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Quiz about German Surnames
Quiz about German Surnames

German Surnames Trivia Quiz


Can you match the meanings or occupations from which these common German surnames are derived? I'm sure you can. Have fun proving me right.

A multiple-choice quiz by shvdotr. Estimated time: 4 mins.
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Author
shvdotr
Time
4 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
360,461
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Average
Avg Score
8 / 10
Plays
708
Awards
Top 35% Quiz
Last 3 plays: snhha (10/10), Triviaballer (10/10), Liz5050 (9/10).
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Question 1 of 10
1. According to About.com, the most common German surname in 2012 was Müller. What occupation do you suppose the first Germans named Müller practiced? Hint


Question 2 of 10
2. Second on the list of common German surnames is the name Schmidt. What occupation would this most accurately suggest? Hint


Question 3 of 10
3. Third on the German surnames list is Schneider. If "schneiden" means "to cut", what occupation would the original Schneiders have most likely practiced? Hint


Question 4 of 10
4. The fifth-most common German surname is Weber. What occupation produced this name? Hint


Question 5 of 10
5. Another common German surname is Schäfer. If you recognize the word Schäferhund, you would know that this occupation in English is what? Hint


Question 6 of 10
6. At position 14 on the list of German surnames is Richter. What occupation does the word Richter denote in German? Hint


Question 7 of 10
7. Number 10 on the list of German surnames is Bauer. If you play the card game 500 or Skat, you will recognize the term as it is applied to the Jacks of an American deck of cards. But what is a Bauer in German? Hint


Question 8 of 10
8. Another common German surname is Wagner. What American occupation, often associated with a large labor union, would be a good translation of this German word? Hint


Question 9 of 10
9. Number 9 on the list of most common German names is Becker, which is actually a form of Bäcker. Which of the following occupations in English would be closest to the German meaning of this moniker? Hint


Question 10 of 10
10. "Zimmermann" is ranked 23rd on my list of most common German surnames. Which occupation does this name bring to mind to a German speaker? Hint



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quiz
Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. According to About.com, the most common German surname in 2012 was Müller. What occupation do you suppose the first Germans named Müller practiced?

Answer: grinding wheat into flour

Müller translates into English as "miller". Furthermore, in my experience, Americans of German descent whose name is Mueller sometimes have their last name pronounced "Miller".
2. Second on the list of common German surnames is the name Schmidt. What occupation would this most accurately suggest?

Answer: blacksmith

Three other forms of the name Schmidt are also ranked high in the About.com list. Schmitt is ranked 24th, Schmid is ranked 26th, and Schmitz is ranked 28th, making this name perhaps the overall most common.
3. Third on the German surnames list is Schneider. If "schneiden" means "to cut", what occupation would the original Schneiders have most likely practiced?

Answer: tailor

The Grimm brothers' tale of "The Brave Little Tailor" is originally titled "Das tapfere Schneiderlein", where "Schneiderlein" is a combination of the word "Schneider" for tailor, plus the suffix "lein", meaning little or young. For example, the word "Fräulein" (girl) is a combination of "Frau", meaning woman, and the diminutive "lein".
4. The fifth-most common German surname is Weber. What occupation produced this name?

Answer: weaver

Two of my favorite German Webers include the philosopher Max Weber, one of the founders of sociology, and Constanze Weber, wife of W.A. Mozart. In addition, "Die Weber" ("The Weavers") is a play by Gerhart Hauptmann. It is an interesting drama in that there is no main character. Rather, the weavers who make up the characters function more importantly as a group representing the working class struggling for their rights.
5. Another common German surname is Schäfer. If you recognize the word Schäferhund, you would know that this occupation in English is what?

Answer: shepherd

In America we call the Schäferhund a German shepherd. Staying with the "Schaf" connection, the card game we call in America "Sheepshead" came from the German game "Schafkopf", "Schaf" meaning sheep and "Kopf" meaning head. An argument for the name of the game is because scoring marks on a chalkboard resembled a sheep's head.
6. At position 14 on the list of German surnames is Richter. What occupation does the word Richter denote in German?

Answer: judge

A quick informal googling for "Judge Richter" in June of 2013 found news items on the internet for judges named Richter, including those residing in Iowa, Missouri, the District of Columbia, New York, Indiana, and at least three in Texas. There have been no US Supreme Court justices named Richter, however.
7. Number 10 on the list of German surnames is Bauer. If you play the card game 500 or Skat, you will recognize the term as it is applied to the Jacks of an American deck of cards. But what is a Bauer in German?

Answer: farmer

The term "bauer" is also used for the jacks in such card games as 500. Modern German playing cards have a "B" on the Jacks, which stands for "Bub" or "Bube", which means boy. Card games such as 500, which use the jacks as high cards in the deck, are derived from German card games such as Skat and Schafkopf, in which the jacks are the highest cards, with the Jack of Clubs being the highest.
8. Another common German surname is Wagner. What American occupation, often associated with a large labor union, would be a good translation of this German word?

Answer: teamster

"Wagner" can be translated as either a driver of wagons (wagoner) or a maker and/or repairer of wagons (wainwright or cartwright).
9. Number 9 on the list of most common German names is Becker, which is actually a form of Bäcker. Which of the following occupations in English would be closest to the German meaning of this moniker?

Answer: pastry chef

In German a Bäckerei is a bakery. Perhaps a pastry chef is not technically a baker, but it is definitely the closest of the four choices.
10. "Zimmermann" is ranked 23rd on my list of most common German surnames. Which occupation does this name bring to mind to a German speaker?

Answer: carpenter

Other German words for carpenter include Tischler, Schreiner, and Bautischler. "Tisch" is the German for table, and "Schrein" is a receptacle for holy relics, two items traditionally made of wood and being of great importance, since earthly food is taken at a table and spiritual nourishment, one might say, would be housed in a shrine. "Zimmer" is a room, so a Zimmermann would be someone who builds houses, which are also vital to survival.
Source: Author shvdotr

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor stedman before going online.
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