Kammerer
A German occupational surname originally meaning an official in charge of a chamber or treasury.
The #8,946 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 84,380 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Kammerer comes from German kammer, meaning “chamber” or “treasury,” with the occupational ending -er, “one who works with” or “one who holds office for.” In older usage, the word referred to a steward, chamberlain, or treasurer—someone responsible for money, valuables, or household administration. The surname therefore began as a job title rather than a family nickname.
History
The name is well established in German-speaking regions and is especially typical of surnames formed from medieval offices and estates. Historical references show it alongside other occupational surnames such as Schultheiss, Keller, and Koch. In English-language writing it was sometimes glossed simply as “treasurer,” reflecting the office most associated with the term.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
One 19th-century source explicitly glossed Kammerer as “German for treasurer.”
From the historical record
“und 'Muser, - hofer und - höfer; doch herrschen im allgemeinen in dieser Klasse die nicht umgelauteten Formen vor, wie auch unter den Namen, welche von der Beschäftigung hergenommen sind, Kammerer und Küster (KustererJ und Kohler auffallen. Ähnliche Verhältnisse wie im Badischen herrschen wesentlich in Württemberg…”
— Die deutschen Familiennamen