Surname Ziegel - Meaning and Origin
all surnames with 'Z'
Ziegel: What does the surname Ziegel mean?
The last name Ziegel is a German surname originating from the Middle High German word "ziegel" which means "tile." This is likely a reference to an ancestor who worked as a tile maker or tile contractor in the Middle Ages. The surname was first recorded in the early 15th century, when a priest named Henne zum Ziegel from Weissenburg, Bavaria was mentioned in a registry.
The surname Ziegel may have also been adopted by some Jewish families originating from Eastern Europe and Germany, as many accompanied Jews were given surnames starting with "Z" or "Tz" to differentiate them from non-Jews. For certain families, the surname may have been taken from a geographical feature such as a tiled roof. In German, the name can also denote an earthenware tile, and potters and tile makers were often referred to as Ziegel makers.
Today, Ziegel is a common surname in both Germany and the United States, where it is pronounced "zee-gull." In Germany, Ziegl is among the top 500 most popular surnames, with nearly 13,700 people bearing the last name. It is also popular in the United States, with the most number of Ziegel family members living in New York, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and California.
Order DNA origin analysisZiegel: Where does the name Ziegel come from?
The last name Ziegel is a relatively rare name, but it is most commonly found in Germany. In the late 1800s and early 1900s, many people with the Ziegel name immigrated to the United States, primarily to Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and New York. This spread the name throughout the United States.
Today, the last name Ziegel is most frequently found in Germany, with significant concentrations of people with this name in the Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg, and Rhineland-Palatine regions. Compared to other countries, the amount of people in Germany with the last name Ziegel is quite high; according to the census in 2018, approximately 4,377 people had the last name in Germany.
Globally, the last name Ziegel is not particularly prevalent, but rates of occurrence are highest in Germany and the United States. Informed by census data, it is estimated that there are currently about 9,716 people total who have the last name worldwide.
Variations of the surname Ziegel
The surname Ziegel is German for "brick", and is primarily found in Germany, Switzerland, and Austria. Over the centuries, this surname has experienced various spelling variations, as well as several variants and surnames of the same origin.
Common variants of the surname Ziegel include Zeigel, Zeigler, Ziegler, Siegler, Sigl, Seigle, Siegl, and Seigl. While the root element “sieg” remains the same across these variations, the spelling changed somewhat over various regions and throughout the years.
The surname Ziegel has also been used to create derived, related surnames. These include Zelger, Zellger, and Zallger, as well as Ziller, Tschiller, Siger, and Czischg.
Many of these variants have also been found in the United States, with the surname Ziegel (and its variants) found primarily in Pennsylvania, Ohio, New York, Virginia, and Illinois.
It is possible that some of these various spellings were altered as they were adopted into English, particularly when immigrants arrived at Ellis Island, as the clerks recorded surnames according to how they sounded and the closest equivalent in English. Despite this, many descendants of the Ziegel family today may still adopt the various spellings and surnames of the same origin from which their ancestors originally derived.
Famous people with the name Ziegel
- Guenther Ziegel, former President of the German Football Association
- Ari Ziegel, Israeli Army lieutenant
- Selma Ziegel, Israeli human resource manager
- Oscar Ziegel, former Austrian-Australian commercial photographer
- Sybil Ziegel, American actress
- Harry Ziegel, author and screenwriter
- Harry Ziegelmayer-Habenicht, German fertility specialist
- Giorgio Zieglers, Italian hurdler
- Mandy Ziegel, Australian actress and singer
- Ezra Ziegler, American film maker and fine artist