Show ContentsFeldt History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Etymology of Feldt

What does the name Feldt mean?

The family name of a Jew was typically left to the individual person up until the end of the 18th century. Majority, especially in Germany and eastern Europe, still followed the custom having their father's name included in their name. Whereas, Jews in Spain, Portugal, and Italy had already adopted the practice of using fixed family names. 1

One of the most common traditions for adopting surnames in Medieval Europe was for a person to assume a name that clearly illustrated his occupation. The name Feldman can be considered an occupational name as its primary root 'feld' means 'field' or 'pasture'.

There are a number of common suffixes associated with this name that suggest it was a name used by agriculturists of various sorts: Feldman (field man), Feldbaum (field tree), feldberger, (field hill), Feldstern (field stone). Some Jews, who adopted this surname, however, were not directly associated with the occupation, and can be considered ornamental names. Ornamental names were often assumed by the minority Jewish population who wished to fit into the dominant culture of the area.

The names Felman or Fellerman have somewhat different origins: they are most probably derived from the root 'fell,' which holds a meaning of 'hide' or 'skin' in German and in Yiddish.

Feldt Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Feld, Felder, Feldman, Feldmann, Feldbau, Feldbaum, Feldberger, Feldblum, Feldbrin, Feldfisher, Feldharker, Feldheim, Feldhorn, feldhuhn, Feldklein, Fledmark, Feldmeser, Feldmesser, Feldmus, Feldstein and many more.

Feldt Ranking

the United States, the name Feldt is the 15,199th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 2


Feldt migration to the United States +



Feldt Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • John G Thees Feldt, who arrived in New York in 1822 3

Contemporary Notables of the name Feldt (post 1700) +

  • Kjell-Olof Feldt (1931-2025), Swedish politician, minister of finance (1983-1990)
  • Gustav Waldemar Klaus Feldt (1912-2010), German Korvettenkapitän with the Kriegsmarine during World War II, recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves
  • Commander Eric Augustas Feldt OBE, RAN (1899-1968), Australian officer in the Royal Australian Navy, director of the Coastwatchers organization for much of the Second World War
  • Kurt Feldt (1897-1970), German General der Kavallerie in the Wehrmacht during World War II, recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
  • Kyle Feldt (b. 1992), Australian professional rugby league footballer


  1. Kaganoff, Benzion C. A Dictionary of Jewish names and their history. Schocken Books, 1977. Digital
  2. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  3. 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)


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