Schiff
A German surname originally referring to a ship, often for someone who worked on the water or lived by a harbor.
The #8,297 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 77,322 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Schiff is the German word for “ship,” from Old High German scif and related Germanic forms. As a surname, it likely began as an occupational name for a sailor, boatman, or someone connected with shipping, though in some cases it may also have been a nickname or house sign. In Jewish family naming, Schiff was also adopted as a German/Yiddish surname with the same basic word meaning.
History
The surname appears in both German and Jewish naming traditions. In German-speaking areas it could arise independently in several places where river traffic, harbor work, or boat ownership made “ship” a useful identifying label. It also spread with migration into Central and Eastern Europe and later to North America, where it remains relatively uncommon.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
In German, Schiff is still the everyday word for a ship, so the surname is one of the more transparent surnames to modern German speakers.
From the historical record
“das m noch bis ins 17. Jh. erhalten) von Brettern zusammenschlagen: ein Faß, ein Zimmer, ein Schiff bödmen. Boer s. Bauer. Boffert 8. Bod (V.). BOO I. ahd. bogo, mhd. böge „Bogen" (als Waffe), durch Gräberfunde schon für die”
— Die deutschen Familiennamen