''Gerdes'' , or ''Geerdes'', is a

surname In some cultures, a surname, family name, or last name is the portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family, tribe or community. Practices vary by culture. The family name may be placed at either the start of a person's full name ...

of German origin. It is a patronymic name, i.e. it comes from "son of

Gerhard Gerhard is a name of Germanic origin and may refer to: Given name * Gerhard (bishop of Passau) (fl. 932–946), German prelate * Gerhard III, Count of Holstein-Rendsburg (1292–1340), German prince, regent of Denmark * Gerhard Barkhorn (1919–19 ...

". When around 1800 the Prussian government under French occupation decided to fix the surnames, the contemporary "son of Gerhard" had to keep his name. In Ostfriesland, the law was ignored until at least 1811.

Origin

''Ge(e)rdes'' is a

patronymic A patronymic, or patronym, is a component of a personal name based on the given name of one's father, grandfather (avonymic), or an earlier male ancestor. Patronymics are still in use, including mandatory use, in many countries worldwide, alt ...

derived from the name "Gerd", short for Gerard, meaning "hard spear", or from the

Norse god In Germanic paganism, the indigenous religion of the ancient Germanic peoples who inhabited Germanic Europe, there were a number of different gods and goddesses. Germanic deities are attested from numerous sources, including works of literature ...

dess

Gerd Gerd or GERD may refer to: * Gerd (given name), a list of people with the given name or nickname * Gerd (moon), a moon of Saturn * Gerd Island, South Orkney Islands, Antarctica * Gastroesophageal reflux disease, a chronic symptom of mucosal damage ...

(meaning "Gerd's protection"), wife of Freyr and protectress of the home

yard The yard (symbol: yd) is an English unit of length in both the British imperial and US customary systems of measurement equalling 3 feet or 36 inches. Since 1959 it has been by international agreement standardized as exactly 0.914 ...

and

garden A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the cultivation, display, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The single feature identifying even the wildest wild garden is ''control''. The garden can incorporate both ...

, from which she also derives her name as a personification of the garden/yard.

People

Herbert Gerdes Nazism created an elaborate system of Nazi propaganda, propaganda, which made use of the new technologies of the 20th century, including film, cinema. Nazism courted the masses by the means of slogans that were aimed directly at the instincts an ...

, German director * Kristina Geerdes, German model * Hans-Peter Geerdes (born 1964), lead singer of the German band Scooter *

Eckhard Gerdes Eckhard Gerdes (born 1959) is an American novelist and editor. Life Eckhard Gerdes was born in 1959 in Atlanta, Georgia, and has lived in Switzerland, Germany, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Katanga Province, Katanga, the Republic of Sou ...

(born 1959), American author * Eduard Gerdes (1821–1898), Dutch lyric writer and author * Michael Gerdes (born 1960), German politician * Roswitha Gerdes (born 1961), German middle-distance runner

External links

Distribution in the US

Distribution in Germany (in numbers)

Distribution in Germany (relative to population)

Genealogical research on Gerdes

References

{{surname Patronymic surnames