Tenbrink History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Germany

The bountiful region surrounding the Rhine river is the birthplace of the name Tenbrink. A single name was, at one time, all that people needed. However, increasing ease of travel and the burgeoning populations forced people to adopt a hereditary surname to set themselves apart from others. A common form of surname created in the Rhineland was the local name. Originally denoting the proprietorship of the village or estate, the German preposition von, which means from or of, was used with local names. The surname Tenbrink was given to someone who lived beside a meadow or grassy pasture. Tenbrink is a topographic surname, which was a type of local name given to a person who resided near a physical feature such as a hill, stream, church, or type of tree. Habitation names form the other broad category of surnames that were derived from place-names. They were derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads. Other local names are derived from the names of houses, manors, estates, regions, and entire counties.

Early Origins of the Tenbrink family

The surname Tenbrink was first found in the Rhineland, where this family name became a prominent contributor to the development of the district from ancient times. Always prominent in social affairs, the name became an integral part of that turbulent region as it emerged to form alliances with other families within the Feudal System and the nation. The name Brink derives originally from the German word that describes a grassy meadow or pasture.

Early History of the Tenbrink family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Tenbrink research. Another 110 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1814, 1835 and 1870 are included under the topic Early Tenbrink History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Tenbrink 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 Tenbrink include Brink, Brinker, Brinck, Brincke, Brinkmann, Brinkman, Brinckmann, Brinckman, Brinckemann and many more.

Early Notables of the Tenbrink family

More information is included under the topic Early Tenbrink Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Tenbrink 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 Tenbrink, or one of its variants above:

Tenbrink Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

A Cath Tenbrink, who landed in America in 1844 1
Bernard TenBrink, who arrived in New Orleans, La in 1846 1
Christiana TenBrink, aged 34, who arrived in New Orleans, La in 1846 1
Herman TenBrink, aged 5, who arrived in New Orleans, La in 1846 1
J Tenbrink, aged 44, who landed in New Orleans, La in 1847 1
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Tenbrink (post 1700) +

James W. TenBrink, American Republican politician, Candidate for Michigan State Board of Education, 1968
Eugene C. TenBrink, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate for Michigan State House of Representatives from Ottawa County, 1940
Eugene Ten Brink Sr., American politician, Candidate for U.S. Representative from Michigan 5th District, 1948
Bernard Ten Brink (1841-1892), Dutch philologist

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)