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Surname Etymology and Meaning of BAER

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Name meanings and etymologies are often disputed. The information here is compiled from freely available sources, and no claims whatsoever are made for accuracy, either historical or etymological.

1. German (Bär): from Middle High German ber ‘bear’, a nickname for someone thought to resemble the animal in some way, a metonymic occupational name for someone who kept a performing bear, or a habitational name for someone who lived at a house distinguished by the sign of a bear. In some cases, it may derive from a personal name containing this element.
2. Jewish (Ashkenazic):
3. Jewish (Ashkenazic): from the Yiddish male personal name Ber, from Yiddish ber ‘bear’.
4. Dutch: from Middle Dutch baer ‘naked’, ‘bare’. Debrabandere suggests it may have been a nickname for someone who wore ragged clothes.

Source: Dictionary of American Family Names (2003)