Kiefer History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Germany
Ireland

All Irish surnames have underlying meanings that can be traced back to their fullest points when the names first appeared in a Gaelic form. The name Kiefer originally appeared in Gaelic as "O Caoimh," which is derived from the word "caomh," which means "gentle."

Early Origins of the Kiefer family

The surname Kiefer was first found in County Cork (Irish: Corcaigh) the ancient Kingdom of Deis Muin (Desmond), located on the southwest coast of Ireland in the province of Munster, where they held a family seat from ancient times.

"In ancient times the O'Keeffes were Marshals and chief military leaders of Desmond. They possessed several castles, and were styled Princes of Fermoy. The principal county for the Keeffes and O'Keefes at present is Cork." 1

Early History of the Kiefer family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Kiefer research. Another 116 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1172, 1640, 1655, 1670, 1691, 1703, 1740, 1747, 1778, 1791 and 1833 are included under the topic Early Kiefer History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Kiefer Spelling Variations

Many variations of the name Kiefer were found in archives from the Middle Ages. These variations can be somewhat explained by the challenge of translation of Gaelic names into English. Hence, the spelling and language in which the people's names were recorded was often up to the individual scribe. Variations of the name Kiefer found include O'Keeffe, O'Keefe, Keefe, Keeffe, Keefer, Keiffe and others.

Early Notables of the Kiefer family

Notable amongst the family name at this time was Constantine O'Keeffe (born c. 1670) who was admitted to the French aristocracy in 1740 on the basis of...
Another 27 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Kiefer Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Kiefer Ranking

In the United States, the name Kiefer is the 4,333^rd most popular surname with an estimated 7,461 people with that name. 2 However, in France, the name Kiefer is ranked the 7,920^th most popular surname with an estimated 1,000 - 1,500 people with that name. 3

Kiefer migration to the United States +

Irish families began leaving their homeland for North America in the late 18th century. These families were usually modestly well off, but they were looking forward to owning and working on a sizable tract of land of their own. This pattern of emigration continued until the 1840s when the Great Potato Famine sparked a major exodus of destitute and desperate Irish people. These people were not leaving for a grant of land in North America because by this time the East Coast had reached its saturation point and free land was scarce. They were merely looking to escape the disease, starvation, and hopelessness that Ireland had fallen into. Although these unfortunate immigrants did not receive a warm welcome by the established populations in the United States and what would become Canada, they were absolutely critical to the rapid development that these two nations enjoyed. They would help populate the western lands and provide the cheap labor required for a rapid industrialization. An examination of passenger and immigration lists has revealed many early bearers of the name Kiefer or one of its variants:

Kiefer Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Friedrich Kiefer, who arrived in Carolina in 1736
Friedrich Kiefer, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1736 4
Theobald Kiefer, who arrived in Carolina in 1736 4
Daniel Kiefer, who landed in America in 1737 4
Peter Kiefer, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1741 4
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Kiefer Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

John Kiefer, who landed in Charleston, South Carolina in 1838 4
Charles Kiefer, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1840 4
George Kiefer, who arrived in Maryland in 1841 4
Franz Jakob Kiefer, who arrived in North America in 1846 4
Franz Jakob Kiefer, who arrived in North America with his wife and four children in 1846
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Kiefer Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Otto Kiefer, who arrived in Arkansas in 1905 4
Mathias Kiefer, who arrived in Alabama in 1929 4

Contemporary Notables of the name Kiefer (post 1700) +

Adolf Kiefer (1918-2017), American swimmer and the first man in the world to swim 100 yards backstroke under 1 minute, America's oldest living Olympic champion
Brigadier-General Homer Watson Kiefer (1898-1976), American Commanding General 9th Division (1952-1953) 5
Charles Frederick Kiefer (b. 1911), American Executive Director of the Civil Aeronautics Board (1966-70)
Jack Kiefer (1940-1999), American professional golfer, won 2 Senior PGA Tour events in the 1990s
Andrew Kiefer (1832-1904), German-born, American representative from Minnesota, member of the Minnesota House of Representatives in 1864
Edward H. Kiefer (b. 1874), American politician, Member of Wisconsin State Assembly from Milwaukee County 18th District, 1911-14, 1931-40 6
Edgar L. Kiefer, American Republican politician, Delegate to Republican National Convention from Florida, 1972 6
Carl Kiefer, American Republican politician, Candidate for Missouri State House of Representatives 9th District, 1966 6
Augustus Kiefer (1828-1910), American politician, Member of Indiana State House of Representatives, 1859 6
Andrew Robert Kiefer (1832-1904), American Republican politician, Member of Minnesota State House of Representatives 21st District, 1864; Mayor of St. Paul, Minnesota, 1898-1900 6
... (Another 5 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Kiefer family +

Bismarck

Wilhelm Kiefer (1921-1941), German Matrose who served aboard the German Battleship Bismarck during World War II when it was sunk heading to France; he died in the sinking 7

Citations +

Matheson, Robert E., Special Report on Surnames in Ireland with Notes as to Numeric Strength, Derivation, Ethnology, and Distribution. Dublin: Alexander Thom & Co., 1894. Print
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)
Generals of World War II. (Retrieved 2012, March 30) Homer Kiefer. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/Kiefer/Homer_Watson/USA.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 6) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
Bismarck & Tirpitz Class - Crew List Bismarck. (Retrieved 2018, February 06). Retrieved from https://www.bismarck-class.dk/bismarck/crew/bismarck_crew.html#crew_details