WERNER
Werner is a surname originating from Germany and belonging to the Germanic linguistic family. It is recorded across Europe, particularly in the German-speaking lands.
The name is derived from the Old Germanic personal name Warinheri or Warinhari, which combines the elements warin, meaning “guard” or “protect”, and heri, meaning “army” or “warrior”. Consequently, the surname can be interpreted as “guardian of the army” or “warrior protector”. This derivation indicates that the name was initially a patronymic, identifying the descendants of a person named Werner.
Recorded in many forms, the surname appears in English as Warner, in German as Werner or Wernher, and in French as Garnier or Guernier. These variations were introduced into England by the Norman-French following the Conquest of 1066.
There is an alternative derivation in which the name is a contracted form of Warrener, a topographical name given to someone who lived by a game park, or an occupational name for an individual employed in one. The term derives from the French warrene, meaning a piece of land for breeding game, especially small animals and birds.
Early examples of the personal name include Warnerus de Lusoriis, mentioned in the Eynsham Cartulary, Oxford, in 1140, and Warner de Waxtunesham, recorded in 1160 in Lincolnshire. Early German records contain Freidrich Werner of Ingelheim in 1268 and Cunrat Werner of Hattstat in 1272.
Notable bearers of the surname include Sir Edward Warner (1511-1565), who served as Lieutenant of the Tower of London, and Sir Thomas Warner (died 1649), who conceived the idea of a West Indian settlement and founded a colony at St. Kitts in the Barbadoes.
Typical given names associated with the Werner surname
Male
- Alexander
- Andrew
- Chris
- David
- George
- Ian
- John
- Karl
- Mark
- Michael
- Richard
- Thomas
Female
- Alexandra
- Alison
- Christine
- Jackie
- Janet
- Lucy
- Monika
- Nicola
- Patricia
- Ruth
- Susan
Similar and related surnames
Related and similar names are generated algorithmically based on the spelling, and may not necessarily share an etymology.
How to communicate the surname Werner in...
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Morse
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There are approximately 728 people named Werner in the UK. That makes it roughly the 9,413th most common surname in Britain. Around 11 in a million people in Britain are named Werner.
Region of origin: Europe
Country of origin: Germany
Language of origin: German
Famous people named Werner
- E. T. C. Werner - Diplomat (1864 to 1954)
Names and descriptions courtesy of Wikipedia, and may contain errors. This is not intended to be an exhaustive list of every famous person with this name.