
- Schumann (49833)
- Fiedler (49587)
- Kaufmann (49474)
- Förster (48759)
- Kraft (48578)
- Berg (48571)
- Thiel (48539)
- Miller (48029)
- Michel (47320)
- Marx (47145)
- Walther (46912)
- Sander (46750)
- Lutz (46652)
- Fritz (46332)
- Eckert (46219)
- Thiele (46078)
- Böttcher (45603)
- Reuter (45053)
- Reinhardt (44879)
- Beckmann (44274)
- Schilling (44190)
- Schindler (43742)
- Frey (43400)
- Hein (43375)
- Ebert (43347)
- Hesse (43261)
- Behrens (42919)
- Schütz (42904)
- Kunz (42412)
- Schramm (42204)
- Herzog (42001)
- Rudolph (41939)
- Fröhlich (40932)
- Witt (40857)
- Kunze (40857)
- Bayer (40623)
- Gruber (40546)
- Nowak (40499)
- Stephan (39907)
- Geiger (39842)
- Maurer (39568)
- Bender (39024)
- Schultz (38882)
- Seitz (38722)
- Bachmann (38700)
- Adam (38568)
- Brinkmann (38397)
- Fink (38069)
- Kirchner (37949)
- Ullrich (37863)
- Stahl (37852)
- Breuer (37757)
- Gerlach (37745)
- Gärtner (37567)
- Büttner (37480)
- Steiner (37424)
- Bruns (36514)
- Dietz (36499)
- Scherer (36384)
- Naumann (36286)
- Kurz (36246)
- Böhme (36211)
- Brand (36187)
- Schlüter (36165)
- Reichert (36035)
- Moser (36022)
- Ulrich (35789)
- Löffler (35757)
- Janssen (35672)
- Binder (35494)
- Wendt (35425)
- Heinz (35380)
- Blum (35322)
- Körner (35253)
- Wolter (34849)
- Schenk (34848)
- Wegner (34754)
- Menzel (34648)
- Schwab (34561)
- Brunner (34532)
- Schröter (34498)
- Urban (34344)
- Göbel (34313)
- Krebs (34220)
- Buchholz (34114)
- Heller (34104)
- Stark (34048)
- Wirth (33902)
- Döring (33888)
- Weiss (33608)
- Hinz (33267)
- Meißner (33228)
- Kopp (33225)
- Link (33152)
- Bartsch (33150)
- John (33148)
- Rieger (33115)
- Reimann (33051)
- Wilke (32933)
- Hildebrandt (32805)
- Unger (32711)
- Hirsch (32658)
- Bischoff (32489)
- Rose (32416)
- Jakob (32395)
- Pfeifer (32249)
- Ackermann (32228)
- Rohde (32159)
- Schiller (32040)
- Westphal (31968)
- Köster (31911)
- Sturm (31885)
- Hennig (31607)
- Freitag (31529)
- Bach (31513)
- Witte (31374)
- Kröger (31325)
- Marquardt (31231)
- Engelhardt (31223)
- Fricke (31039)
- Ahrens (30933)
- Lemke (30886)
- Linke (30480)
- Siebert (30397)
- Vetter (30343)
- Kohl (30280)
- Henning (30272)
- Wittmann (30244)
- Kolb (30208)
- Heinze (30179)
- Noack (30116)
- Gebhardt (30002)
- Nickel (29797)
- Reich (29754)
- Funk (29746)
- Renner (29709)
- Keil (29679)
- Baier (29653)
- Kremer (29597)
- Erdmann (29593)
- Pieper (29442)
- Mertens (29406)
- Martens (29211)
- Berndt (29146)
- Hanke (29080)
- Münch (28902)
- Baum (28870)
- Will (28807)
- Conrad (28803)
- Held (28768)
- Kiefer (28635)
- Bartels (28566)
- Esser (28550)
- Hammer (28485)
- Harms (28397)
- Henke (28377)
- Mann (28255)
- Fuhrmann (28186)
- Schlegel (28160)
- Wiese (27990)
- Kirsch (27976)
- Stoll (27952)
- Jacob (27680)
- Herbst (27585)
- Klose (27521)
- Decker (27513)
- Hamann (27505)
- Brückner (27296)
- Henkel (27267)
- Schrader (27185)
- Dittrich (27142)
- Heine (27080)
- Neubauer (27013)
- Nolte (26912)
- Krug (26651)
- Janßen (26635)
- Niemann (26635)
- Kuhlmann (26492)
- Krieger (26408)
- Röder (26390)
- Kluge (26367)
- Adler (26338)
- Stadler (26278)
- Konrad (26196)
- Karl (26178)
- Wiedemann (26116)
- Schön (26094)
- Philipp (25959)
- Lindemann (25908)
- Burkhardt (25827)
- Blank (25768)
- Wimmer (25683)
- Großmann (25672)
- Hauser (25653)
- Kühne (25631)
- Zimmer (25617)
- Wahl (25440)
- Klaus (25416)
- Fritsch (25350)
- Steffen (25329)
- Bader (25314)
- Popp (25271)
- Strauß (25114)
- Heinemann (25109)
- Funke (25042)
- Bernhardt (24977)
- Preuß (24927)
- Zander (24872)
- Albert (24791)
- Lohmann (24777)
- Anders (24704)
- Haupt (24653)
- Hummel (24599)
- Brenner (24577)
- Beier (24516)
- Probst (24504)
- Jost (24477)
- Baur (24463)
The most common surnames in Germany
Germany is a country full of history and culture, with a diverse and multicultural population. The diversity of surnames in Germany reflects this mix of cultures, traditions and lineages.
Surnames derived from place names
One of the most common types of surnames in Germany are those that are derived from place names. These surnames usually indicate the place of origin of the family, whether it be a city, town or a particular region.
These surnames are a way of keeping the history and roots of the family alive, showing the connection they have with a specific place. Some examples of surnames derived from place names are Schmidt, Fischer, and Weber.
Surnames derived from professions
Another type of common surnames in Germany are those that are derived from professions. These surnames usually indicate the occupation that a family ancestor held, such as Müller (miller), Richter (judge) or Becker (baker).
These surnames give us a clue about the family's work history and may be related to traditions and customs that have been passed down from generation to generation.
Surnames derived from physical characteristics
In addition to surnames related to place names and professions, in Germany there are also surnames derived from physical characteristics. These surnames may refer to the hair color, height, or some other distinguishing characteristic of a family ancestor.
These surnames are a way to remember and honor those who came before and who left their mark on family history. Some examples of surnames derived from physical characteristics are Krause (curly), Klein (small), and Braun (swarthy).
Surnames derived from names of people
Finally, in Germany we also find surnames that are derived from people's names. These surnames may refer to the father, mother or some other ancestor of the family.
These surnames are a way of keeping alive the memory of those who preceded us, showing the respect and connection we have with family history. Some examples of surnames derived from personal names are Schneider (son of Schneider), Meyer (son of Meyer), and Becker (son of Becker).
In conclusion, surnames in Germany are an important part of a family's identity and history. They reflect the diversity, traditions and roots of the German population, showing the richness and complexity of its history. Each surname has a unique and special story, which deserves to be remembered and celebrated.
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