berg vs. burg

Discussion in 'Linguistics' started by mathman, Jul 3, 2020.

  1. mathman Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    2,002
    Many surnames end in berg (mountain). Stein (stone), Weiss (white), Gold, etc. The only name (I am aware of) that ends in burg (city) is Ginsburg. Ginsberg is also a name. What does Gins mean here? How is there are the two names? Are there any other surnames with burg?
     
  2. Google AdSense Guest Advertisement



    to hide all adverts.
  3. DaveC426913 Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    18,935
  4. Google AdSense Guest Advertisement



    to hide all adverts.
  5. Sarkus Hippomonstrosesquippedalo phobe Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    10,353
    Hamburg, Salzburg, Johannesburg, to name 3 others.

    Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!


    Burgh is a closely related term and far more common in the UK (e.g. Edinburgh), although Burg in English I believe was a dialect variant of Burgh... but ultimately all coming from the old German. In the UK it also led to the -bury variant (e.g. Canterbury, Banbury, Newbury etc).
     
  6. Google AdSense Guest Advertisement



    to hide all adverts.
  7. mathman Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    2,002
    I am well aware of the fact that burg appears in place names. My question was about surnames of people. From the previous post it appears that Ginsburg is derived from a place name.
     
  8. sculptor Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    8,466
    I went to school with a fellow named Brandenburg
     
  9. mathman Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    2,002
    Brandenburg (like Brandenburg gate) is a place name in Germany.
     
  10. sculptor Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    8,466
    and
    many who came to this country used the place names from whence they came as their surnames.
    our local dnr ranger's name is Billerbeck----

    (perhaps that was once preceded with "von" ?)
     
  11. sideshowbob Sorry, wrong number. Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    7,057
    Seems more likely that a person would be named after a town than a mountain, doesn't it?
     
  12. DaveC426913 Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    18,935
    Both are places from which one can hail.
     
  13. Sarkus Hippomonstrosesquippedalo phobe Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    10,353
    Ah, my apologies. Anyhoo - Hapsburg/Habsburg is probably the most famous example. Then there's Friedburg, Hamburg, Rodenburg... all German, all based on cities, I believe.
     
  14. exchemist Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    12,451
    Then there is also the French bourg, used to mean a town or even the centre of a village, hence bourgeois, etc.

    Serge Gainsbourg, Strasbourg.......
     
  15. Michael 345 New year. PRESENT is 72 years oldl Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    13,077
    Don't forget the Star Trek Borg

    Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!



    Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!

     
    sideshowbob likes this.
  16. sideshowbob Sorry, wrong number. Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    7,057
    True, but cities tend to be more commonly used as names. London is a more common name than Matterhorn.

    If a person is "from" a place, cities tend to be more habitable places than moutains.
     
  17. sideshowbob Sorry, wrong number. Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    7,057
    Hmm.... Rodenbouough... Roddenbury... Roddenberry?
     
  18. mathman Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    2,002
    Among Jews, names ending in berg (like mine) are a lot more common than those ending in burg.
     
  19. exchemist Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    12,451
    I knew a Dutchman whose surname was Logtenberg, but pronounced Lochtenberech, in the Dutch fashion. This gave me an insight into why the city of my birth, Edinburgh is pronounced Edinbrer.
     
  20. DaveC426913 Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    18,935
    I thought it was "Ed'nbruh".
     
  21. exchemist Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    12,451
    Well they're about the same.
     
  22. Sarkus Hippomonstrosesquippedalo phobe Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    10,353
    We tend to pronounce -borough as -bruh... so it's quite common for people to misspell it as Edinborough. Marlborough is "Marlbruh", for example.
     
  23. sideshowbob Sorry, wrong number. Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    7,057
    You guys are always swimming upstream, aren't you?

    Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!

     

Share This Page