Schaefer
What is the origin of the last name Schaefer?
Meaning and origin
The last name Schaefer originates from German and Dutch roots. In German, "Schäfer" means "shepherd," indicating a possible ancestral occupation. The name could have also emerged from the Dutch surname "Schaaf," meaning "sheep," or from the occupational name for a wool merchant.
The longer story
The last name Schaefer is of German origin and is a variant of the occupational surname "Schäfer." The name derives from the Middle High German word "schāfære," meaning shepherd.
The Schaefer surname is primarily found in Germany and other German-speaking regions, but it has also spread to other countries with Germanic roots, including the United States.
Research indicates that the earliest instances of the Schaefer surname can be traced back to the Middle Ages in Germany. The name was likely initially given to individuals who worked as shepherds, overseeing and tending to flocks of sheep. Over time, the name became hereditary, passing down from one generation to the next.
Surname origins are rarely settled: one spelling can have several sources, and families often took a name for reasons nobody wrote down. Check it against the sources below before you rely on it.
#841
Schaefer was the 841st most common surname in the 2010 US Census, with 41,063 people, about 14 in every 100,000.
Who carries it
Surnames like Schaefer
Names it is linked with, then names with the same origin and a similar standing.
Check the sources
- Forebears: where Schaefer is found around the world
- The Internet Surname Database: a second opinion on the origin
- US Census Bureau: the 2010 surname figures used here
For a name you are serious about, compare the dictionaries: Reaney and Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames; Hanks, Dictionary of American Family Names.