Show ContentsHamburg History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Etymology of Hamburg

What does the name Hamburg mean?

The ancestors of the bearers of the Hamburg family name are thought have lived in ancient Anglo-Saxon England. They were first found in the parish of Hanbury in the county of Oxford. 1

Henry de Hambury (fl. 1330), was an early English judge, the a son of Geoffrey de Hambury of Hambury or Hanbury in Worcestershire. 2 He was being briefly Lord Chief Justice of Ireland.

Early Origins of the Hamburg family

The surname Hamburg was first found in Oxfordshire and Gloucestershire, where evidence suggests they held a family seat before the Norman Conquest. Hambrook is a village and hamlet in the parish of Winterbourne, South Gloucestershire. Whereras, Handbrough is a parish, in the union of Witney, hundred of Wootton in the county of Oxford. Both villages have remained small through the ages. Hambrook had about 600 inhabitants and Handbrough (Hanborough) had about 1,000 inhabitants as of a census in the late 1800s. The latter villages dates back to at least the Domesday Book where it was listed as Haneberge 3 and literally meant "hill of a man called Hagena or Hana" derived from the Old English personal name + beorg. Hambrook also dates back to the Domesday Book where it was listed as Hanbroc. 3 In this case, the village literally meant "brook by the stone" from the Old English han + broc. 4

Early History of the Hamburg family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Hamburg research. Another 153 words (11 lines of text) covering the years 1086, 1273 and 1330 are included under the topic Early Hamburg History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Hamburg Spelling Variations

Until quite recently, the English language has lacked a definite system of spelling rules. Consequently, Anglo-Saxon surnames are characterized by a multitude of spelling variations. Changes in Anglo-Saxon names were influenced by the evolution of the English language, as it incorporated elements of French, Latin, and other languages. Although Medieval scribes and church officials recorded names as they sounded, so it is common to find one person referred to by several different spellings of his surname, even the most literate people varied the spelling of their own names. Variations of the name Hamburg include Hambro, Hambrow, Hambury, Hamborough, Hamboro and others.

Early Notables of the Hamburg family

Another 43 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Hamburg Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Hamburg Ranking

In the United States, the name Hamburg is the 13,276th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 5

Migration of the Hamburg family to Ireland

Some of the Hamburg family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. More information about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


Hamburg migration to the United States +

Searching for a better life, many English families migrated to British colonies. Unfortunately, the majority of them traveled under extremely harsh conditions: overcrowding on the ships caused the majority of the immigrants to arrive diseased, famished, and destitute from the long journey across the ocean. For those families that arrived safely, modest prosperity was attainable, and many went on to make invaluable contributions to the development of the cultures of the new colonies. Research into the origins of individual families in North America revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Hamburg or a variant listed above:

Hamburg Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Caspar Hamburg, who arrived in America in 1780 6
Hamburg Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Lorenz Hamburg, who landed in New York, NY in 1850 6
  • Catharina Hamburg, aged 6, who landed in New York, NY in 1899 6
  • Heinrich Hamburg, aged 22, who landed in New York, NY in 1899 6
  • Heinrich Hamburg, who settled in New York in 1899
  • Anna Hamburg, aged 22, who landed in New York, NY in 1899 6
Hamburg Settlers in United States in the 20th Century
  • John Hamburg, who arrived in Mississippi in 1900 6

Hamburg migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Hamburg Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century
  • Mr. Simon Hamburg who was emigrating through Grosse Isle Quarantine Station, Quebec aboard the ship "Juliet" departing 3rd July 1847 from London, England; the ship arrived on 28th August 1847 but he died on board 7

Contemporary Notables of the name Hamburg (post 1700) +

  • Daniel Hamburg (b. 1948), American Democratic Party politician, U.S. Representative from California 1st District, 1993-95; Defeated, 1994 8
  • Alfred J. Hamburg, American Democratic Party politician, Member of Colorado State House of Representatives, 1950 8
  • Al Hamburg, American politician, Representative from Wyoming at-large, 1988 ; Candidate in Democratic primary for U.S. Senator from Wyoming, 1990 8


The Hamburg Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Honestum utili praefero
Motto Translation: I prefer honesty to profit.


  1. Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
  2. Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
  3. Williams, Dr Ann. And G.H. Martin, Eds., Domesday Book A Complete Translation. London: Penguin, 1992. Print. (ISBN 0-141-00523-8)
  4. Mills, A.D., Dictionary of English Place-Names. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-19-869156-4)
  5. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  6. Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
  7. Charbonneau, André, and Doris Drolet-Dubé. A Register of Deceased Persons at Sea and on Grosse Île in 1847. The Minister of Canadian Heritage, 1997. ISBN: 0-660-198/1-1997E (p. 78)
  8. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 6) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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