Surname Härdl - Meaning and Origin
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Härdl: What does the surname Härdl mean?
The surname Härdl is of Germanic origins, derived from the word "Hertal" meaning "hard valley". Its earliest recorded use was in the 13th century, from parts of Bavaria and Austria where this was a common family name. The "ä" in the spelling is a special character for the German language, and is pronounced more like an "eh" sound.
The family name likely originated with a family who lived in a hard valley, and the meaning of "hard valley" certainly reflects the type of terrain they would have found themselves in. It could refer to a difficult terrain to travel, a valley that was difficult to climb out of, or possibly one filled with rocks and boulders.
The Härdl family is commonly associated with southern Bavaria, and a family with the same name is believed to have lived in Austria for some time as well.
The popularity of the surname Härdl peaked in the 14th-15th century, and by the 19th and 20th century, it became somewhat less popular in both Austria and Bavaria. Today, the Härdl family name is still found scattered throughout Germany, Austria and Hungary.
Today, those bearing the Härdl family name are believed to come from a long-standing family tradition.
There is much mystery surrounding the Härdl family name, and while much is known and understood, much may never be known about its distant past.
Order DNA origin analysisHärdl: Where does the name Härdl come from?
The last name Härdl is mainly found in Germany and Austria today. It is a very old German language name. Härdl is derived from the German for 'hard' or 'strong' and may be a reference to an ancestor's strength or toughness.
In German records, the earliest known bearer of the name is a Magnus Heierdel, associated with the city of Speyer in the Palantine area of present-day Germany in the late 15th century. Other records suggest the surname may have originated in Bavaria much earlier.
The surname is still widely found throughout present-day Germany, particularly in Bavaria but also in other states such as Baden-Württemberg, Saxony, Nordrhein-Westfalen, and Hessen.
In Austria, the surname is still relatively common. Records of the surname Härdl date back to the 16th century in Austria and the name is mainly associated with the states of Lower Austria and Vienna, as well as other provinces such as Styria and Burgenland.
The name also remains common in Alsace, a French region adjacent to the German one, as well as in the small German-speaking communities of Austria and South Tyrol in Italy.
Outside of Europe, the last name is also found in countries where German emigrants settled, such as the United States, Canada and Argentina. Many of these emigrants trace their ancestry back to Bavaria and Austria, suggesting the name had spread and been adopted by other Germanic speaking populations before their emigration.
Variations of the surname Härdl
The surname Härdl, historically spelled Hardl, is believed to originate from an old German word meaning "hard" or "strong". It is an East and South German surname, mostly concentrated around Bavaria in Germany, and Austria.
Variants of the surname Härdl include Hardl, Hardle, Hardel, Härdle, Härdel, Hardlauer, Hardegger, Hartel, and Hartl.
Härdl may also be differentiated depending on its use in Austrian or Bavarian dialects. While Hartl and Härdl are the most common spelling for Bavaria, both Härdl and Hartl are used for Austria.
The surname Härdl may also be found in the United States, particularly in Pennsylvania and surrounding areas, due to German immigrants entering the United States in the 18th and 19th centuries. Here, the surname was changed to Hardle.
In Jewish communities, the surname Härdl or variants can be the result of Jewish people in Germany or Austria taking on traditional German surnames in order to blend into the population and is also spelled Hardtl or Hartlau.
Famous people with the name Härdl
- Alexander Härdl: German football manager
- Dieter Härdl: German rower
- Fabian Härdl: German footballer
- Frank Härdl: German footballer
- Hajo Härdl: German former association footballer
- Helmut Härdl: German football coach
- Hermann Härdl: Swiss railroad manager
- Julian Härdl: German equestrian
- Jürgen Härdl: German conductor and composer
- Martin Härdl: German former wrestler
- Mathias Härdl: German former race walker
- Rolf Härdl: German rower
- Tim Härdl: German footballer
- Ursula Härdl: German sculptor
- Wilhelm Härdl: Austrian composer and conductor