Pinter
A surname most likely linked to a pin-maker or pin-related trade name, though some older sources also treated it as a German name related to Binder.
The #8,920 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 84,150 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The surname Pinter is usually explained as an occupational or trade-related name connected with pins, or with a maker or seller of small metal goods. Older surname dictionaries also compared it with German Binder, suggesting a possible occupational sense in German-speaking areas as well. The historical record is not completely settled, so the safest reading is that it is a work-based surname with more than one plausible language route.
History
The name appears in 19th-century surname reference works mainly as a variant or comparable form beside Pinder, Penter, and similar names. In English-language contexts it is uncommon, but it has persisted in modern records, especially in the United States. The spelling may also reflect immigration and Anglicization from German or other Central European forms.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
In some older surname books, Pinter is grouped with several other short occupational names because spellings were often recorded very flexibly before standardization.
From the historical record
“Painter. A.S. Pender, Pendhere ; D. Penter ; FI. Pinter ; p.n. (crowned warrior) Pare. From Pecq ; a loc. n., Flan¬ ders. Dch. Peek, Pek ; p.n.”
— British Family Names: their origin and meaning (2nd ed.)