Gruber History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Germany

The ancestral home of the Gruber family is Bavaria. Gruber is a local name for a person who lived in Bavaria, where the name Gruber came from humble beginnings but gained a significant reputation for its contribution to the region's medieval society.

Early Origins of the Gruber family

The surname Gruber was first found in Bavaria, where the name was anciently associated with the tribal conflicts of the area. They declared allegiances to many nobles and princes of early history, lending their influence in struggles for power and status within the region. They branched into several houses, and their contributions were sought by many leaders in their search for power. Otto Gruober, a Knight, lived in Austria around 1183.

Early History of the Gruber family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Gruber research. Another 120 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1623, 1680 and 1835 are included under the topic Early Gruber History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Gruber Spelling Variations

Many cultural groups lived in the German states in medieval times. Each had its own dialect and traditions, and unique variations of popular names. Low German, which is similar to contemporary Dutch, was spoken in Westphalia. German names are characterized by additions such as regional suffixes and phrases that tell something about the origin or background of its original bearer. Further contributing to the variation in German names was the fact that there were no spelling rules in medieval times: scribes recorded names according to their sound. The recorded spelling variations of Gruber include Gruber, Grueber, Gruebel, Gruebe, Grube, Grubar, Gruberer and many more.

Early Notables of the Gruber family

Prominent among members of the name Gruber in this period include Johann Grueber (1623-1680), an Austrian Jesuit missionary and astronomer in China; Andreas Grueber, who fought with bravery against the Turks at...
Another 31 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Gruber Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Gruber Ranking

In the United States, the name Gruber is the 2,758^th most popular surname with an estimated 9,948 people with that name. 1 However, in France, the name Gruber is ranked the 2,820^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,000 - 2,500 people with that name. 2

Gruber migration to the United States +

Between the mid-17th and mid-20th centuries, German settlers arrived in North America by the thousands. Persecution based on religion and poverty were great motivators in this large-scale migration. So too was the opportunity for tenant farmers to own their own land. Ample land and opportunity awaited the settlers who went to such states as Pennsylvania, Texas, New York, Illinois, and California, as well as Ontario and the prairie provinces of Canada. Research into the origins of individual families in North America revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Gruber or a variant listed above:

Gruber Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Hans Henrich Gruber, who arrived in Philadelphia in 1732 on board the "Dragon"
Henrich Gruber, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1732 3
Hans Gruber, (1688-1734), who arrived in Georgia in 1734 aboard the ship "Purysburg" 3
Peter Gruber, (1697-1740), who landed in Georgia in 1734 aboard the ship "Purysburg" 3
Wilhelm Gruber, who arrived in Georgia in 1738 3
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Gruber Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Anna Gruber, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1803 3
Anna Maria Gruber, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1803 3
Elizabeth Gruber, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1803 3
Hans Jacob Gruber, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1803 3
Peter Gruber, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1837 3
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Gruber Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Martin Gruber, who landed in Arkansas in 1904 3
Joseph A Gruber, who landed in Arkansas in 1906 3

Gruber migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Gruber Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Kasper Gruber, who landed in Canada in 1783

Contemporary Notables of the name Gruber (post 1700) +

Ruth Gruber (1911-2016), American journalist, photographer, writer, humanitarian, Special Assistant to the Secretary of the Interior
Craig Gruber (1951-2015), American rock bassist, best known as the original bassist in Rainbow
Paul Blake Gruber (b. 1965), former American NFL football offensive tackle
Freddie Gruber (1927-2011), American jazz drummer
Kelly Wayne Gruber (b. 1962), American former Major League Baseball third baseman
Brigadier-General William Rudolph Gruber (1890-1979), American Commanding Officer Artillery 24th Division (1944-1946) 4
Marie Gruber (1955-2018), German actress who appeared in more than one hundred films since 1980
Barbara Gruber (b. 1977), German three-time bronze medalist ski mountaineer and mountain biker
Johann Gottfried Gruber (1774-1851), German critic and literary historian
Frank Gruber (1904-1969), American writer of Westerns and detective fiction
... (Another 7 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/
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 2011, October 11) William Gruber. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/Gruber/William_Rudolph/USA.html