Surname Keulen - Meaning and Origin

Keulen: What does the surname Keulen mean?

Keulen is a Dutch surname originating from the city of 's-Hertogenbosch, also known as Den Bosch, an ancient city in the southern Netherlands. The name has a variety of possible origins, one of which being a location where people constructed mills or “keulen” in antiquated Dutch. Another is a term for a “rill” or “brook” in Brabant, a historical province of the Netherlands.

Keulen, like other Dutch surnames, is patronymic in origin, meaning it was passed down from the father’s name to a son or daughter. Patronymic surnames derived from the first name of the father, and when used for a child either the suffix “-s” or "se” was added. This type of surname is common in many European countries, and Dutch immigrants to the United States often adapted this naming system when creating English versions of their Dutch surnames.

The family name Keulen today appears in many countries, as it is a fairly common Dutch name. However, the name remains very popular in the Netherlands and in many Dutch communities in the United States, such as Pennsylvania and Michigan. Originally, Keulen natively may have referred to those from the city of 's-Hertogenbosch, but today it is possible to find people with this surname from all around the world.

Keulen: Where does the name Keulen come from?

The Keulen surname is most commonly used in Europe today, primarily in countries such as the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, and Germany. There is also a small population in the United Kingdom, France, and parts of Eastern Europe.

The Keulen family name mainly originates in The Netherlands, where it is a variant of the Germanic surnames "Kühlen" and "Coolen", derived from an occupational name for an ice or snow seller, as it was historically a winter-dependent profession.

In the Netherlands, populations of Keulen are most concentrated in the Gelderland province and regions of North Brabant, Overijssel, and South Holland. In Belgium, the name is primarily concentrated in the provinces of East and West Flanders.

In Luxembourg, the name Keulen is mainly found in and around the city of Diekirch. Meanwhile, in Germany populations of Keulen are mostly found in the states of North Rhine-Westphalia and Rhineland-Palatinate.

It is also rather common in the United Kingdom, mainly in Greater London and the surrounding areas, as well as East Sussex. In France, the surname is mainly found along the eastern border, primarily in the regions of Alsace and Lorraine. It is also commonly found in some areas of Poland near the German border.

Variations of the surname Keulen

Keulen is a surname of Germanic origin that has several variants and alternate spellings. Some of the more common alternate spellings include Köln, Coln, Kuhlen, Culen, Kuelen, Kileen, Kiehn, and Kühlen.

In Northern Germany, the surname is seen written as Culen with the umlaut (or two dots) over the 'u'. In Austria and Hungary, the surname may be seen as Kulen, Kölle, Köhlen, Köhl, Kühl, Köhne, Kühne, Keuen, Könen, or Köoner.

In the United States, some variations of spellings of the surname are found, such as Keels, Kails, Keales, and Kale. In Scotland, the spelling may take the form of Culane or Coelen.

There are some related surnames derived from Keulen, such as Keulenman, Keulenkamp, Keulendesand, Keulenveld, Keulenham, Keulenkolk, and Keulenburg.

In most cases, the surnames Keulen and Köln refer to people who trace their ancestry back to the German city of Cologne, which is known in German as Köln.

Famous people with the name Keulen

• Mathys Keulen: Mathys Keulen is a Belgian actor who has appeared in several TV series and films, such as Buitenspel, I Love You Too and The Memory of a Killer.
• John van Keulen: John van Keulen was a Dutch sailor and noted maritime cartographer. He published two volumes of the 1684-85 Keulen charts for the seas of Europe, which are still highly valued by navigators to this day.
• Jan van Keulen: Jan van Keulen was a Dutch cartographer and publisher who was active in Amsterdam from the 1650s to the 1690s. He is best known for his atlases and maps, which were highly detailed and accurate for their time.
• Hendrik Keulen: Hendrik Keulen was a Dutch military officer who fought with the United Provinces of the Netherlands during the War of the Grand Alliance (1688–97).
• Nicasius of Keulen: Nicasius of Keulen was a 17th-century Dutch Catholic Churchman who served as the Archbishop of Utrecht from 1641 to 1656.
• Karel van Keulen: Karel van Keulen was a Dutch landscape painter and engraver who is noted for his landscapes of the Dutch Golden Age.
• Jacob van Keulen: Jacob van Keulen was a Dutch fencing master who wrote a series of books about the art of fencing, which were highly influential and became standard texts on the subject for several generations.
• Dirk Jan van Keulen: Dirk Jan van Keulen was a Dutch cartographer and publisher who was active in Amsterdam from the mid-18th century to the late 19th century. He specialized in nautical charts and was an important innovator in his field.

Other surnames

KeuleKeulerKeulers