Is this your surname? Why not share this page on Facebook

Surname Etymology and Meaning of MANN

New! Discuss the origin and etymology of MANN at the British Surnames Forum - contribute your own knowledge and information about where MANN comes from.

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.

(origin: Ger.) Gentleman or master, the same as Herr. Man, in the Welsh, signifies freckled or spotted; also, a spot, a place.

Source: An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names With an Essay on their Derivation and Import (1857).

1. English, German, Dutch (De Mann), and Jewish (Ashkenazic): nickname for a fierce or strong man, or for a man contrasted with a boy, from Middle English, Middle High German, Middle Dutch man. In some cases it may have arisen as an occupational name for a servant, from the medieval use of the term to describe a person of inferior social status. The Jewish surname can be ornamental.
2. English and German: from a Germanic personal name, found in Old English as Manna. This originated either as a byname or else as a short form of a compound name containing this element, such as Hermann.
3. Jewish (Ashkenazic): from the Yiddish male personal name Man (cognate with 1).
4. Indian (Panjab): Hindu (Jat) and Sikh name of unknown meaning.

Source: Dictionary of American Family Names (2003)