Gunther
A surname from an old Germanic personal name meaning roughly "battle army" or "warrior."
The #4,501 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 39,171 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Gunther comes from an old Germanic personal name, recorded in early forms such as Gundher, Gundachar, and Gunthar. The name is generally analyzed as containing the element gund meaning "battle" or "war," combined with a second element often taken as hari/har meaning "army" or "warrior." In other words, the original sense was something like "battle-army" or "warrior in battle."
History
The name was widely used in medieval Germanic Europe and also appears in legendary tradition, especially in the Nibelungen cycle, where Gunther is a king. As a surname, it arose as a patronymic from a man called Gunther or Gunter. Historical surname dictionaries note related spellings such as Gunter, Gunter, Gunner, Conder, and other regional forms.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
19th-century writers often grouped Gunther with a cluster of old Germanic names built from martial elements, which is why its original meaning is usually explained in heroic terms.
From the historical record
“men of York, i. 17. (a) Bapt ' the son of Gunther,* q.v. London, 4, o, a ; New York, 6, o, i. Gantlett, Gauntlett.— Local,”
— A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames (alternate scan)