Surname Bleicher - Meaning and Origin
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Bleicher: What does the surname Bleicher mean?
The last name Bleicher is a German surname and likely comes from the Middle High German word “bleich,” which means pale or white. This suggests that the initial bearer of the name had a pale complexion, leading to the surname being a reference to a physical appearance.
The name Bleicher is associated with several different places in Germany, including along the Wupper River, a tributary of the Rhine, and near Cologne. It is also associated with several places in Luxembourg and Switzerland.
The Bleicher family, which dates back to at least the 1600s, was prominent in both Germany and Luxembourg. Members of the Bleicher family in Luxembourg include Abraham Bleicher, a close adviser to Emperor William I of Germany.
Today, the Bleicher name is most commonly found in Germany, Luxembourg, the United States, and Canada. There are numerous Bleicher families spread throughout the globe, many of whom trace their ancestry back to a small group of related families in Germany.
The name is often spelled differently, modern day variants include Blecher, Bleacher, Blecker, Blecher, Bleicher, Blech, and Blevech. In a few cases, the “ch” has been switched to a “k”, making the spelling Bleiker.
Order DNA origin analysisBleicher: Where does the name Bleicher come from?
The last name Bleicher is most commonly found in Germany, with a sizable population also present in the United States and other nations of Western Europe.
In Germany, the Bleicher surname is primarily concentrated in the states of Bavaria and North Rhine-Westphalia. The highest population, however, is located in Bavaria, where Bleicher is the 124th most popular surname in the state, with over 4,170 families registered. Interestingly, the highest concentration of this name can be found predominantly in the rural areas.
Meanwhile, the U.S. is home to more than 1,200 families with the Bleicher name as of the latest census data. The largest population is found in California and Illinois, but nearly every state has some presence of the Bleicher name. Outside of the states, the Bleicher name is also present in Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Switzerland, and the Netherlands.
Overall, the Bleicher surname is an international one, but its highest population is still found in Germany. Its prevalence across multiple nations is a testament to the ubiquity of the name over the centuries.
Variations of the surname Bleicher
The surname Bleicher is of German origin and can take several forms. The most common variations include Blicker, Bleacher, Blecker, and Bliecher. While Blicker and Bleacher are typically found in the German-American community, Blecker tends to be more concentrated in German-speaking Europe. Bliecher is the oldest form of the name, and is found mostly in Germany today.
The Bleicher name is derived from a German word for ‘meadow’ and is an occupational surname playing on the notion of one who lives or works in a meadow. Early records of the surname date back to 1286 in Bavaria, where a family under the name lived in the city of Straubing.
In America, the Bleichers are a prominent enough family that several towns, roads, and buildings have been named after them. Among them are the Bleicher Family Park in Adel, Iowa and the Bleicher Surname Project, which has aimed to document the many and varied branches of the Bleicher family tree.
The Bleicher family figures prominently in German history as well. Several famous Bleichers have been politicians, military leaders, and scholars. They include Nobel Prize winner for chemistry Karl Bleicher, the German chemist and philosopher Adam Bleicher, and German socialist politician Friedrich Bleicher.
The Bleicher name is still common in Germany, the United States, and the rest of the German-speaking world today.
Famous people with the name Bleicher
- Aimée Bleicher, actress
- Levi Bleicher, former Major League Baseball pitcher
- Franz Bleicher, German sculptor
- Ernst Bleicher, pianist, conductor and composer
- Angelika Bleicher, theoretical physicist and professor
- Leopold Bleicher, brewer
- Christoph Bleicher, publisher
- Ernst Bleicher, skier
- Hans Bleicher, poet and author
- Paul Bleicher, theologian
- Bill Cheicher, musician
- Fritz Bleicher, footballer
- Marge Bleicher, actress and costume designer
- Adolf Bleicher, zoologist
- Adolf Bleicher, surgeon and psychiatric professor
- Rose Bleicher, librarian
- Jens A. Bleicher, doctor
- Herbert Bleicher, engineer
- Hugo Bleicher, historian and politician
- Rudolf Bleicher, musician