Origin: Shumberger, Jordan, Kann?

Question

I want to find the history and origin of these surnames. I want to know who my ancestors are and what they have done. Please help.

Answer 1

I couldn't find any thing for the first name , sorry.

Surname: Jordan

Jordan was a very popular personal name given especially to Crusaders' children due to the fact that the Crusaders brought back with them flasks of Jordan water for the baptism of their children. The name itself comes from the Hebrew "Yarden" meaning "to go down" or "descend", i.e. to the Dead Sea. The Latinized form of the name, i.e. "Jordanus", is first recorded in the 1121 Registers of Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk. One Jurdanus de Brakenberge appears in the early 12th Century Social and Economic Documents of London. The surname from this source first appears in the latter half of the 12th Century (see below). A John Jorden is entered in the 1202 Fine Court Rolls of Cambridgeshire. The spellings "Jourdan" and "Jurdain" appear in the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex, dated 1327 and 1332 respectively. On February 16th 1623, Sislye and Mary Jordan are recorded on a list of the living at "Jordan's Journey" in "Virginea"; they are among the earliest recorded settlers in America bearing this name. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Robert Jurdan, which was dated 1182, in the "Seals List of Yorkshire", during the reign of King Henry 11, known as "The Builder of Churches" 1154 - 1189. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.

Surname: Kann

Recorded as Kain, Kane, Kann, and Kayne, this interesting surname is regarded as English, but has several possible origins. Firstly, it may be of Old French origin, either a nickname for a tall, thin man, as some fifteen percent of all surnames are known to come from a nickname source. Secondly it may be an occupational name for a reed weaver or even a reed merchant, one who sold reeds used for thatching, flooring and basket weaving. In both cases the derivation is from the word "cane", meaning reed. Thirdly it may be locational and again French, and describe a former inhabitant of the town of Caen, in Normandy. Meaning "Battlefield", it is named from the "fused" 6th century Gaulish elements "catu" (battle), and "magos", a field. Lastly the name may be of Welsh origin, deriving from the male given name "Cain" or the female "Keina", both meaning "good looking", or perhaps as a short form of other Welsh personal names as Ceindrych or Ceinwen. Early examples of the surname recording in the surviving church registers of the diocese of Greater London include the marriage of Michael Cain to Rebecca Chapell, on February 2nd 1600, at St. Bride's, Fleet Street, and that of Mary Kann, the daughter of Joseph Kann, who was christened at St Benets church, Pauls Wharf, on October 23rd 1692. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Godfrey Kein. This was dated 1198, in the register of the abbey of Bury St. Edmund's, Suffolk", during the reign of King Richard 1st, known as "The Lionheart", 1189 - 1199.

Answer 2

I strongly suspect Shumberger is a variant and Americanized version of Schömberg or Schomberg. So someone by the name of Shumberger was quite possibly from a place called Shumberg or Schomberg ( for example in the same way that someone from New York might be called a New Yorker).

Schomberg : origin & meaning:

German (also Schömberg): and Jewish (Ashkenazic): habitational name from places in Thuringia, Württemberg, and Silesia called Schomberg or Schömberg.

The only way in which you can find out exactly who your ancestors were, where they came from and what they did, is to trace your families lineage. Many people will have the same name as you but will have no relationship whatever to you, so you cannot go by just a surname.

Answer 3

You have two different 'wants'.  The origin of a name is usually hundreds of years back, and MAY have nothing at all to do with your ancestors.  (think.. what if one of your ancestors happened to be adopted?)

The origin is NOT THE SAME as who those ancestors were. You find your ancestors by working back from yourself.. parents, then grandparents, etc, and using valid records.  Those records are what tell you the stories about the persons.

One is not better/worse than the other.. just realize that they ARE different, and require totally different approaches.

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