Surname Meschede - Meaning and Origin

Meschede: What does the surname Meschede mean?

The last name Meschede is of German origin. It derives from the region of Westphalia, located in the northwest of Germany, and likely comes from the Middle High German courts of Maschede. The name may also have come from “Masche”, a term referring to an open space between fenced enclosures.

People with the last name Meschede have a long history in Westphalia. In the 1200s, they were mentioned in records related to the court system there. In the 1400s and 1500s, the name was used in official records and local family lines were established.

By the 1800s the surname had been divided into many branches, one of which found its way to the United States where William B. Meschede became the first recorded member of the family in the new world. Today, Meschede is a relatively uncommon name in North America, but there are many in Germany who still bear the name.

The name implies a history of hard-working people with a strong sense of family and tradition. It is a reminder of the rural lifestyles still common in the North of Germany where this name originates.

Meschede: Where does the name Meschede come from?

The last name Meschede is quite common today, especially in Germany. The municipality of Meschede is located in the Hochsauerland district of North Rhine-Westphalia, in the western part of the country. The population is approximately 15,000 and the area is home to more people with the Meschede surname than almost anywhere else in Germany.

The surname is also common in the U.S. and many other countries. In the U.S., there are over 3,000 people with the Meschede surname, mainly concentrated in Texas, California and New York. Meschede is also a popular last name in the U.K., Netherlands, Belgium and Sweden.

In Germany, there are many Meschedes across the country. The surname itself means "from Meschede" or "dweller from Meschede". It is often associated with farming or crafts, as Meschede was a large center of weaving and global trade in the Middle Ages.

Since the 1800s, the Meschede name has seen large migrations from Europe to North America. This has helped to spread the name to the four corners of the world. Today, the Meschede name is quite common and is found in many countries.

Variations of the surname Meschede

Meschede is a German surname derived from the town of Meschede, located in the Sauerland region of Germany. The variants and spellings of Meschede can range from Meshchede, Meteorite, Meshcete, Messchite, Meetchite, or Matschiede.

The forms of this surname can spread across different countries with various spellings. For example, in the Netherlands, the surname is spelled as Metschede. In the United States, spelling of the surname Meschede can also be Mattchede.

In some cases, the surname Meschede is also combined with other surnames to form a hyphenated surname. Examples include Meschede-Kerkhofs, Meschede-Meseberg, and Meschede-Sander.

In German, names ending in “-sche” can also be derived from now defunct German hamlets. For example, a person with the name Messche could trace their roots to the hamlet of Messche, north of the German city Bochum.

Given that surnames are inherited by blood, it is not uncommon for members of the same family to have different surnames due to different spellings. For example, Meschede, Meschen, Metschiede, and Matchide can all be derived from the same family, as they have the same Latin root – meschitum – which means a house or settlement.

Overall, there are numerous variants, spellings, and surnames of the same origin for the surname Meschede. Despite the variety of spellings, all of them can be traced back to a small town located in the Sauerland region of Germany.

Famous people with the name Meschede

• Romy Meschede: Romy Meschede is a German actress and model known for her roles in films such as The Wave (2008), What a Man (2011), and more recently Enemy Lines (2020).
• Detlef Meschede: Detlef Meschede is a German physicist and professor of Physics at the University of Bonn, specializing in quantum optics and atomic, molecular, and optical physics.
• Mathieu Meschede: Mathieu Meschede is a German photographer and visual artist best known for his minimalist, abstract fine art photography.
• Arthur Meschede: Arthur Meschede was a German classical philologist, professor of philology at the University of Bonn and a neo-Lutheran theologian.
• Gabriele Meschede: Gabriele Meschede is a German historian, specializing in the history of early modern Europe and the history of diplomacy.
• Katie Meschede: Katie Meschede is a German artist and journalist, known for her creative works in music and writing and her blog posts about art and culture.
• Bernd Meschede: Bernd Meschede is a German engineer and professor of process engineering at the University of Bochum.
• Ingo Meschede: Ingo Meschede is a German political scientist, professor of politics at the University of Bonn and expert on electoral systems and the political institutions of Germany.
• Martina Meschede: Martina Meschede is a German professor of International and European Law at the University of Potsdam, specializing in European Union Law and International Tax Law.
• Joachim Meschede: Joachim Meschede is a German military historian, specializing in the history of the Royal Prussian Army and the German army of the Second World War.

Other surnames

Meschenich