If my last name is ellis?

Question

is it likely that my ancestors who immigrated here changed their name to ellis after coming to ellis island?

im of german descent if that helps...

thank you!

Answer 1

Are you absolutely certain it is German.  I have Welsh ancestors named Ellis.

Answer 2

Your paternal grandfathers should all have the same, or similar last name going back to the 13th. or 14th. century, when last names were first adopted in Europe (that would be at least 32 grandfathers carrying the same, or similar last name). If you have proven German paternal lineage it is perfectly possible the  name was altered from, perhaps, Elias which is a last name in common usage in Germany, to Ellis which is not, although both have the same root meaning. Prior to less than around only 100 years ago many people could not read or write, and relied on other people to record their name on documents, the name was often written however the scribe heard it, that same spelling then followed it's owner around until the owner became literate and normally would then continue to use the spelling already established. Other times the original name might have been altered, sometimes out of all recognition, simply to fit in with the local population, or in an attempt to hide the origin of it's owner ! In general, last names are an excellent means of determining the origin of a family, at least to about 800 years ago, and for genealogical purposes, does normally give a very useful pointer about where to continue a search.

Last name origin & meaning of Elias :

Greek, Spanish (Elías), Catalan, Portuguese, English, Welsh, French (Élias), German, Dutch, Hungarian (Éliás), Czech (Eliáš), and Jewish: from a medieval personal name, the New Testament Greek form of Hebrew Eliyahu ‘Jehovah is God’ (Anglicized as Elijah in the Old Testament of the King James Bible). This name was borne by a Biblical prophet, but its popularity among Christians in the Middle Ages was a result of its adoption by various early saints, including a 7th-century bishop of Syracuse and a 9th-century Spanish martyr.

Last name meaning of Ellis.

English and Welsh: from the medieval personal name Elis, a vernacular form of Elijah (see Elias). In Wales this surname absorbed forms derived from the Welsh personal name Elisedd, a derivative of elus ‘kindly’, ‘benevolent’.

Answer 3

That is really really stretching things.  There were many Ellis families in the US before 1880, and long before Ellis Island was even built.

Being "of German descent" is very misleading. Your German lineage may be through your paternal grandmother, whose parents were born in Germany.. but she happened to marry a man named Ellis. If you do some fast surveying at www.familysearch.org, you will find the Ellis name in England, and in numerous other countries.

Surnames are tricky.. they are often assumed to "prove" your heritage or nationality.. but that is way untrue.  The ONLY reliable way to determine your background is to look for your individual and specific ancestors, find the facts about them (and their parents).  Don't make the mistake of worrying about researching a surname.

By the time you go back 3 generations, you have 8 gr grandparents.. and each of them have different surnames (and histories). The number doubles every generation.

http://rwguide.rootsweb.ancestry.com/

One tutorial about how to start the process is here at rootsweb (there are many others). I also suggest www.cyndislist.com as a great place to get an idea of the thousands of research sites out there.