Scharf History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Germany

Early Origins of the Scharf family

The surname Scharf was first found in Yorkshire, where the name first appeared in the 13th century. The name Scharf is either a nickname, or of ornamental origin. It comes from the old Norse word "skarfr," meaning "cormorant," a kind of large, black seabird. The name was probably given to its first bearer because of some imagined resemblance to the bird in question. It is also possible that the name had no real significance whatsoever, and was purely ornamental.

Early History of the Scharf family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Scharf research. Another 48 words (3 lines of text) covering the years 1260 and 1275 are included under the topic Early Scharf History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Scharf Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Scarf, Scarfe, Scarff, Scarffe, Scharf and others.

Early Notables of the Scharf family

Notables of this surname at this time include:

Scharf of Lincolnshire

Scharf Ranking

In the United States, the name Scharf is the 7,647^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 1

Scharf migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Scharf Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Antonius Scharf, who settled in New York State in 1710
Johannes Scharf, who settled in Philadelphia in 1747
Friedrich Scharf, who landed in New York, NY in 1782 2
Herman Scharf, who landed in New York, NY in 1782 2

Scharf Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Charles Scharf, who landed in New York in 1834 2
George Scharf, who arrived in Allegany County in 1844
George Scharf, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1844 2
Joseph Scharf, aged 20, who arrived in America in 1853 2
Gottfr Scharf, aged 29, who landed in New York in 1854 2
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Scharf (post 1700) +

William Scharf (1927-2018), American artist from New York City
Walter Scharf (1910-2003), American film composer
Raymond B. Scharf, American Democratic Party politician, Alternate Delegate to Democratic National Convention from California, 1960 3
Irving A. Scharf, American Republican politician, Candidate for New York State Senate 37th District, 2002 3
Irene Meyer Scharf, American politician, Candidate for Texas State Board of Education 5th District, 2002, 2012 3
Ed Scharf, American politician, Candidate for U.S. Representative from Texas 23rd District, 2002, 2010, 2012 3
Darren Scharf, American politician, Candidate for Texas State House of Representatives 51st District, 2002 3
Albert Scharf, American politician, Member of South Dakota State House of Representatives 35th District, 1891-92 3
George Scharf (1788-1860), Bavarian draughtsman and lithographer, born at Mainburg, Bavaria
Sir George Scharf (1820-1895), British art critic, eldest son of George Scharf
... (Another 3 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Citations +

"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
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)
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 12) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html