Dume History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Germany

The name Dume comes from the German province known as the Rhineland. In pre-medieval times, the German people used only one name, but as the population increased, hereditary surnames became necessary for people to maintain unique identities. Dume is a nickname surname, a style of name based on an eke-name, or added name, that described a characteristic of its original bearer. Dume is a name for a person who was innocent or naive having derived from the German word "dommer" which means the same.

Early Origins of the Dume family

The surname Dume was first found in the Rhine region, where the name was closely identified in early mediaeval times with the feudal society which would become prominent throughout European history. The name would later emerge as a noble family with great influence, having many distinguished branches, and become noted for its involvement in social, economic and political affairs.

Early History of the Dume family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Dume research. Another 172 words (12 lines of text) covering the years 1410, 1743, 1816 and 1844 are included under the topic Early Dume History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Dume Spelling Variations

In the medieval era, many different cultural groups lived in the German states. There are thus many regional variations of German surnames from that era. Westphalians spoke Low German, which is similar to modern Dutch. Many German names carry suffixes that identify where they came from. Others have phrases attached that identify something about the original bearer. Other variations in German names resulted from the fact that medieval scribes worked without the aid of any spelling rules. The spelling variations of the name Dume include Dommer, Domer, Dommar, Dommers, Dummar, Dumme, Dummer, Doemer, Domme and many more.

Early Notables of the Dume family

Notables with the name Dume during this period were

Margareta "Greta" Lambrektsdotter Dume (Greta Dume) (d. 1410), a Swedish heiress, played a political role in the struggle between Albert, King of Sweden and Queen Margaret I of Denmark over the Swedis...

Dume migration to the United States +

The great European flow of migration to North America, which began in the middle of the 17th century and continued into the 20th century, was particularly attractive to those from the Rhineland who wished to escape either poverty or religious persecution. Many of those who left the Rhineland to seek their fortunes in the prosperous and free New World settled in the major urban centers of the United States and Canada. In the United States, the settlers from the Rhineland passed through immigration centers like that of Ellis Island, most of them moving on to Pennsylvania, Ohio, Texas, Illinois, California, and New York. In Canada, the majority of Rhinelanders settled in Ontario and the prairie provinces. An examination of passenger and immigration lists has revealed many important settlers to North America bearing the name Dume, or one of its variants above:

Dume Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

S Dume, who arrived in San Francisco, California in 1851 1

Citations +

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)