Fincke History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Germany

From the historical and enchanting region of Austria emerged a multitude of noble families, including the distinguished Fincke family. Originally, the Austrian people were known only by a single name. The process by which hereditary surnames were adopted in Austria is extremely interesting. Surnames evolved during the Middle Ages when people began to assume an extra name to avoid confusion and to further identify themselves. Often they adopted names that were derived from nicknames. Nickname surnames were derived from an "eke-name," or added name. They usually reflected the physical characteristics or attributes of the first person that used the name. The name Fincke is a nickname type of surname for a cheerful person who sings songs. Further research revealed that the name is derived from the German word fink, which means finch, which is a type of small bird.

Early Origins of the Fincke family

The surname Fincke was first found in Austria, where the name was closely identified in early mediaeval times with the feudal society which would become prominent throughout European history. The name would later emerge as a noble family with great influence, having many distinguished branches, and become noted for its involvement in social, economic and political affairs.

Early History of the Fincke family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Fincke research. Another 115 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1445, 1527, 1718, 1766, 1783, 1792, 1804, 1808, 1809, 1820, 1827, 1841, 1842 and 1846 are included under the topic Early Fincke History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Fincke Spelling Variations

One can encounter great variation in the spelling of surnames: in early times, spelling in general, and thus the spelling of names was not yet standardized; and later, spellings would change with branching and movement of families. Variations of the name Fincke include Finck, Fincke, Finckl (Bavaria), Finncke, Fink, Finke, Finkl, Finke and many more.

Early Notables of the Fincke family

During this period prominent bearers of the name Fincke were Heinrich Finck (1445-1527), who was composer and court musician for both Polish and German princes. Friedrich August von Finck (1718-1766) was a Prussian soldier who served in the Danish and Russian forces. Gottfried Wilhelm Fink (1783-1846), theologian and musical critic was born March 7, 1783, at Sulz in Thuringia...
Another 59 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Fincke Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Fincke migration to the United States +

Austria was made a republic after the First World War. The Austro-Hungarian Empire was broken up by the Treaty of Versailles and many of its people found themselves in the new nation of Czechoslovakia. Many other Austrians and expatriate Austrians made their way to North America in the 20th century. Most landed in Philadelphia, later continuing on to the states of Ohio, Texas, Illinois, California, New York, and Maryland. Some Austrian settlers also went to western Canada and Ontario. Research into the origins of individual families in North America revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Fincke or a variant listed above:

Fincke Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Johannes Fincke, who arrived in America in 1709 1
Johs Fincke, who landed in America in 1709 1

Fincke Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Ludwig Fincke, who landed in St Clair County, Illinois in 1876 1

Contemporary Notables of the name Fincke (post 1700) +

Colonel, USAF Edward Michael "Mike" Fincke (b. 1967), NASA Astronaut with 365 days, 21 hours and 32 minutes in space 2
Gerald B. Fincke, American Republican politician, Candidate for Michigan State Senate 13th District, 1964 3

Citations +

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)
NASA Astronauts Homepage. (Retrieved 2010, September 27) Edward Fincke. Retrieved from http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/fincke.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 20) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html