Surname Crusius - Meaning and Origin
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Crusius: What does the surname Crusius mean?
The last name Crusius is a Germanic locational name derived from the Middle High German word “crus” meaning “cross” so it originally referred to a person living at or near a crossroads. People with this last name would have originally come from the area near present day Germany, Austria, and Switzerland.
The name Crusius is related to the origin story that takes place during the Middle Ages when St. James the Apostle was martyred in Jerusalem and the true cross of Jesus was found. People of the time began to make pilgrimages to the Holy City, and it became a common practice in many countries to establish crossroads near churches in honor of St. James. As a result, people with the last name Crusius likely carry their ancestor’s pilgrim spirit to this day.
Today, many families with the name Crusius are scattered across Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. In particular, Crusius is popular in the Rhineland and Westphalia regions. In the United States, Crusius is a popular last name in Pennsylvania, Maine, and Wisconsin.
In essence, the surname Crusius has a deep and historic meaning, commemorating its bearers’ pilgrimage and devotion to St. James the Apostle. The name bears both a spiritual and a physical remembrance of a common ancestor that may have lived near a crossroads hundreds of years ago.
Order DNA origin analysisCrusius: Where does the name Crusius come from?
The last name Crusius is most common today in Germany and in other countries of Germanic origin. It is a German surname derived from the Middle High German word “krus” which means cross. This signifies a person who came from a place named with a reference to the cross, such as either the Christian cross or a crossroads.
The earliest surviving record of the name is found in the book Liber Certarum Northfaliae Nationum dated 1197 in a reference to a certain “ Conrad Crousese” who was living in western Germany. In the following centuries, the name grew in popularity and can be found all around German-speaking regions—especially in the modern day region of Westphalia—where it is still fairly common.
In recent times, the name has been spread to English-speaking countries through German immigrants. In the United States, for instance, the name can be found in the states of Texas, Wisconsin, and Missouri, where it is relatively well-known. Additionally, records of the name can also be found in some parts of Canada.
The last name Crusius is thus a long-standing German-based surname that is still common in German-speaking countries, and is also found in places like the United States and Canada where German immigrants have settled.
Variations of the surname Crusius
The surname Crusius is a variant of the name Kruse, a German patronymic surname which was derived from the given name Kruse, meaning “son of Kruse.” An alternate spelling is Kruse, sometimes with an umlaut over the “u."
Variants of the name Crusius include Kruse, Kroos, Krouse, Kross, Krausz, Kroez, Krusse, Crucius, and Cruceus, among others. In the Dutch language, the name can also be spelled Kruijs, Kruis, Kruissen, Krijgsman, Krijgs, and Kruijssen.
In some cases, the surname has been Anglicized or adapted to English. This includes changes such as Brice, Krisa, Crosa, Krisch, Krysztal, Krusch, Krusial, Krusel, Crusan, Kreiss, and Crusius, among others.
Other names which originated from the same German origin are: Kreitz, Kreitzman, Kreitzberg, Kreitzburg, Kriesberg, Krüsemann, Kreitner, Kreiter, Kreisel, Krüger, Krueller, Krusemark, Krusell, Kreitzler, and Kreisler.
While the original German surname was formed from the given name Kruse, other surnames have arisen as a result of a variety of reasons, including geographic and occupational nicknames, language and dialect alterations, and spelling or clerical errors. It is important to remember that variations of a surname can be the result of multiple factors, and it is not uncommon to find variations upon variations within a single family.
Famous people with the name Crusius
- Robert Crusius: German philosopher from the seventeenth century
- Heinz Crusius: German conductor of the early twentieth century
- Manny Crusius: American professional football player
- Elke Crusius: German athlete
- Hermann Crusius: German philosopher of the nineteenth century
- Paul Crusius: German actor and director
- Louis Crusius: German doctor and author of the late nineteenth century
- Wilma Crusius: American actress
- Jochen Crusius: German lawyer and politician of the early twenty-first century
- Joachim Crusius: German poet and professor
- Rupert Crusius: German artist of the twenty-first century
- Augustinus Crusius: German classical philologist
- Catharina Crusius: German economist
- Johann Crusius: German Christian philosopher
- Barry Crusius: American Olympic weightlifter
- Steve Crusius: American professional football player
- Roman Crusius: German painter of the eighteenth century
- Elsbeth Crusius: German singer and songwriter
- Marcel Crusius: German hockey player of the twenty-first century
- Georg Crusius: German bibliographer