Brandes History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Germany-Alt
Germany
Israel

Etymology of Brandes

What does the name Brandes mean?

It wasn’t until the 10th and 11th centuries that Jewish surnames began for the Jews living in North Africa, Spain, France, and Italy. 1

With the pressure to have a fixed surname, Jews sought out interesting ways to name themselves. Some gathered at the synagogue and the rabbi opened a prayer book, the first word on a page was then offered to a family, and so on. Some took names from popular characters in literature. While others created matronymic and patronymic names with suffixes like -sohn, -ov, -kin, etc to denote “descendant of”. 2

In some cases, the name Brandes has been derived from the personal name Brando, and is patronymic. Sometimes this surname comes from the Middle High German "Brant," a topographic name used for someone who lived in an area cleared by fire. Lastly, the name was also occupational, derived from the German word "brandler," or distiller.

Early Origins of the Brandes family

The surname Brandes was first found in Bavaria, which became a fertile source of many succeeding branches of the family name. They were later found in Westphalia and Saxony, where they possessed lands at Haardorff and Stackelberg. The family name was later distinguished when it was elevated to the nobility of the Holy Roman Empire, in 1778.

Brandes Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Brandt, Brandte, Brandtes, Brandtte, Brant, Brante, Brandes, Brandis, Brand, Brande, Brandde, Brannde, Brend, Brende, Brendel, Brendde, Brennde and many more.

Brandes Ranking

the United States, the name Brandes is the 9,364^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 3

Brandes migration to the United States +

Brandes Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Henry Brandes, aged 33, who arrived in Virginia in 1773 4
Johann Brandes, who arrived in America in 1777 4
Andreas Brandes, who landed in America in 1780 4
Christian Brandes, who landed in America in 1780 4
Conrad Brandes, who landed in America in 1780 4

Brandes Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Heinr Brandes, who arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1808 4
Heinrich Brandes, aged 5, who landed in New Orleans, La in 1845 4
Georg Ludw Brandes, who arrived in Texas in 1845 4
H Brandes, aged 35, who landed in New Orleans, La in 1845 4
F Brandes, who arrived in Texas in 1845 4
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Brandes (post 1700) +

Charles Brandes, American money manager
Ramona Brandes, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Washington, 2004 5
Michael L. Brandes, American politician, Representative from Texas 10th District, 1994 6
Mervyn B. Brandes, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Kentucky, 2012 6
Marie Brandes, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Wisconsin, 1952 6
Peter Brandes (1944-2025), Danish painter, sculptor, ceramic artist and photographer
Wilhelm Brandes (1877-1959), Swedish Olympic rower
Heinrich Wilhelm Brandes (1777-1834), German astronomer, mathematician and physicist
Heinrich Brandes (1803-1868), German landscape painter
... (Another 2 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Brandes family +

Bismarck

Jürgen Brandes (1917-1941), German Oberleutnant zur See who served aboard the German Battleship Bismarck during World War II when it was sunk heading to France; he died in the sinking 6
Herbert Brandes (1922-1941), German Feuerwerksgefreiter who served aboard the German Battleship Bismarck during World War II when it was sunk heading to France; he died in the sinking 7

Sources +

Weiss, Nelly. The Origin of Jewish family names: Morphology and History. Peter Lang AG, 2002. Digital
Kaganoff, Benzion C. A Dictionary of Jewish names and their history. Schocken Books, 1977. Digital
"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, October 26) . 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