Estate Names
In rural areas it is common that farmers are known by the traditional name of their farm or estate (which often has been kept the same over centuries) rather than their Nachname. Although the Hofname is not an official name, people know it rather than the Nachname. In cases where Nachname and Hofname are not identical (usually because there was no male heir at some point in the family history) they are joined in official documents by genannt (abbr. gen.), e.g. Amann gen. Behmann. In Austria the term vulgo (abbr. vlg.) is used instead of genannt.
Read more about this topic: German Name
Famous quotes containing the words estate and/or names:
“Not a flock of wild geese cackles over our town, but it to some extent unsettles the value of real estate here, and, if I were a broker, I should probably take that disturbance into account.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“Almanacked, their names live; they
Have slipped their names, and stand at ease,
Or gallop for what must be joy,”
—Philip Larkin (1922–1985)