Ebner
A German surname for someone who lived on a plain or level piece of land.
The #9,357 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 88,822 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Ebner comes from German dialect words related to ebne or Ebene, meaning a flat area, plain, or level ground. It was used for someone who lived by such a place or came from a locality with that name. In some cases it may reflect a topographic nickname rather than a true place-name surname.
History
The name is well attested in German-speaking areas, especially southern Germany and Switzerland. Historical surname writers have linked it to places or features called Ebne or Ebene, and the form has remained straightforward and stable. It is also found in emigrant communities in North America, where it often kept its original spelling.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Older surname dictionaries often gloss Ebner simply as “one who lived on the plain,” which is one of the clearest topographic surname explanations around.
From the historical record
“Detweiler (Datweil, in Canton Zurich, also in the Palatinate), Dickover (from Diekehof, Thurgau ?), Draivbach, DubendorJ (village of the same name in the Canton Zurich), Ebner (one who lived on plain, or from Ebne, in St. Gall), Eckenrode (Ecke = steep slope, rode is from roden = to root up, clear ground), Effinger…”
— Studies in Pennsylvania German Family Names