Contents [hide]

Beer History Etymology Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Sources

Beer History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Netherlands
England
Germany

Etymology of Beer

What does the name Beer mean?

The modern state of Germany is the glorious birthplace of the surname Beer. By and large, hereditary surname were formed in Germany when most of the German states were a part of the Holy Roman Empire. At this time, as the population of Europe swelled and travel became easier, people began to encounter others sharing their own name and they avoided confusion by adopting a second name. A common form of surname found in Germany are those that are derived from nicknames. Nickname surnames were derived from an eke-name, or added name. They usually reflected the physical characteristics or attributes of the first person that used the name. The surname Beer was a name for a person who had the strength of a bear. Ancient records reveal the name Beer is derived from the Old German word ber, which means bear.

Early Origins of the Beer family

The surname Beer was first found in Silesia and Bohemia, where this family became a prominent contributor to the development of the district from ancient times. Always influential in social affairs, the family became a well-known and integral part of those regions.

Early History of the Beer family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Beer research. Another 233 words (17 lines of text) covering the years 1334, 1592, 1655, 1666, 1700, 1744, 1771, 1782, 1786, 1787, 1811 and 1813 are included under the topic Early Beer History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Beer Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Beer, Beere, Beare, Beerr, Beerre, Bear, Beerli (Swiss), Beeren, Beren, Beering and many more.

Early Notables of the Beer family

Notables of the period with the surname Beer were

Johann Beer also Bahr, Behr or Bär, (1655-1700); an Austrian author, court official and composer; and Christian Theophil Chrisostomus Beer, who came from a prominent family in Loewenberg, Silesia, and...
Joseph Beer (sometimes written Boer), was a remarkable clarinet-player; born 1744 at Grünwald in Bohemia, served as trumpeter first in the Austrian and then in the French army during the Seven Years'...

Beer Ranking

In the United States, the name Beer is the 5,970^th most popular surname with an estimated 4,974 people with that name. 1 However, in Australia, the name Beer is ranked the 910^th most popular surname with an estimated 4,319 people with that name. 2

Beer migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Beer Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Edward Beer, who settled in Germantown, Pennsylvania in 1706
Heinrich Beer, who landed in America in 1731 3
Venn Beer, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1732 3
Valtin Beer, who settled in Pennsylvania in 1732
Philip, Beer Jr., who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1738 3
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Beer Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Joseph Beer, who arrived in America in 1810 3
Hannah Beer, age 36, who arrived in New York City in 1820
William Beer, who arrived in New York in 1825 3
James Beer, who arrived in New York, NY in 1827 3
Bernh Beer, who arrived in America in 1845 3
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Beer migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Beer Settlers in Australia in the 18th Century

Miss Ann Beer, (Beard), (b. 1775), aged 23, English servant who was convicted in Kent, England for 7 years for larceny, transported aboard the "Britannia III" on 18th July 1798, arriving in New South Wales, Australia, she died in 1875 4
Miss Elizabeth Beer, English convict who was convicted in Kent, England for 7 years for larceny, transported aboard the "Britannia III" on 18th July 1798, arriving in New South Wales, Australia, she died in 1799 4

Beer Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. John Beer, English convict who was convicted in Sandwich, Kent, England for 14 years, transported aboard the "Countess of Harcourt" on 29th April 1828, arriving in New South Wales, Australia 5
Mr. William Beer, English convict who was convicted in Dorset, England for life, transported aboard the "Burrell" on 22nd July 1830, arriving in New South Wales 6
John Beer, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Royal Admiral" in 1838 7
Elizabeth Beer, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Royal Admiral" in 1838 7
George Richard Beer, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Royal Admiral" in 1838 7
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Beer migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Beer Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mr. Thomas Beer, British settler arriving as the 1st detachment of Royal New Zealand Fencible Corps travelling from Tilbury, Essex aboard the ship "Ramillies" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 6th August 1847 8
Mrs. Martha Beer, British settler travelling from Tilbury, Essex aboard the ship "Ramillies" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 6th August 1847 8
Thomas Beer, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Cairngorm" in 1863
John Beer, aged 18, a labourer, who arrived in Bluff, New Zealand aboard the ship "Adamant" in 1875 9
Mrs. Maria Beer, (b.1828), aged 48, Cornish settler departing on 7th September 1876 aboard the ship "Rangitiki" arriving in Lyttelton, Canterbury, New Zealand on 11th December 1876 10
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Beer (post 1700) +

Jakob Liebmann Meyer Beer (1791-1864), birth name of Giacomo Meyerbeer, a German opera composer, "the most frequently performed opera composer during the nineteenth century, linking Mozart and Wagner"
Randall Beer, American professor of cognitive science, computer science, and informatics at Indiana University
Roy E. Beer, American Democratic Party politician, Chair of Woodford County Democratic Party, 1950 11
Richard Cameron Beer (b. 1893), American politician, U.S. Vice Consul in Nassau, 1917-18; Ottawa, 1918-19; Havana, 1919; Bradford, 1919-20; Liverpool, 1920-21; London, 1921-22; Budapest, 1922; Belfast, 1924 11
Nelson R. Beer, American Democratic Party politician, Postmaster at Aurora, Indiana, 1967-69 (acting, 1967-68) 11
Larry Beer, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Colorado, 1996, 2000 11
Henry Ward Beer, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from New York, 1932, 1936, 1940, 1944 11
Harold Beer, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate for New York State Assembly from Herkimer County, 1940 11
Frank W. Beer, American Democratic Party politician, Member of Arizona State House of Representatives, 1933-34 11
F. E. Beer, American politician, Mayor of San Mateo, California, 1928 11
... (Another 19 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Beer family +

Arrow Air Flight 1285

Mr. Edward Myron Beer (1966-1985), American Private 2nd Class from Orlando, Florida, USA who died in the Arrow Air Flight 1285 crash 12

Bismarck

Kurt Beer (1921-1941), German Matrose II who served aboard the German Battleship Bismarck during World War II when it was sunk heading to France; he died in the sinking 13

HMS Prince of Wales

Mr. Cyril Beer, British Chief Engine Room Artificer, who sailed into battle on the HMS Prince of Wales (1941) and died in the sinking 14

HMS Royal Oak

Alexander Edward Beer (d. 1939), British Seaman with the Royal Navy aboard the HMS Royal Oak (1939) when she was torpedoed by U-47 and sunk; he died in the sinking 15

North Sea Flood

John Vaughan Beer, British traveler aboard the ferry "Princess Victoria" who survived the North Sea Flood, a major storm surge in 1953

Sources +

"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
"Most Common Last Names in Australia." Forebears, https://forebears.io/australia/surnames
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)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 30th October 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/Britannia
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 19th April 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/countess-of-harcourt
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 5th November 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/burrell
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) ROYAL ADMIRAL 1838. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1838RoyalAdmiral.htm
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
Cornwall Online Parish Clerks. (Retrieved 2018, April 30). Emigrants to Lyttelton 1858-84 [PDF]. Retrieved from http://www.opc-cornwall.org/Resc/pdfs/new_zealand_assisted.pdf
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 11) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
American War Memorials - Flight 1285. (Retrieved 2016, August 24) . Retrieved from http://www.uswarmemorials.org/html/monument_details.php?SiteID=317&MemID=550
Bismarck & Tirpitz Class - Crew List Bismarck. (Retrieved 2018, February 06). Retrieved from https://www.bismarck-class.dk/bismarck/crew/bismarck_crew.html#crew_details
HMS Prince of Wales Crew members. (Retrieved 2014, April 9) . Retrieved from http://www.forcez-survivors.org.uk/biographies/listprincecrew.html
Ships hit by U-boats crew list HMS Royal Oak (08) - (Retrieved 2018 February, 9th) - retrieved from https://uboat.net/allies/merchants/crews/ship68.html