Surname Weidmann - Meaning and Origin

A Journey of DNA: Unraveling Unknown Chapters of Weidmann Heritage with iGENEA Test

My iGENEA DNA test, initially undertaken as a mere curiosity, culminated in surprising revelations that entirely altered my perception of my heritage. Specifically, the findings about my surname 'Weidmann' shattered my assumptions of being of pure German descent, hinting at a more international lineage.

W. Weidmann

Weidmann: What does the surname Weidmann mean?

The last name Weidmann is a German surname derived from the Middle High German words "wīten man" or "wīte man" which mean "guardian" or "protector". It can also mean "hunt man" since it is related to the High German word "wīt" which means to hunt.

Weidmann is a occupational surname, and is thought to belong to the people who were formerly employed as game wardens. In older forms of the surname, Weidman, the root of the name can also be traced back to personal names derived of the word “wīte,” which means “revenge” or “vengeance.”

This surname is first found in Duchy of Bavaria and in Austria. In the Middle Ages, the Weidmanns would have been the law makers and enforcers of the forests. During the Middle Ages, the Weidmann family was highly respected for their work as gamekeepers, wardens and regulation of forests for hunting rights.

Weidmann is a fairly common name in the German-speaking world, where there are approximately 49,500 individuals who carry the name. It is also found in Switzerland, Canada, and the United States.

Weidmann: Where does the name Weidmann come from?

The last name Weidmann is most commonly found today in Germany, with concentrations in the states of Saxony, Bavaria, Hesse, Thuringia, Baden-Württemberg, Rhineland-Palatinate, North Rhine-Westphalia, Lower Saxony, and Schleswig-Holstein. It is also present in Austria, Switzerland, the Czech Republic, and Luxembourg.

Weidmann is derived from the German word ‘weide’ meaning meadow or pasture, and ‘mann’ meaning man, suggesting an early pastoral occupation. It is likely that people bearing the surname Weidmann were of peasant class and tended to settle in the relatively flat rural areas of Germany.

In Germany today, there are an estimated 74,000 people with the Weidmann surname. The highest concentrations are found in the states of Saxony, Bavaria, Hesse, Thuringia, and Baden-Württemberg. Saxony alone contains around 10,000 Weidmanns.

The Weidmann surname also occurred in other parts of Europe. People bearing the name Weidmann were found in various records from England, Scotland, Ireland, France, the Netherlands, and Denmark. However, the surname is much less common in these countries today.

Variations of the surname Weidmann

The surname Weidmann can come from a variety of different derivations. Depending on its origin, the name can have a variety of spellings, variants, and surnames of the same origin.

The most common spelling of Weidmann is simply Weidmann. The spelling may be rendered as Weydmann, Weidman, Wiedmann, Weidmannn, Weidemann, Weydman, Weydmann, Weydemann, Veydmann, Vaiedman,and Weiydmann, among others.

Another origin for the name is from Weidman or Widman. This origin would lead to surnames such as Weidman, Widman, or Widmann.

Additionally, the name may be of Dutch origin, in which case the spelling could be Wedemeyer, Wedemeyere, Wedemeyerin, Wedeman, Wedemann, Wedemeier, Wedemeyer, Wedmann, Vetmayer, Wademeier, and Wademeyer, among others.

There are many additional spellings and variants of the same origin of the surname Weidmann. There may be slight differences in spelling depending on the country and language of origin, or in some cases, the bearers of the surname may have changed the spelling for personal reasons.

Famous people with the name Weidmann

• Reinhard Weidmann, German kapseist and one-time world champion.
• Kurt Weidmann, Austrian Olympic weightlifter.
• Ernst Weidmann, Swiss doctor and medical historian.
• Peter Weidmann, Swiss skier and ski jumping coach.
• Klaus Weidmann, a former German figure skater and the founder of the 2021 Junior World Figure Skating Championships.
• Ludwig Weidmann, a 19th-century German composer and conductor.
• Johannes Weidmann, a German actor and director.
• Philipp Weidmann, a German maker of reproduction period instruments.
• Mandy Weidmann, a German singer and songwriter.
• Willi Weidmann, a German playwright and theatre director.
• Michael Weidmann, the former director of the State Library of Rhineland-Palatinate.
• Adam Weidmann, an American actor and writer.
• Friedrich Weidmann, a German entomologist and evolutionary biologist.
• Maria Weidmann, a violinist and music educator.
• Siegfried Weidmann, a Swiss musician and composer.
• Jean-Philippe Weidmann, a Swiss painter, sculptor and video artist.
• Christian Weidmann, a Swiss sculptor and painter.
• Alexander Weidmann, a German media artist and composer.
• Joanna Weidmann, a United States diplomat and ambassador.
• Rudolf Weidmann, a German radio broadcast presenter and singer.

Other surnames

Weidman