Ditmar History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Germany

Etymology of Ditmar

What does the name Ditmar mean?

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 surnames 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 Ditmar was a name for a person who was famous among the people. The name Ditmar is the German form of the Latin name Theudoricus and it is composed of the Old German word "diot," which in modern German is volk and means people or race, and the Old German word "mar," which means popular, famous, or big. Ditmar is also a local type of surname that comes from Dittmarsdorf in the province of Schlesen. The name Ditmar was very popular during medieval times and the family emerged as members of the aristocratic gentry class in the Middle Ages.

Early Origins of the Ditmar family

The surname Ditmar was first found in Germany, where in ancient times the name Ditmar made important contributions to the advancement of feudal society. In later years the name branched into many different houses, some of whom played a significant role in the local social and political affairs of the late Middle Ages.

Early History of the Ditmar family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Ditmar research. Another 116 words (8 lines of text) covering the year 1814 is included under the topic Early Ditmar History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ditmar Spelling Variations

Many cultural groups lived in the German states in medieval times. Each had its own dialect and traditions, and unique variations of popular names. Low German, which is similar to contemporary Dutch, was spoken in Westphalia. German names are characterized by additions such as regional suffixes and phrases that tell something about the origin or background of its original bearer. Further contributing to the variation in German names was the fact that there were no spelling rules in medieval times: scribes recorded names according to their sound. The recorded spelling variations of Ditmar include Ditmar, Ditmars, Dittmar, Dittmars, Dittmer, Dittmers, Ditmer, Dietmar, Dithmar, Dettmer, Detmer, Diemer, Detmers, Dismar, Dismer, Dittmayer, Diesmar, Diesmer and many more.

Early Notables of the Ditmar family

Another 36 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Ditmar Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ditmar migration to the United States +

Discovered in the immigration and passenger lists were a number of people bearing the name Ditmar:

Ditmar Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

David Ditmar, age 22, settled in America in 1709
David Ditmar, age 22, who settled in America in 1709
Johannes Ditmar, who settled in Philadelphia in 1754
Johannes Ditmar, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1754 1
Adam Ditmar, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1778 1
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Ditmar 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:

Ditmar Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mr. Johann Ditmar, (b. 1836), aged 25, British labourer travelling from Bristol aboard the ship "Matoaka" arriving in Lyttelton, Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand on 10th February 1862 2

Contemporary Notables of the name Ditmar (post 1700) +

Arthur John "Art" Ditmar (1929-2021), American Major League Baseball starting pitcher from Winthrop, Massachusetts, who played from 1954 to 1962 and had 552 strikeouts
Ditmar Staffelt, doctor and member of the German Bundestag

Sources +

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)
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html