Last name: Ackerman

This long-established surname is of Anglo-Saxon origin, and is a status name for a bond tenant who was employed as a ploughman for a manor. The derivation is from the Olde English pre 7th Century "aecermann", a compound of "aecer", field, ploughed land, cognate with the Old Norse "akr", and "mann", man. On many medieval manors there were separate tenements held by "acremen" in return for ploughing service, and a quotation from "Lay le Freine" reads, "The foules up, and song on bough, And acremen yeld to the plough". Early examples of the surname include: Robert le Akerman (Essex, 1233); Roger le Acreman (Oxfordshire, 1273); and Hugh Akerman (Cambridgeshire, 1273). The "Historical English Dictionary", dated 1389, tells us that "both prestis and knightis mosten bicome acremen and heerdis". In the modern idiom the surname has four spelling variations: Ackerman(n), Akerman and Acreman. On August 15th 1568, Anna Ackerman and John Habet were married at St. Dionis Backchurch, London. A notable namebearer mentioned in the "National Biography" was Rudolph Ackermann who, in 1801, patented a method for making articles waterproof, and established art lithography in England (1817). A Coat of Arms granted to the Ackerman family in 1761 is described thus: Quarterly per fesse indented first and fourth gules, in chief a maunch argent, in base an acorn sprig or, second and 3rd or, three dragons' heads couped of the first. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of William Acreman, which was dated 1100, in the "Chartulary of Ramsey Abbey", Huntingdonshire, during the reign of King Henry 1, known as "The Lion of Justice", 1100 - 1135. 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.

Visitor Comments

CLINT ACKERMAN
JUST WANDERING IF THERE ARE ANY 'ACKERMAN'S' IN AUSTRALIA THAT KNOW OF ANYMORE HISTORY? I'VE BEEN TOLD WE HAVE BEEN TRACED BACK TO GERMANY. WHICH I HAD ONCE READ THAT WAS WHERE RUDOLPH ACKERMANN WAS FROM. EITHER BEFORE HIM, HIMSELF OR AFTER HE, THE ACKERMANN WENT TO ENGLAND AND SOEMTIME AFTER THAT THEY DROPPED AN 'N' OFF THE END OF THE NAME. THEN THROUGH TO MY FATHER, THEY STAYED IN ENGLAND UNTIL HE MOVED OUT HERE TO AUSTRALIA, WITH MUCH OF HIS SIBLINGS FOLLOWING ALONG IN TIME.

S Ackerman
Hi, My family and I are Ackermans living Australia. I know very little about our ancestors as our family have been in Australia for over 4 generations. How long has your family been in Australia for?

Christal Ackerman
I have also been told it was from Germany too!

Danelle Ackerman
My father also told me that we are of German and Judist decent.... So weird!

Tom McCort
My Ackerman ancestor, David Ackerman, was born in 1615 in the Netherlands. He died on board the ship bringing his family to America in 1662.

Miranda Ackerman
I was told i am German decent yet, i have met other Ackermans ( no relation,or at least no relation i know of) that are Jewish.

Tom McCort
Miranda, It is not always the case, but most of the Jewish Ackermans that I have met spell it with an extra "n" at the end of the name (Ackermann).

Miranda Ackerman
I was a nurse aide and took care of a woman who had the same last name spelled the same as mine. We would talk and she told me her husbands family and herself we all Jewish. She would always ask what my background was i just told her what i was told, that I was German. Kind of made me curious. So i started looking up the name and most what i found was it was a German name.

Colin Ackerman
ackerman can be traced to 1100 in england , my ackerman originated in somerset england 1700 pitminster , taunton area .

John Ackerman
My Grandad is Gottlieb Ackerman, they are of German decent and story is they lived or started in the area called Prussia, and at some point came over to the states, and along the way made it to Montana and was in the area called Wolf Point. grandad got married and then at some point decided to move west to Washington state and then settled in a town called Quilcene, Wa. There he raised 13 kids, My dad was near the youngest, Marvin. I live in Washington State.

Tanya Ackerman
HI There, my name is Tanya Ackerman and i reside in South Africa. I have long been wanting to find out about my ancestry. Are there any other Ackerman's in South Africa? How do you find out where you originated from? Tom, how on earth did you find out about your ancestor in 1662? That is amazing and i would really appreciate some advise as to how i can go about finding information about my ancestors? Kind Regards, Tanya Ackerman - South Africa

Tom McCort
Tanya, I was fortunate that my mother (Sarah Ackerman McCort) was an avid amateur genealogist. Years ago she did all the research the old-fashioned way -- writing to various church and government officials who are the keepers of the records of births, marriages, deaths, voters, land titles,etc. Nowadays it is much easier to research your ancestry using the Internet. Ancestry.com is one of the better search vehicled, and it is relatively inexpensive. First find out as much about your ancestors as you can by asking your parents, grandparents and other relatives; then complete your search on the Internet. Good Luck, Tom McCort

Tanya Ackerman
Hi Tom, Thank you so much for the advise. I am defnatly going to start searching, and am very excited to find out what i can about my ancestors. Take care and good luck Tom. Kindest Regards, Tanya Ackerman

Pieter Ackerman
Hi Tanya, my father told me we are from Germany, but I am also strugling to get to the roots. During my stay at Chamonix Farm (Franschhoek) I saw in a register that the Ackermans (the one with 2 n's) arrived in SA in 1720. If you find it before me please send an e-mail. Being a landscape architect, I am still close to the "ploughman" All the best

Tanya
HI Pieter, Thank you kindly for the information... Germany... wow!!! I have started my family tree but unfortunatly can only get to my mom's side of the family as my Father's side (The Ackerman's) is now very small and information hasnt been passed down well. So yeah its become a mission to get "hidden" information. As sson as i do find any information i shall pass it on to all the South African Ackerman's i know :-) Take Care and Good Luck - Keep "digging" :-)

cathy haller
My great great great grandmother was Sophia Ackerman and was from Heidelberg Germany she was born in 1842 and came to the US in1854 and married John Haller they ended up in Fruita mesa CO