Dutch, German, and Scandinavian: from the Germanic personal name
Bernhard, composed of the elements ber(n) ‘bear’ +
hard ‘brave’, ‘hardy’, ‘strong’. In the 13th and 14th centuries
it vied with Arnold as the most popular personal name in the
Netherlands and northern Germany. It was borne by St. Bernard of
Menthon (923–1008), founder of Alpine hospices and patron saint of
mountaineers, whose cult accounts for the frequency of the name in
Alpine regions. See also Bernard.
Dictionary of American Family Names, Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-508137-4
126,275
Historical Documents & Family Trees with Bernhard
Click on a place to view Bernhard immigration records
The information for this chart came from the U.S. Immigration Collection at Ancestry.com.
You can find out where the majority of the Bernhard families were living before
they immigrated to the U.S and learn where to focus your search for foreign records.
Immigration records can tell you an ancestor's name, ship name, port of departure,
port of arrival, and destination.
Click on a circle in the chart to view Bernhard immigration records
You can find out when most of the Bernhard families immigrated
to the United States.
You can focus your search to immigration records dating from that era.
Immigration records can tell you an ancestor's name, ship name, port of departure,
port of arrival and destination.
Click on a circle in the chart to view Bernhard birth and death records
An unusually short lifespan might indicate that your ancestors lived in harsh conditions.
A short lifespan might also indicate health problems that were once prevalent in
your family.
The SSDI is a searchable database of more than 70 million names. You can find birthdates,
death dates, addresses and more.