Surname Unterhuber - Meaning and Origin
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Unterhuber: What does the surname Unterhuber mean?
The last name Unterhuber originates from a Germanic language and is of occupational origin. It is composed of the elements “unter” (meaning ‘under’) and “huber” (meaning ‘husbandman’ or a small tenant farmer). The name was most likely first used to describe someone who held or performed a tenant farmer’s duties and managed a small farming estate. It may also have been used to refer to someone who held a position of low rank under an important landowner or aristocrat.
The name Unterhuber is a fairly common name in some regions of Germany. It is derived from the old Germanic word meaning “below” or “under.” Today, the name is found predominantly in South Germany and is used primarily as a patronymic (a name derived from the father’s name).
Unterhuber is a unique name due to its dual meaning. It can either refer to people with the occupation of a tenant farmer, or as a name that comes from someone who held a low rank role under someone of higher power. It is still a popular name today and is most commonly found in regions of Germany, but people with the last name Unterhuber can also be found in Austria, Switzerland, and the United States of America.
Order DNA origin analysisUnterhuber: Where does the name Unterhuber come from?
The last name Unterhuber is most commonly found in Austria and Germany today. The name is thought to be of Germanic origin and is derived from the term "under+huber," which can be translated to mean "under the farmer." It is likely that the family first settled in the Upper Palatinate region of southern Germany early in the Middle Ages.
During the 15th and 16th centuries, many people with the Unterhuber name moved into Austria, where the name remains popular today. The name is especially common in the provinces of Styria, Salzburg, and Lower Austria. In those areas, Unterhuber is the seventieth, twentieth, and fifty-sixth most popular surname respectively.
The Unterhuber family has become increasingly spread around the world, however, since the 19th century. Many people bearing the name immigrated to America, Canada, Brazil, Argentina and other countries during this time. It's likely that those countries now also contain many Unterhubers, although the numbers in these countries may be slightly lower than those in Austria or Germany.
Overall, it is likely that German-speaking countries still contain the highest concentration of Unterhubers today. Yet, considering the extent of emigration during modern history, there are likely large numbers of people with the Unterhuber name scattered all around the world.
Variations of the surname Unterhuber
The surname Unterhuber is of German origin and is derived from the German word ‘unterhub’, meaning ‘under-shelter’, or a place of safety. It is thought to have originated from the Lowlands regions of Germany, where it was used to identify people living in a particular sheltered area.
Variations of the surname Unterhuber include Unterhupfer, Unterhoiber, Unterhuiffer, Unterhouver, Unterhöver, and Unterhöffer. There are also alternative spellings including Unterhueber, Unterhúber, Unterhüber, Unterhüffer, and Unterhüvor.
Surnames with the same origin include Unterhauser, Unterhuscher, Oberhuber, Oberhoefer, Oberhofer, Oberhoffer, Überhuber, and Überhüfer.
The regional differences in spelling and pronunciation of Unterhuber have been determined by the dialects of the language spoken in each region: in some areas, such as parts of the Bavarian Alps, the surname has been adapted to ‘Allershaub’.
In the United States, there is also variation in the spelling of the surname, to accommodate for the differences in pronunciation. Some of the Americanized spellings include Unthaur, Ulfers, or Uhlvers.
There is also a great diversity in the variations of the surname Unterhuber in some European countries, such as Poland (Unterhuberowy), Hungary (Unterhobor), and Austria (Unterhöbrer).
Finally, a few additional surnames with the same origin include Unterhalter, Unterhalver, Unterholzner, Untermöller, and Unterrubl.
Famous people with the name Unterhuber
- Margit Unterhuber: an Austrian alpine skier who competed in the 1966 Olympics.
- Gerhard Unterhuber: a football midfielder from Austria who played for Wiener and Südtirol clubs.
- Hans Unterhuber: an Austrian football player who played for the national team and for club sides in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
- Joseph Unterhuber: an Austrian botanist who wrote several books on the flora and fauna of the Alps.
- Johann Unterhuber: a German painter who was a prolific landscape artist.
- Roland Unterhuber: a Swiss mathematician who created a number of new methods for solving problems.
- Markus Unterhuber: a German cross country skier who competed in the 1996 Winter Olympics.
- Christian Unterhuber: a German handball player who played for the national team and won a bronze medal at the 2003 World Championships.
- Peter Unterhuber: an Austrian teacher and filmmaker who made documentaries about the history and culture of Austria.
- Josef Unterhuber: an Austrian playwright who wrote several plays about family and history.