German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): status name for a peasant or
nickname meaning ‘neighbor’, ‘fellow citizen’, from Middle High German
(ge)bur, Middle Low German
bur, denoting an
occupant of a
bur, a small dwelling or building. Compare Old
English
bur, modern English
bower. This word later
fell together with Middle High German
buwære, an agent
noun from Old High German
buan ‘to cultivate’, later also
(at first in Low German dialects) ‘to build’. The German surname thus
has two possible senses: ‘peasant’ and ‘neighbor’, ‘fellow citizen’.
The precise meaning of the Jewish surname, which is of later
formation, is unclear. This surname is also found elsewhere in
central and eastern Europe, for example in Slovenia, where it may also
be a translation of
Kmet.
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A unique volume of fascinating facts, statistics and commentary following the bauer family name as far back in history as possible.
