Buchholz
A German habitational surname meaning “from the beech wood” or “book wood,” originally referring to a place by beech trees.
The #4,547 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 39,634 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Buchholz is a German surname formed from Buch, meaning “beech tree,” and Holz, meaning “wood” or “forest.” In older place-name use, it refers to a beech wood or a settlement identified by such a wood. It is therefore a habitational name for someone from any of several places called Buchholz.
History
The name is common in German-speaking areas and also appears in Low German forms such as Boekholt, which reflect dialect spelling and pronunciation. The historical excerpts explicitly treat Buchholz as a very frequent place-name surname. It has remained a recognizable German surname into modern times, including in the United States through immigration.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The same place-name element can look very different in dialect spelling: historical sources note Low German Boekholt as a regional equivalent of Buchholz.
From the historical record
“Buchholtz III. von dem sehr häufigen ON. Buchholz. Auch BuchoUx, -bttchler s. Bühel. Bochner III. „einer aus Buchen" (0. 40 mal Rud.); auch Büchner — (südd.) Puchner.”
— Die deutschen Familiennamen