Surname Brinkmeyer - Meaning and Origin

Brinkmeyer: What does the surname Brinkmeyer mean?

The surname Brinkmeyer is distinguished as a Dutch habitational and topographic surname derived from a place name. This would indicate that the original bearer of the name derived their identity from a place or a property. In particular, the name would have originated from a place located along a bridge, ditch, or stream.

Historically, many names of Dutch origin began as patronymic surnames, derived from the personal name of one's father. Brinkmeyer is classified as such, and is derived from the Germanic given name Bruno, meaning ‘strong one’ or ‘army man’, combined with the short form meyer, meaning ‘steward’ or ‘administrator’. Therefore, it is likely that the original bearer of the name was a steward originally from or connected to a bridge or stream.

The earliest appearance of Brinkmeyer can be dated back to 1771, when Johannes Brinkmeyer posed as witness for a baptismal record in the St. Stephanus Evangelical Lutheran Church in Celle, Germany. The presence of the name in Celle is still visible today, as this small German town is still home to both the Brinkmeyer family and the house of the same name.

Today, the surname is most commonly found in the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, and the United States. The majority of people who bear the name descend from a long line of bakers, farmers, and shopkeepers, who continue to celebrate the connection with their unique source of history.

Brinkmeyer: Where does the name Brinkmeyer come from?

The last name Brinkmeyer is most commonly found in Germany, the United States, and Austria today.

In Germany, the last name Brinkmeyer is common primarily in the west-central and southwestern regions of the country. Traditional family ancestry traces the name to a few distinct cities in these areas, including Oldenburg, Baden-Württemberg, and Bavaria. Records of multiple families of this name have been found in the cities of Saarbrücken, Kaiserslautern, Lucerne, and Nürnberg.

In the United States, the name Brinkmeyer can predominantly be spotted in the states of Texas, Montana, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Maryland. The largest concentration of the name is in the states of Wisconsin and Iowa. Much like other German-originating surnames, the roots of this name in the US can be traced back to several waves of German immigrants throughout the 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries.

Finally, the name Brinkmeyer is found in parts of Austria. Specifically, in the state of Lower Austria, the name can be found with active records of individuals with the name living in the cities of Vienna and Klosterneuburg.

In all three of these countries, the last name Brinkmeyer is still quite popular, and thousands of people likely still bear the name today.

Variations of the surname Brinkmeyer

The surname Brinkmeyer is an Anglo-Saxon and Scandinavian patronymic surname, derived from the given name Brinck. Variations and spellings of this surname include: Bromme, Brim, Brinck, Brinn, Brinne, Brinckman, Brinkman, Brinkmann, Brinkmen, Brinkmus, Brinkmöller, Brinke, Brinkemöller, Brinkmeyer, Brinckmeyer, and Brinckmüller.

The German and Scandinavian Brinkmeyer surname is a variant of the name Bramme, and is derived from the first name Brinck, and the German word meyer, which means ''steward of the manor”, ''administrator”, or ''municipal official”. This surname was given to a person who worked in a government position for a manor and was responsible for administration duties. Another possible origin of the Brinkmeyer surname is a locational surname, which denotes a person who originally came from the Brinck area in Germany.

The Brinkmeyer surname is common in Germany, The Netherlands, Sweden, and parts of Eastern Europe. In the United States, the 2000 census reported 1,064 people with the surname Brinkmeyer living in the USA. In England and Wales, the surname ranks 2,721st out of the 88,798 surnames recorded in the 1881 census.

The Brinkmeyer surname is an old and respected surname, dating back to the medieval period. It is a surname with many variations and spellings, reflecting the many languages and cultures from which the surname has descended.

Famous people with the name Brinkmeyer

• Uwe Brinkmeyer: Former German footballer who played for Bayern Munich and the German National Team
• Kasey Brinkmeyer: American professional wrestler
• Clara Brinkmeyer: German stage actress
• Carl Brinkmeyer: American bronze medalist shooter
• Joseph Brinkmeyer: American Confederate pilot
• John Brinkmeyer: American Major League Baseball pitcher in the late 19th century
• Hermann Brinkmeyer: German painter and graphic artist
• Heinrich Brinkmeyer: Prussian soldier and politician in the early 19th century
• Arnold Brinkmeyer: German World War I general
• Joe Brinkmeyer: American Major League Baseball pitcher in the early 20th century
• Viktor Brinkmeyer: German military officer and Nazi Party official during World War II.
• Philip Brinkmeyer: German publisher and bookseller in the late 19th century
• Henry Brinkmeyer: American suffragette
• Christina Brinkmeyer: American actor and singer
• Paul Brinkmeyer: German collector of coins and stamps in the late 19th century
• Charles Brinkmeyer: Founder of Brinkmeyer's Department Store in St. Louis, Missouri

Other surnames

Brinkmeier