Dreyfus Surname History

Origins Available:
Germany
Israel

The presitigious surname Dreyfus is a symbol of an ancient Jewish heritage. Before the late Middle Ages, people were known only by a single name. However, as the population increased and travelers set out on their journeys, it became necessary for people to adopt a second name to identify themselves. Jewish hereditary surnames were adopted from a variety of different sources. The surname Dreyfus is a Western Ashkenazic habitational surname, from the town of Trier on the Moselle. A modern interpretation of the derivation of this surname associates it with the German word dreifuss, which means tripod. The derivation as a habitational surname, however, is more probable.

Dreyfus Ranking

In France, the name Dreyfus is the 5,349^th most popular surname with an estimated 1,000 - 1,500 people with that name. 1

Dreyfus migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Dreyfus Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Mr. Dreyfus, who arrived in San Francisco, California in 1850 2
Aaron Dreyfus, who landed in Mississippi in 1858 2
George Dreyfus, who landed in Mississippi in 1859 2
Herrman Dreyfus, who arrived in Mississippi in 1869 2
David A Dreyfus, who arrived in Mississippi in 1877 2
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Dreyfus Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Mose Dreyfus, who landed in Mississippi in 1902 2
Nathan Dreyfus, who arrived in Alabama in 1917 2

Contemporary Notables of the name Dreyfus (post 1700) +

Hubert Lederer Dreyfus (1929-2017), American philosopher and professor of philosophy at the University of California, Berkeley
Lee Sherman Dreyfus (1926-2008), American politician and 40th Governor of Wisconsin
Tony Dreyfus (1939-2023), French politician, Member of the National Assembly of France from 1997 to 2012
Huguette Dreyfus (1928-2016), French harpsichordist
Julie Dreyfus (b. 1966), French actress
George Dreyfus (b. 1928), Australian contemporary classical, film and television composer
René Dreyfus (1905-1993), French driver who raced automobiles for 14 years in the 1920s and 1930s
Alfred Dreyfus (1859-1935), French military officer falsely accused of treason

Citations +

http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/nom/
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)