Pfeiffer
A German occupational surname meaning “piper” or “fifer,” originally given to a player of a pipe or flute.
The #2,601 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 22,290 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Pfeiffer comes from German Pfeife, “pipe” or “flute,” with the surname formed for someone who played such an instrument. Older etymological works connect it with Middle High German and Old High German forms meaning a pipe-player. In everyday sense, it is the same kind of occupational name as English Piper or Fifer.
History
The name is well established in German-speaking areas and appears in several related spellings, including Pfeifer and Pfeuffer. It also spread widely through German emigration, which is why it appears in North America and elsewhere. 19th-century surname dictionaries regularly gloss it simply as “piper.”
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The form Pfeiffer is famously borne by the 19th-century Austrian traveler Ida Pfeiffer, one of the best-known early female explorers.
From the historical record
“Birehpfeiffer Doppel -N. (S. 85): Charlotte Pfeiffer, Tochter des Eriegsrates Pf. in Digitized by”
— Die deutschen FamiliennamenNotable people named Pfeiffer
- Michelle Pfeiffer (b. 1958)
Sourced from Wikidata; linked to their Wikipedia page.