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Tanner Family History

Tanner Name Meaning

English (southern) and Dutch: occupational name for a tanner of skins Middle English tanner Middle Dutch taenre. The Middle English form derives from Old English tannere from Late Latin tannarius reinforced by Old French taneor from Late Latin tannator; both Late Latin forms derive from a verb tannare possibly from a Celtic word for the oak whose bark was used in the process. German: topographic name from Middle High German tan ‘woods pine forest’ for someone who lived near such terrain. German: habitational name for someone from any of several places called Tanne (in the Harz Mountains Bavaria East Prussia Switzerland) or Tann (Hesse Bavaria) Thann (Bavaria Austria Alsace) Tannen (southern Germany Switzerland) Thannen (Bavaria). Finnish: ornamental name from tanner ‘open field’. Adopted in the late 19th and early 20th centuries name-changing campaigns mainly in southern and southwestern Finland to replace Finnish and Swedish surnames (compare Laine ).

Source: Dictionary of American Family Names 2nd edition, 2022


Similar surnames: Danner, Mander, Tanzer, Tinner, Banner, Jenner, Gunner, Kanner

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Hint: Try searching for a relative alive in 1940.

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Where is the Tanner family from?

You can see how Tanner families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Tanner family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Tanner families were found in USA in 1880. In 1840 there were 190 Tanner families living in New York. This was about 29% of all the recorded Tanner's in USA. New York had the highest population of Tanner families in 1840.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Tanner surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.

What did your Tanner ancestors do for a living?

In 1940, Farmer and Housewife were the top reported jobs for men and women in the USA named Tanner. 17% of Tanner men worked as a Farmer and 8% of Tanner women worked as a Housewife. Some less common occupations for Americans named Tanner were Truck Driver and Maid. .

View Census Data for Tanner | Data not to scale

*We display top occupations by gender to maintain their historical accuracy during times when men and women often performed different jobs.

Top Male Occupations In 1940

  • Farmer
    17%
  • Laborer
    17%
  • Salesman
    5%
  • Truck Driver
    3%

Top Female Occupations In 1940

  • Housewife
    8%
  • Housekeeper
    7%
  • Teacher
    6%
  • Maid
    6%
Black & white image of two construction labourers

What Tanner family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 339,000 census records available for the last name Tanner. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Tanner census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search US census records for Tanner

Passenger Lists

There are 25,000 immigration records available for the last name Tanner. Passenger lists are your ticket to knowing when your ancestors arrived in the USA, and how they made the journey - from the ship name to ports of arrival and departure.

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Draft Cards

There are 46,000 military records available for the last name Tanner. For the veterans among your Tanner ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

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What is the average Tanner lifespan?

Between 1941 and 2004, in the United States, Tanner life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1945, and highest in 2004. The average life expectancy for Tanner in 1941 was 40, and 75 in 2004.

View Social Security Death Index (SSDI) for Tanner

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