Surname Werneken - Meaning and Origin
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Werneken: What does the surname Werneken mean?
The last name Werneken is of Germanic origin and was originally derived from the Germanic personal name Warno. This personal name was found in Bavaria, Germany, and is composed of two elements: warin, meaning defender, and ecke, meaning edge or corner.
The name is believed to have originated in the 11th century, when a certain Warno who lived in either Saxony or Thuringia adopted the surname. Initially, the surname was assumed by any of his descendants, and the spellings changed with time over the centuries. By the 1600s, the Werneken spelling had become common in many parts of Germany.
Werneken is a common surname in Germany and is generally found in areas with German-speaking populations, such as Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Denmark, and the Netherlands. Although rare, it can also be found in some English-speaking countries.
The Werneken surname has been linked with the noble Freiherr von Werneken family of Prussia. The original family lived in Munich and Munich-Landshut in Bavaria and can be traced back to the early 1700s. They were known patrons of the arts and had a prominent place in city life.
Today, the Werneken surname is still fairly common in Germany, as well as other German-speaking countries and even some English-speaking countries where German immigrants settled. It is a reminder of family pride and noble lineage, as well as a testament of how the name has stood the test of time.
Order DNA origin analysisWerneken: Where does the name Werneken come from?
The last name Werneken is most common today in the Netherlands, where it has been present for centuries. According to the 2020 Meertens Institute database of surnames in the Netherlands, Werneken is the 5,303rd most common surname.
There are also occurrences of Werneken in Belgium, born out by the Belgium National Register. Though the exact figures are unknown, it is likely that the name is most common in the Dutch-speaking region of Flanders.
Furthermore, the name Werneken can be found in the United States. This can be attributed to Dutch immigrants who began migrating to the United States in the mid-1600s. Given the Netherlands’ long-standing presence in the North Sea shipping industry, it is person of Dutch descent with surnames like Werneken who settled in port cities like Baltimore, New York, and Pennsylvania.
Nevertheless, the Netherlands remains the country with the highest concentration of people bearing the surname Werneken.
Variations of the surname Werneken
The surname Werneken is a German family name originating from the locality of Werne, located near the middle of present-day Germany. The surname has been spelled in many ways over the centuries, including the original Werneken, Wernecke, Wernecken, and Wernecke.
Variants of Wernecken are usually found in areas close to the original home of the family, such as parts of the Netherlands, Austria, and Switzerland. All of these variants have similar phonetic pronunciations; primarily with a soft 'E' at the end.
Similar surnames that are related to Wernecken include Warnecke, Warneckewitz, Wernicke, Werneg, and Wernemann. It is believed that many of these variants are borne out of misunderstandings of the actual name during immigration and other genealogical record keeping processes.
Additional variants and spellings of Wernecken include Wernken, Werneking, Wernicke, Wernneken, Vearnecken, Vernecke, and Verneken.
Spelling changes with time, dialects and variations in language have been the root cause of many of the Wernecken variant spellings. It is unclear what caused some of the surnames to become so varied, but the act of immigration often had a hand in creating new variations of existing family names.
Due to the regional origin of the Wernecken surname, variations have been found all over the world – in countries like Germany, the Netherlands, Austria, Switzerland, Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, and many more.
Famous people with the name Werneken
- Daniel Werneken: German international footballer currently playing for Fortuna Düsseldorf
- Péter Werneken: Hungarian football player for the national U-17 team
- Fritz Werneken: German abstract expressionist artist
- Jörg Werneken: German actor and film producer
- Terrence Werneken: American military veteran and philanthropist
- Dieter Werneken: German artist, educator and author
- Jeff Werneken: American ice hockey coach
- Annemarie Werneken: German ceramics and tapestry artist
- Paul Werneken: German painter
- Ulrich Werneken: German actor
- Hans-Jürgen Werneken: German physicist and professor
- Günter Werneken: German architect
- Robert Werneken: American graphic artist
- Jürgen Werneken: German art dealer and patronage
- Wilma Werneken: Dutch cabaret artist and actor
- Joachim Werneken: German doctor and professor
- Olivia Werneken: Australian journalist and author
- Walter Werneken: German sculptor
- Gisela Werneken: Austrian sculptor
- Ken Werneken: Canadian ice hockey player and coach