Ehrenberg Family History & Genealogy

Summary

Unfortunately the Ehrenberg name has died out rather rapidly due to the death of German Army conscripts during World War 1 & 2. Many German family names suffered such.
The HOLOCAUST also removed most of the German Jews with the family surname.

History

More than likely the surname began as "Arnberg" or "Arönberg" in the late first century AD in Northern Europe. The Old German spelling was most definitely Arnberg. It became Arenberg as a new German language was developing. When it changed to the modern spelling is unknown. For my husband's Ehrenberg family it has been Ehrenberg at least back into the 1600s. Incidentally the surname can be traced back to a woman who took the name. In the 400s in many Northern European countries the resulting family took the surname chosen by the mother. That practice is still done in Russia & other Eastern European countries today.

Name Origin

We don't have any information on the origins of the Ehrenberg name. Have information to share?

Spellings & Pronunciations

Ehrenburg
Ehrenbörg
Ehrenbirg
Ahrenberg
Arönberg
Arnberg
pronounced " air n berg"

Nationality & Ethnicity

The Ehrenberg name means "honor mountain" in German. Around Germany there are several places (city, hills, mountain, schools) named Ehrenberg. It is believed the hills were where Germanic tribes gathered for Pagan rituals which in many cases are still practiced today.
As for ethnicity Northern European countries can lay claim to variations of the name Ehrenberg. Additionally Ashkenazi Jews lay claim to the Ehrenberg name.

Famous People named Ehrenberg

Christian Gustav Ehrenberg- German painter
Ilya Ehrenbirg- Russian writer/Stalinist
Ronald Ehrenberg- American economist at Cornell University et al

Early Ehrenbergs

These are the earliest records we have of the Ehrenberg family.