Surname Weidkuhn - Meaning and Origin
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Weidkuhn: What does the surname Weidkuhn mean?
The last name Weidkuhn is a German surname with several variations, including Woidke, Weidkuhn, Weietke, Weitke, Weidke, Widkuhn, and Weidkuhne. It is derived from the German words “Weide” and “Kuhn,” meaning “field pasture” and “small farmer” respectively. The name likely first originated among people who owned and farmed land on pastures, hence the meaning of the name.
It is thought that the surname Weidkuhn first appeared in the middle of the 14th century in Thuringia, which was then a part of the Holy Roman Empire. The name was also found in the area of Heilbronn, now part of the state of Baden-Württemberg. It is an uncommon surname and, using modern records, it is estimated that only around 2,000 people in Germany with the surname Weidkuhn currently exist.
These records show that the surname is mostly found in the German states of Schleswig-Holstein, Rhineland-Palatinate, and Thuringia, and that other countries with Germans with this surname include Denmark, France, and the United States.
Weidkuhn is thought to be an occupational name, reflecting the occupation of an agricultural worker or farmer. Over the centuries, this surname has likely become a mark of pride, as it is one of the oldest recorded German surnames and has been passed down through generations of German families.
Order DNA origin analysisWeidkuhn: Where does the name Weidkuhn come from?
The last name Weidkuhn is most common in Germany today. This German type surname is derived from the Middle High German word "weitkunne" meaning 'widow woman' or 'spinster'. According to some records, this name may also have been derived from the Old High German words "weit" meaning 'out' and "konne" meaning 'woman'.
This surname is particularly well-known in the state of Schleswig-Holstein as well as in the district of Ostholstein in the northern region of Germany. Other records suggest that the Weidkuhn family may have originated in the Netherlands although this is uncertain.
The Weidkuhn family is also quite visible in the United States and Canada. In the United States, the surname Weidkuhn is especially strong in the states of Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Maryland, and a few others. In the United States 2000 Census, 2645 people reported having the Weidkuhn last name.
The Weidkuhn surname is also common in Canada. Records in the Library and Archives Canada indicate that the earliest Weidkuhns in Canada arrived in the 1880s. According to the Canada 2006 Census, there were 258 persons with the last name of Weidkuhn living in Canada.
Although the Weidkuhn family is today most common in Germany, this German type surname can also be traced to Norway, Sweden, Russia, Poland, Finland, Denmark, France, and other countries around the world.
Variations of the surname Weidkuhn
Weidkuhn is a German surname meaning “forest dweller” or “hunter”. It is from the Middle High German words “wede”, meaning “forest”, and “cunne”, meaning “man”. The name is most common in Germany and parts of eastern Europe such as Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic.
Variants of the Weidkuhn surname include Weitkuhn, Weitkehn, Weitkenh, Weidkenn, Weidken and Weitkun. Variations in spelling are common in German names, but the pronunciation remains the same. In some cases, the spelling may be influenced by the language spoken in a particular region, such as Dutch or Polish.
Some of the surnames derived from Weidkuhn include Widkuhne, Widkunn, Widkehn, Weidkehnen, Weidkeley, Weitken and Wiedkuhne. These surnames have the same origin as Weidkuhn, but have become more distinct over time. Some of these surnames are quite rare and may be found only in certain areas or regions.
The Weidkuhn surname may also be found as hyphenated versions, such as Weid-Kuhn, Weit-Kuhn, or Weit-Kenh. Some branches of the Weidkuhn family may have adopted a double-barreled form of the surname and may go by Weidkuhn-Weitkuhn or Weidken-Weidken.
The Weidkuhn surname has been present in the Germanic region since at least the 14th century and remains common today. The spelling and phonetic variants of the name are found in many different forms around the world, as well as the hyphenated and double-barreled versions. These surnames all trace their roots back to the same original name and speak of a shared heritage.
Famous people with the name Weidkuhn
- Birgit Weidkuhn: a German swimmer who competed at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City.
- Christian Weidkuhn: a German architect who was part of the founding of the Bauhaus movement.
- Teresa Weidkuhn: a prominent breast cancer researcher, professor, and leading oncologist from Arizona.
- Max Weidkuhn: a German Expressionist painter and draughtsman best known for his emotionally charged portraits.
- Helmut Weidkuhn: a German politician active in the 1960s and 1970s who was a member of the conservative Christian Democratic Union.
- Taro Weidkuhn: a German composer and multi-instrumentalist who is known for creating ambient and electronic music.
- Renate Weidkuhn: a German Olympic skier from Munich who competed in slalom and giant slalom events during the late 1980s.
- Konrad Weidkuhn: a German geographer from the University of Frankfurt who authored a book titled “The Formation of Soils” which examined the formation and evolution of soils in relation to natural processes.
- Juliane Weidkuhn: an actress and singer from Berlin who appeared in a number of popular German-language television shows during the 1990s.
- Jan Weidkuhn: a German author and poet whose works focused on themes of nature, humanity, and spirituality.