List of the most common surnames in Germany
Data updated to 12 February 2021.
Müller, occupation (miller) Schmidt, occupation (smith) Schneider, occupation (tailor) Fischer, occupation (fisherman) Weber, occupation (weaver) Meyer, occupation (originally a manorial landlord, later a self-employed farmer) Wagner, occupation (wainwright) Becker, occupation (baker) Schulz, occupation (medieval mayor) Hoffmann, occupation (steward or courtier) Schäfer, occupation (shepherd) Koch, occupation (cook) Bauer, occupation (farmer or peasant) Richter, occupation (judge) Klein, trait ("small", "short" ) Wolf, perhaps derived from forename (e.g. Wolf, Wolfgang, etc.) or trait ("wolf-like") Schröder, occupation (tailor or wine shipper) Neumann, trait ("new") Schwarz, trait ("black-haired") Zimmermann, occupation (carpenter) Braun, trait ("brown-haired") or forename (Brunhold) Krüger, occupation (innkeeper) Hofmann, occupation (steward or courtier) Hartmann, forename Lange, trait ("tall") Schmitt, occupation (smith) Werner, forename Schmitz, occupation (smith) Krause, trait ("curly haired") Meier, occupation (originally a manorial landlord, later a self-employed farmer) Lehmann, occupation/class (vassal) Schmid, occupation (smith) Schulze, occupation (medieval mayor) Maier, occupation (originally a manorial landlord, later a self-employed farmer) Köhler, occupation (charcoal-maker) Herrmann, forename König, house name ("king") Walter, forename Mayer, occupation (originally a manorial landlord, later a self-employed farmer) Huber, occupation (farmer) Kaiser, house name ("emperor") Fuchs, trait ("fox hunter" or "fox-like") Peters, forename Lang, trait ("tall") Scholz, occupation (medieval mayor) Möller, occupation (miller) Weiß, trait ("white-haired" or "white-skinned") Jung, trait ("young") Hahn, "rooster", or possibly a condensation of Johannes Schubert, occupation (shoemaker), derived from Middle High German Schuochwürhte Vogel, house name ("bird") Friedrich, forename composed of Old High German fridu ("peace") and rîhhi ("prince") Keller, occupation (winemaker) Günther, forename Frank, tribe (Franks) Berger, house name ("mountain") Winkler, occupation (grocer) Roth, trait ("red-haired") Beck, occupation (baker) or house name ("stream") Lorenz, forename Baumann, occupation (farmer or peasant) Franke, tribe (Franks) Albrecht, forename Schuster, occupation (shoemaker) Simon, forename Ludwig, forename Böhm, nation (Bohemian) Winter, related to winter Kraus, trait ("curly-haired") Martin, forename Schumacher, occupation (shoemaker) Krämer, occupation (grocer, huckster or chandler) Vogt, occupation (bailiff) Stein, house name ("rock") Jäger, occupation (hunter) Otto, forename Sommer, related to summer Groß, trait ("big") Seidel, perhaps derived from forename (e.g. Siegfried, Sieghart, etc.) Heinrich, forename Brandt, related to fire Haas, house name ("hare") Schreiber, occupation (scrivener) Graf, occupation (count) Schulte, occupation (medieval mayor) Dietrich, forename composed of Old High German diot ("people") and rihhi ("mighty"), meaning "ruler of people" Ziegler, occupation (brickmaker) Kuhn, perhaps derived from forename (Konrad) Kühn, trait ("brave") Pohl, nation, "Pole" "originating from or related to Poland" Engel, forename or house name ("angel") Horn, house name ("horn") Busch, house name ("shrub") Bergmann, occupation (miner) Thomas, forename Voigt, occupation (bailiff) Sauer, trait ("grim") Arnold, forename Wolff, perhaps derived from forename (e.g. Wolf, Wolfgang, etc.) or trait ("wolf-like") Pfeiffer, occupation (piper)
Regional differences
Although Müller is the most common name in German-speaking countries, in some areas other surnames are more frequent than Müller. The common names Schmidt and Schmitz lead in the central German-speaking and eastern Low German-speaking areas. Meyer is particularly common in the Low German-speaking regions, especially in Lower Saxony (where it is more common than Müller). Bauer leads in eastern Upper German-speaking Bavaria. Rarer names tend to accumulate in the north and south. Huber is common in southern Bavaria and is, with the exception of Munich, the most frequent name in that area. Patronymic surnames such as Jansen/Janssen, Hansen, and Petersen are the most common names in the far north (Lower Saxony and Schleswig-Holstein). Jeismann/Jeisman, a Westphalian dialect variant of Eiseman/Eisman from Eisenmann.
Slavic names
Due to the historical settlement of Slavs, Slavic names are most common in Saxony, Brandenburg, and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (especially in Lusatia, where Sorbs continue to reside today). About 13% of the German population today has names of Slavic origin. Many Austrians also have surnames of Slavic origin.