Welcome to The Gerber Ancestry Gateway
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PHOTO ESSAY GALLERY OF SWITZERLAND
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MY GERBER ANCESTORS MIGRATE TO AMERICA FROM LANGNAU im EMMENTAL, CANTON BERN, SWITZERLAND IN 1852. The Langnau shield used at the top of this page contains three main elements characterized by this region of the Emmental. The rolling hills are symbolic of the mountains in this area. The triangular pine trees represent the style of trees abundant in Langnau and the gold trunks of these pines symbolize the main resource for livlihood of the Langnau people. The photo on the left shows the center of the village in Langnau. Langnau is composed of two words from the very old Berndeutsch: |
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The Kanton Bern was established in 1353. ............................................
Ceramic Plate dated from 1740 in Langnau Museum. Style characteristic of the Langnau i.E. ceramic handiworks. ............................................
Cheesemaking in Langnau im Emmental. Home of the famous "Swiss Cheese". ............................................
A tannery in the village of Langnau i.E. or das Gerberei-Gewerbe. ............................................
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As the result of a recent trip to Confoederatio Helvetica (CH or Switzerland), I have put together a more accurate understanding of my Schweiz heritage. I spent two days in my village of origin, Langnau im Emmental and also visited the village of Trub, home of the Habegger clan just 7 miles from Langnau. The Emmental is "The Valley of the Emme". The Emme is a river. This region is famous for the Emmentaler cheese, known as "Swiss Cheese" to Americans. I scheduled a meeting at the Zivilstandsamt in Langnau and revealed two more generations back from Christian the immigrant in the archive books located there. Thanks to my dear friend, Sandy Mueller, who was raised in Canton Bern, I was able to communicate with the people of Langnau through her interpretation. I am the first Gerber to return to the homeland since Christian Gerber migrated to America in 1852. To find out about more generations back and our family crest, I contacted a genealogist in Thun who will help assist with this task. These records are located in the archives at the city of Bern. Watch for further info in the future. Following is the story thus far... Peter Gerber, born abt. 1731 in Langnau i.E. was a herdsman of cattle. Since the name "gerber" in Swiss German means a "tanner of hides" and tanning was a craft that goes back hundreds of years in the Langnau community, it makes sense that Peter would be a herdsman. It is also interesting to note that the Swiss German language is older than the "high German" spoken in Germany. The people of Schweiz were speaking the Swiss German language before Germany was Germany. PRESS HERE TO SEE VILLAGE ORIGINS OF SURNAME GERBER. Peter's son, Niklaus Gerber, christened November 11, 1761, married Magdalena Burkhalter from Ruegsau BE and they moved south to Vechigen located in the St. Stephan region amidst the Bernese Alps. It was here that our immigrant to America, Christian Gerber was born on November 23rd 1802. Eventhough Christian was born in Vechigen, his village of origin was still Langnau i.E. Also born to Niklaus and Magdalena was Magdalena, Niklaus, Johannes and Verena. Since Christian was my ggg Grandfather, I will continue with his lines. Christian Gerber's first wife, Magdalena Rohrbach originated from St. Stephan and was the daughter of Peter Rohrbach. She was my ggg grandmother and gave birth to Christian J. Gerber on May 22, 1828, my gg grandfather. Also born to Christian and Magdalena were Fred, Magdalena and Johannes (John). On October 31, 1846, in the city of Thun, Christian Gerber married Elizabeth Zmutt born September 27 1828 in Zweiselberg. I would like to note here that these families were of the Swiss Reformed Church. There are other Gerber's who were classified as "taefers", anabaptists or mennonite, some of them are also my ancestor's through the Habegger's, Sprunger's, Lehman's and others. In 1852 Christian and Elizabeth Gerber with their small family embarked on a sailing vessel from Antwerp, Belgium and forty-two days later arrived in New York City in America. Thence they pursued their westward journey by railroad to Cleveland, Ohio, on to Fort Wayne, Indiana by the Miami Canal, and on the banks of the canal they loaded their simple posessions into a wagon drawn by ox teams and came to what is now the Village of Berne, Indiana when all that country was almost a total wilderness. The woods were filled with game when they arrived and they built their first homes in the woods. Christian lived the industrious life of a farmer until his death in 1884. His widow, Elizabeth, survived him until 1915 and passed away at the age of eighty-seven. Christian's first son, Christian J. Gerber married Fannie Spegeher in Vera Cruz, Indiana on August 17, 1865. He was a carpenter and farmer owning a 360 acre farm in Hartford Township. He also bought a 260 acre farm in French Township, Indiana in 1897 and it was here where he retired. Christian J. and Fannie had five children, Elizabeth, Aldine, Christian, Benjamin and John. Ben Gerber was my great grandpa born June 27, 1874 marrying Isabelle Schwartz on December 16 1899. Ben and Isabelle had three children, Francis, Florence and my grandpa, Christian Edward Gerber born April 22, 1909. Ben was a well-respected man in the Berne, Indiana community and took care of the farms. He died on July 30, 1940. Christian Edward Gerber married Harriet Louise Habegger on June 22, 1935 in Berne, Indiana. He was a mechanic and owned a car dealership and garage in Berne. Chris and Harriet had one child, Eric Ross Gerber, my father, who married Helen Marie Anderson and had me, Anthony Rian Gerber and my brother Todd Cristian Gerber. Obviously from reading the story of this Gerber family it is apparent that the name "Christian" was used for several generations in this family. My brother, whose middle name carries the family name has a different spelling of "Cristian". My grandpa never like the fact that his name was spelled with an "h" in it. So my folks decided to drop the "h" from my brothers name when he was born to make grandpa feel good about his name. Thus we now have Cristian and a story of how names get changed in families. As I find out more details and further generations of this family, I will rework this story. My trip to Switzerland in January of 1998 was a blessing and I recommend traveling to your homeland if you have the opportunity.
portions of text from the book, "Standard History of Adams and Wells Counties, Indiana" by John W. Tyndale and O.E. Lesh VOLUME 1 c1918 - & - Research and writings by Tony Gerber 1-27-98 |
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You will notice two different spellings of Berne on these pages. I was told when I was younger that the Swiss German spelling is Bern and the Swiss French spelling is Berne. The English spelling is Berne and the Swiss Italiano is Berna. Our family spoke the Swiss German dialect, Baerndeutsch, so Bern is appropriate and I speak English so Berne also works. You will see both versions on this site. My Grandma (Habegger) Gerber in addition to English also speaks Baerndeutsch. |
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The Gerber ancestors were part of the Swiss Reform Church, started by Ulrich Zwingli who was influenced by Martin Luther in the 15th Century.
Gerber's who were part of the taefer or anabaptist movement, considered a cult by Switzerland proper.
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| 1566 - Walti Gerber (a minister) was beheaded for his faith. |
| 1596 - Josiah Gerber paid $1,000 bail for his wife - banished for faith |
| 1598 - Hans Gerber forfeited $12,000 of his property for helping anabaptists. |
| 1709 - Elisibeth Gerber, wife of Peter, banished to West Indies for her faith. |
| 1712 - Hans Gerber (a deacon) was condemned to the galleys in Italy. |
Below is a 193K ancestor imagery photo file with key and historic notes loading below.
KEY TO PHOTOS ABOVE from my perspective:
1. Bethana "Bell" Lowe - Great Grandma
2. Farrell H. Byrd - 3rd Great Grandpa
3. Louisa Low and Lacy Levi Adkins - 3rd Great Grandma & Grandpa
4. Benjamin Gerber and Isabelle Schwartz (Wedding Photo) - Great Grandma & Grandpa
5. John Thomas Anderson with Lassa Lowe Family Photo - 2nd Great Grandma & Grandpa
6. Christian J. Gerber Family - 2nd Great Grandma & Grandpa
7. Frances, Florence and Christian Edward Gerber baby photo - Grandpa w/Great Aunts
8. CC Sexton - 2nd Great Grandpa
9. Abraham Habegger and Lina A. Moser Family Photo - 2nd Great Grandma & Grandpa
10. Myrh J. Massengale (Alex Lowe's Wife) - 3rd Great Grandma
11. Young Chester Anderson Baptism - Grandpa
12. Euell Lowe and Melvina Cross Family Photo - 2nd Great Grandma & Grandpa
13. David C. Lehman Wedding Anniversary Family Photo - 2nd Great Grandma & Grandpa
14. Chester Anderson and Reba L. Adkins - Grandma & Grandpa
This Site is Dedicated To My Great Uncle
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The following was taken from an article entitled "Deryll Sprunger left A Legacy of Laughter" in Christian Standard magazine, written by Daniel Schantz. "Life is too serious for us to be somber," he said to me one day. "You have to laugh, Schantz, or you will break." Laughter is therapy, and Sprunger used it even in counseling. Once I traveled eight hours to seek his counsel for a serious personal problem. His advice was interspersed with funny anecdotes, and I could literally feel my heart healing in his presence. Afterward, he took me out for supper, then on to a service station to fill my tank at his expense. At the station, Sprunger hopped out of the car, grabbed a paper towel, and began to wash all the windows, all the while whistling, "To the Work, to the Work..." I just sat dumbfounded by his cheerful servant spirit. Sprunger loved to eat. To him every meal was a "foretaste of glory divine," a sample of that great wedding feast to come. "Food was made for fellowship," he said.
Uncle Deryll was an artist/photographer early in life and then became a minister and started a non-denomonational church in Akron, Ohio. It was an absolute joyful experience to be in his company. The humor, social consultation and interpretation of God's word was his greatest talent. I always felt a special kindred spirit with Deryll and his tremendous wisdom was felt in my life even after his passing from leukemia in 1983. He is missed by the family and has left many fond memories. As Daniel Schantz states: We strongly suspect that Heaven was hit by a wave - a wave of laughter when the gatekeeper announced, "Sprunger's here!" Thanks Uncle Deryll...
TO SEE AND ORDER A COPY OF DERYLL SPRUNGER'S CHILDREN'S BOOK, "WALK THE WALK" PRESS HERE |
My father's side of the family is 100% Swiss heritage originating from Langnau i. E. in the Canton Berne. Many of my ancestors built Berne, Indiana in the 1800s. Most of these ancestors are traceable back to the mid-1500s.
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My mother's side contains bloodlines from Ireland, Scotland, Wales, England, France, Germany, Cherokee, and possible Creek. The only link to Europe on my mother's side that I have found is a Balthasar Bortner, born in 1698, emigrating from Germany to Pennsylvania. The rest of the European bloodlines have been traced by origin of surname only. I have only been able to trace most of my mother's ancestors back to the 1700s in the USA. Mostly in the Appalachian mountain region. A large concentration in Scott County, Tennessee. I am probably related in some way to most of the residents in that county!
WORDS OF HISTORY
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THE EMMENTAL On the Lehman side my ancestors came from the Langnau area in the Emmental of Canton Bern, Switzerland. Anabaptism arose early in the 1500s in Langnau, which has the oldest Mennonite church in Europe. As early as 1566, a Wilhelm Lehman was arrested and imprisoned in October because he refused to take the oath of allegiance. Both he and his wife gave testimony to their faith under great stress. To refuse the oath meant they gave priority of God's rule over their lives and that they would not follow some of the state's laws and orders, such as to bear arms in military action.
THE JURA LOOKING TOWARDS MT BLANC It was during this time that my ancestor, Peter Leeman, born in 1735, left the Emmental for the Jura which was under the Bishop of Basel and not part of Canton Bern at that time. His grandson, Peter Lehman, was born March 14, 1782 in the vicinity of Corgemont. In Langnau records where his family is recorded, he is listed as a "taefer" or Anabaptist. My 4th great grandfather, Peter, and his wife, Anna Fuhrimann, lived on the farm La Rochette in the Sonnenberg community of the Jura. This was a small farm with many limestone rocks in the fields. In Switzerland, Mennonites were permitted to farm land that was above 700 meters, as the Catholics, who controlled the area, farmed the more fertile valleys. Even though my ancestors had to pay higher rent and extra taxes to live on this less desireable land, they were able to make a living through hard work and frugal living. Religion was a pervading influence in the home. The family had prayer both before and after each meal. The Bible was read and many times hymns were sung. The Swiss dialect, Baerndeutsch, was the language of the home. The Bible was written in High German hence lessons were given in the home in High German mainly during the winter months. from an article written by David Habegger from Kansas as told in the Berne News. Special thanks to Sherman Stucky for his many hours of research done on the genealogies of the Christian B. Lehman and Jacob P. Liechty families. |
The Leeman's and Lehman's came from the Emmental part of Canton Berne, Switzerland. This is where swiss cheese originates. In Switzerland it is called Emmental Cheese. Most of the Swiss ancestry was Mennonite, coming from the oldest Mennonite Church in Europe located in Berne, Switzerland. They then proceeded to build the largest Mennonite church in the United States located in Berne, Indiana.
FOR THE HABEGGER STORY OF MIGRATION FROM SWITZERLAND TO AMERICA IN 1876
LOWE, ANDERSON, SEXTON & ADKINS
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MICHAEL "GRAND MICKEY" LOW (my 6th great granddad) The first permanent settler, according to available records, was Michael Low, who brought his family here from North Carolina and settled on Smoky Creek in 1776. The land which he possessed was under a North Carolina land grant. It included the land which borders on each side of Upper Smoky, to the top of the mountains on both sides. The fertile creek bottoms were planted in corn and vegetables, and the vast tracts of virgin timber remained uncut for many years as a haven for the wild animals which were plentiful at that time. "Grand Mickey," as Low was commonly called, was Scotch-Irish. The Scotch side of his stock showed up remarkably in the frugality of his ancestors, and so did the Irish, in their independent ways, which often led to disputes and fights among the "clans." Their ancestors became involved in numerous lawsuits which left them but small profit from these vast tracts of virgin timber. Trees six to seven feet in diameter were not unusual. According to historical data furnished by one of the older settlers of Scott County, there was a Cherokee and his wife living on Smoky Creek when the first settler, Michael Low, arrived. The Native American had been banished from his tribe in North Carolina before coming to Smoky. Shortly afterward he accused Grand Mickey (name by which he is familiarly referred to) of casting amorous glances at the pretty, young squaw. Soon after when Grand Mickey went to fish in a deep hole in Smoky Creek, he spied the Native American lurking in the bushes nearby, evidently waiting for him to cast his line and become quietly engaged in fishing, when he could, unoticed, aim a death-dealing shot with his bow and arrow. Apparently undisturbed, Grand Mickey nonchalantly picked up his hog rifle and killed the Cherokee on the spot. Since that time the deep hole of water has been known as Indian Hole. According to stories by relatives of Grand Mickey, the squaw remained in the Smoky settlement and was cared for by the white settlers. She left some half-breeds whose blood can be traced through several generations of the Lowes. However, intermarriage of the races was relatively small in Scott county in comparison with some of the other counties in East Tennessee where the tribes had settlements. Grand Mickey was a famous hunter, and many were the glowing yarns spun about his prowness in that direction. He was especially fond of hunting bears, which were plentiful at that time. Once he was supposed to have crawled in a cave, where he was punching about with a stick. When an angry bear tried to get out over him, the two became hung in the hole; and by the time Grand Mickey managed to back out of it, he was badly lacerated by the furious animal. A favorite story told by descendants was that Grand Mickey's wife (Elizabeth Bordner) went to a spring for water, when she saw a big bear also coming toward it. She started running with her wooden pail, and the bear went after her. She tossed the pail down, and the bear stopped for a second to examine it, then took up the chase again. Piece by piece she threw down most of her clothing, the animal slowing down each time, then making for her again. By the time she had reached the door of the cabin in the clearing she could almost feel the bear's hot breath at her back. She managed to reach safety nearly completely exhausted but in time to bar the door against the intruder. Every man on Smoky old enough to carry a gun joined the Union forces during the Civil War. At one time Rebel forces came, and the Union men hid out. The militant, pioneer women of the country rode for miles after dark to carry their men food, risking their lives in the effort. Smoky Creek was soon settled by more Lowes, the Hembrees, Massengales, McGees and the Llewellyns. From the book "Scott County and it's Mountain Folk" by Esther Sharp Sanderson
JOHN THOMAS ANDERSON (my 2nd great granddad)
The following was taken from the SHARP-ANDERSON family book compiled by my cousin Laura Waters. Laura's mother, Martha L. Wilson, daughter of Louisa Anderson Newport and Ewen Newport, granddaughter of John Thomas Anderson and Sally Adkins Anderson, wrote this about J.T. Anderson. My grandfather, Tom Anderson, as he was called by everyone who knew him, was a man of many affairs and was born July 28, 1863. He owned a store, mules for logging, and a logging camp, a mill for grinding grain. He was a farmer, a deputy sheriff, a leader in the Corinth Baptist Church, he was one of the four who founded the church. He was a loving, compassionate man. When mother died, granddad didn't want us three separated, so he and Grandma Lassie took us in. With their three, we were like stairsteps. Evelyn was eight, Hubert seven, Ella six, me five, Wolford four, and John three. We must have been very congenial, because I can't remember us ever quarreling or fighting. In addition, Aunt Lurainey, granddad's widowed sister, and Adam, a cousin, lived with granddad. Adam was badly crippled and stayed for thirty-five or forty years. Aunt Rainey, who was mentally off, became angry and ran away from home. I remember one night, just at dusk, granddad and I walking along in a light rain. He was very troubled and was talking to me about Aunt Rainey. Perhaps that is why all my life, when something has upset me, I have found comfort in walking the rain. Granddad told us stories about when he was young, he was born in Kentucky and was about five or six when the family moved to Tennessee by wagon. They camped along the way by night. One night, the grown-ups were trying to start a fire with a flint. A firefly lit on the wood. The grown-ups thought that it was a spark and were frantically blowing on it, trying to start a fire. The children knew that it was only a firefly and were enjoying the joke very much. Granddad loved to have someone read to him. He would have sat up all night if he could have someone read. I don't know if he couldn't read or if he just liked to hear someone else. Mother had given me a calf. I never could name here as no was beautiful enough. I would name her but, in a week or two, some other name would appeal to me and the name was changed again. Granddad finally just called the cow "Martha's Cow." Poor thing, she had to go through life with that for a name. One weekend a month, church was held at Corinth Church. How the women would cook and bake, because they never knew how many would show up for dinner! Granddad gave everyone an invitation. There would be a table after table. We kids would get worried that there would be nothing left for us, but there always was. The women probably enjoyed showing off what good cooks they were, even if it were a lot of work. Herbert Phillips was staying at granddad's, going to school at Norma. One time, he raided Aunt Belle's cakes and pies. Next church time, Aunt Belle hid her goodies. This was like a dare to Herbert. He searched until he found the hoard, had a big slice of cake, and left a note saying, "Ha, you'll have to find a new hiding place." We had honey because there were several hives of bees. Once a year, granddad would put on a big hat, roll some cloth up, set fire to it so as to get lots of smoke, and rob the bees. We also had molasses all year because each fall granddad had molasses made. Excitement was high at school when we knew someone was having a stir off. People from miles around would come. We played games, dipped into the molasses, and had fun. I remember going to the Lowes' for one stir off. John Thomas Anderson's great -grandson has built a modern house near where the old house stood. This land has been in the Anderson name for over one hundred years. -MARTHA L. WILSON
Great Great Grandpa Sexton, incredibly large hands, was a guitar player. His son, Leonis and grandson, Ervin Adkins were also guitar players. My Grandpa Chester Anderson gave me my first guitar when I was 7. My Uncle Steve Anderson showed some of my first guitar licks. My Uncle Dave Anderson's record collection supplied my ears with tunes of the times back in the sixties. It has been said that a "Gerber" studied under Johann Sebastian Bach. Don't know if he was related or not. Great Great Grandpa John Thomas Anderson, born in abt. 1865, originally moving from Clinton or Russell County, Kentucky, married Sallie Adkins and later Lassie Lowe (#5 picture above) and settled in Smoky Junction at what was later called called Anderson Crossing. Tom's gun, from the deputy days is still in the family with notches on the handle, not sure how many. Louisa Lowe's (#3 picture above) mother was said to be a Cherokee princess. John Thomas Anderson's son, my Great Grandpa Wiley owned land in Smokey Junction, Tennessee, including a coal shute on his property that was rented to the Peabody Coal Company. Wiley kept the local graveyard orderly and worked in the coal mines early in life. He suffered from black lung in his seventies, but lived several more wonderful years. Most of the family land in Smokey Junction was sold to the coal companies and is no longer the same. Progress? I remember taking my banjo to Great Grandpa Wiley Anderson's house and sitting on the front porch picking. There was another house up on the hill and I was told they were Lowe cousins, I never actually met them, but we exchanged musical licks, echoing through the hollar. It was literally a "Deliverance"-like experience. I also remember walking up the steep, rocky driveway to Great Grandpa Wiley's with Great Grandma Bell "Lowe" Anderson to the dirt road winding up through Smoky Junction and meeting a traveling General Store truck (the rolling store). Grandma bought necessities to make our incredible meals with. I have been told that there is a monument to Michael "Grand Mickey" Low up the road past Smokey Junction in the Appalachians. It takes a four wheeler and hiking to get to the top of the mountain where it stands, marking the spot of his cabin. Grand Mickey was the first white man to settle in that part of the country in the 1700s. He moved to Scott County from Pennsylvania. He is my 6th Great Grandfather.
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PRESS HERE TO READ POEM ABOUT WILEY and BELLE ANDERSON
PRESS HERE TO READ "THE PORCH" by Helen (Anderson) Gerber
FAMILY SURNAME DEFINITIONS
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BORTNER or BORDNER: Bortner is the 24,001st most popular last name (surname) in the United States; frequency is 0.000%; percentile is 79.710 [SourceCBN] BORTNER was the original German spelling which changed upon arrival to America to Bordner after the first generation in our family. ADKINS: is a Patronymic name, derived from the early given name Adam (Hebrew adama = red earth or man), originating in England, France, Catalan, Italy, Germany, and Poland, as well as the Ashkenazic Jewish, Dutch and Flemish. Diminutive forms of Adam are Adkin, Atkin, Aitkin, Adnett, Adnitt , and Ade . Italian variants are Adami, Dami ; Polish and Jewish versions include Adamski . The Hugarian cognate is Adam , in Provencal it is Azam , in Spain, Adan . ANDERSON: is the eleventh most common surname in America, based on the 1990 US Census, and owes that position to the popularity of the name Andrew in England, Scotland, and Scandinavian countries. Andrew (man) was the first of the disciples called by Jesus, and was a revered name due to its church influences through medieval times. St. Andrew is the patron saint of both Scotland and Russia and many given names were chosen to honor the saint. Patronymic surnames are names used to describe a man by using his father's name. In Norway the name takes the form Andresen, Anders , and Enders ; the Swedes in America eliminated the extra -S- they normally include to become Anderson. It was Andersson and Anderssen before they emigrated. The French form is Andre , with an accent mark above the ending letter. Andrews is largly found in Scotland, along with McAndrew -- the prefix Mc being another patronymic designation -- which is also found in Ireland. In Italy, the name is D'Andrea , in Poland it is Andrzejewski , in the Ukraine it is Andrijenko , and in Czechoslovakia, Andrew takes the form of Ondrus . CROSS: English Place name for the man who lived near the stone cross set up by the roadside or marketplace, from Old Norse kross. Cognitives include De(la)Croix, Croix , (French); Croux, Lacroux, Lacrouts, De(la)croux (Provencal); Croce , DellaCroce, Croci (Italian); Cruz (Spanish); Kreutzer, Kreuziger (German); Vercruysse (Flemish), Krzyzaniak (Polish), and Van der Kruijs (Dutch). GERBER: The definition of "GERBER" is a person who tans animal hides in Swiss German. I have been told it is synonymous with the surname "TANNER". The GERBER,GARBER & GARVER family name is common in Germany and Switzerland. Many of these families in Europe were members of the Anabaptist peace sects who emigrated to America to escape the widespread persecutions which followed the Reformation. Upon arrival to America as early as the beginning of the 18th century, the original form of the name changed spelling in some families to: KERWER, KERPER, KERWAR, GERVER and CARVER. HABEGGER: Feeding into the Emme is a stream named Ilfis. It is on the hills and valleys that feed into this stream that the Habeggers lived. One kilometer from the village of Barau is a farm complex on a hill named Habegg. It is from this farm that we received our family name. In Switzerland each farm or farm complex has a name. The family or families living on that farm are known by the name of the farm. In the middle ages common people did not have family names. When distinctions needed to be made between persons, family names were added. The name of the farm they were living on frequently became the source of that name. Even today when a farmer goes to town he will frequently be called by the name of the farm rather than by his family name. The name Habegg is a shortened form of Habichtegg which Hawk Ridge. The Habegg farm is on a hill rising from the valleys to the west and south. It is the shoulder of a higher hill named Riegenen. Hawks can be seen soring on the air currents coming from the valley to the west. The hawk is able to remain motionless by balancing on the upward moving breeze. It was probably from such a common sight that the hill was given its name. It is a place where hawks have been coming for centuries to hunt for rodents. Habegger definition from the book "The History, Ancestry and Descendants of Peter Habegger and Elisabeth Lehman" by David L. Habegger LIECHTI or LIECHTY: is a variant of the surname Licht , which is a German Occupational name for a chandler. It is derived from the German licht =light. Variations include Lichtner, Lichtmann, and Lichtzer, among others. LOW or LOWE: is a variation of the Scottish Clan Labhran, a deminutive form of the name Lawrence (man from Laurentum). Other variations are Lawrence, Laurence, Lowrie, Lawrie, Laurie, Law, Lawren, and Lawson. LAU, LOW, LOUGH or LOWE: As time has marched on in our research of the Lowe origin, we have evidence that Lowe, pronounced in our family like "cow" not "crow" stems from the German name Lauers, which shortened to Lau, as on the records in Pennsylvania show relating to Grand Mickey's marriage into the Bortner clan from Germany. The Lauers and the Bortners came to America on the same ship and settled in Tulpehoken township in Pennsylvania. I now am of the belief that Grand Mickey Low was of German origin as opposed to Scottish origin. I am including the Scottish origin on this page for further information and research. Part of the family prescribes to the Scottish origin. We may never know for sure. But the continued pronunciation of "Low" in our family seems to be a smoking gun to me.
NEWPORT: is an English place name, from any of the so-named locations whose names were derived from Old English neowe = new + port = market town. The man who originated in that location would be known by that name when he moved to another locale, as in John-of-Newport > John Newport. PHILLIPS/PHILIPS : Philip was an extremely popular name in medieval times -- Philip was one of the apostles, and four French kings were named Philip from the 11th to the 13th century. The name -- which means 'lover of horses' -- came into England from France at the time of the conquest. Philips is patronymic (named after the father Philip, whose sons would be referred to as Philip's sons). The common Welsh and English version of the surname is spelled with two l's, giving the descendants the surname Phillips. Phillips is a variation of the English, French, Dutch/Flemish, and Danish/Norwegian Patronymic name Phillip/Philip from the Greek name Philippos and elements philein = to love + hippos = horse. Its popularity seems to have been due to medieval stories about Alexander the Great, whose father was Philip of Macedon. Variations are Philipp, Phillip, Philp, Phelp, Phalp (English); Philippe, Phelip, Felip, Phelit, Philip, Phalip (French); Filip (Flemish/Dutch). There are numerous other diminutive, patronymic, and cognative forms. SHARP: is an English Nickname given to the man who was keen, active, and quick; derived from the Middle English term scharp. Variations include Sharpe, and Shairp (the second of which is primarily Scottish). Scharff and Scharfe had the same meaning in Germany, while Scherpe is the Flemish and Dutch version. SEXTON: A Welsh name meaning, "To ring a bell" |
