Surname Knickerbocker - Meaning and Origin
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Knickerbocker: What does the surname Knickerbocker mean?
The surname Knickerbocker is derived from the Dutch word Knickerbockers, which means "bagful of nuts", or more precisely, someone who transported or sold such goods. The title was popularized by Washington Irving in his 1809 satirical history A History of New York, in which he created a fictional character named Diedrich Knickerbocker, who was a Dutch-American of the late seventeenth century.
The term Knickerbocker has acquired a great number of symbolic associations throughout the years. The term has become popularly associated with New York City, where it came to represent the city's pioneering culture and its multicultural heritage. Besides its association with the city, the term can be seen in many places, such as the NHL's New York Rangers' mascot "Ranger Knickerbocker" and the Knickerbocker Greys, a prestigious infantry regiment from the American Revolution.
The Knickerbocker surname can be found all around the world. In America, the name is most readily associated with the northeastern United States, particularly New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Massachusetts. The name is also common in parts of Europe, particularly the Netherlands and Germany. Furthermore, it can be found in a few parts of North Africa and South America.
The term Knickerbocker has come to represent a nostalgic kind of culture, one full of adventure and patriotism, as the name is firmly tied to the Dutch-American story behind it. It is a surname that will always represent the spirit of America's original settlers and their various cultures.
Order DNA origin analysisKnickerbocker: Where does the name Knickerbocker come from?
The last name Knickerbocker is most commonly associated with New York City, where members of the Dutch-American Knickerbocker family have lived since the 1600s. The name is derived from the Dutch word Knickerbockers which is the name of the traditional baggy pant that Dutch settlers wore in the New World.
Today, the "Knickerbocker" name is commonly found throughout the greater New York City metropolitan area and upstate New York. In the town of Albany, NY - historically a Dutch settlement - more than one thousand people bear the last name. In the rest of New York State, the surname is also relatively common with a population of at least a few hundred people.
Elsewhere in the United States, the last name is less common but still present. In California, Knickerbocker accounts for one in every 77,200 people, while in Massachusetts it is one in every 172,200. On a nationwide basis, the surname is not very common with roughly one in every 250,000 Americans bearing the name.
Though worldwide the Knickerbocker name is not especially common, it is still associated with the Dutch heritage of the original settlers of New York. In fact, the New York Knickerbockers - one of the original teams of the National Basketball Association - were named after the Dutch settlers and the baggy pants they wore. As a result, the last name continues to have a special place in the history, culture, and even sports of New York City.
Variations of the surname Knickerbocker
The surname Knickerbocker is often associated with the traditional clothing item, the knickerbocker suit. It comes from a Dutch family of the same name which dates back to the 16th century when they moved to The Netherlands from Germany.
Variant spellings and surnames of the same origin for the surname Knickerbocker are Knikkerbakker and Knickerbakker. It is also known as Knickerbacker, Kneckerbocker, Kneekerbacker, and Knekkerbakker.
The most common variant spelling of Knickerbocker is Knickerbacker with the double C representing the sound “cker”, which is a common spelling variation. In the 1800s, the U.S. variant spelling Knickerbacker was coined as a result of incorrect phonetic spelling of Dutch-style names based on the Dutch pronunciation of "Knickerbocker". It remained popular in America for at least a century, and may have been the source of the well-known term “Knickerbocker”.
The unusual spelling of this surname has also been adopted as a memorable surname for modern-day Americans with Dutch ancestry, so the spelling Knekerbacker, Knekkerbakker, and Knikkerbakker are used to differentiate the members of the original Knickerbocker family from others who later adopted the surname for themselves.
As a result, the surname Knickerbocker is now considered a widely associated family with different spellings adopted by the members of the various generations over the centuries. All of these variants are accepted by most genealogists as belonging to the same surname, as the origin of the name is the same regardless of the spelling.
Famous people with the name Knickerbocker
- Washington Irving, American author famous for "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" (published 1820).
- Fred Knickerbocker, television announcer for the Boston Bruins in the 1950s: 1960s.
- Augusta J. Elder, author of Knickerbocker classics for children and young adults in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
- H.B. Knickerbocker, New York City newspaper columnist during WWII.
- Edward Everett, American lawyer, politician and diplomat who served as governor of Massachusetts (1840–1843).
- David Knickerbocker, historian and editor of The Knickerbocker magazine during the 18th century revolution in the United States.
- Amos Knickerbocker, first mayor of Pottsville, Pennsylvania from 1832 until 1836.
- Robert Knickerbocker, broadcaster of American Top 40 fame in the 1970s and 1980s.
- B.A. Botkin, folklorist and storyteller who wrote Knickerbocker Histories (1945).
- Amy Ä Knickerbocker, the first female professor of the University of Illinois.