Pohlman
A German surname most likely meaning “man from the pole/fence” or, in some cases, a spelling of a place-based name built on a similar root.
The #8,389 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 78,262 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Pohlman is a German surname built on Pohl, a word that can refer to a pole, stake, or post, plus Mann, meaning “man.” In surname use, this often points to someone associated with a boundary marker, a pole, or a place named from that feature. In some families, the name may also reflect regional spelling variation rather than a single fixed original form.
History
The name is found in German-speaking areas and later appears in North America through immigration and later spelling standardization. The form Pohlman is one of several similar surnames that can overlap in pronunciation and spelling, so individual family lines may have different origins. In the United States it is relatively uncommon, but recognizable as part of the broader German-American surname stock.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Because German surnames were often written as they sounded, Pohlman and Pohlmann can sometimes represent the same family line in older records.
From the historical record
“ii Pohlman, ii n”
— De Nederlandsche geslachtsnamen in oorsprong, geschiedenis en beteekenis