Surname Vogelsang - Meaning and Origin

Vogelsang: What does the surname Vogelsang mean?

The last name Vogelsang is a German surname, derived from the combination of two German words: vogel, meaning "bird" and sang, meaning "song". The name, therefore, literally translates to "bird song", and likely originated in the Middle Ages as a reference to a person who sang like a bird.

The name can be found throughout Germany and the German-speaking world, with variations of the spelling such as Vogelsand, Vogelsangen, Vogesang, Vogesangen, and others. In some cases, the "sang" portion of the name may have been replaced with the German word for wood (holz) in order to further emphasize the connection to birdsong.

More recently, kanji characters have been used in some parts of the Far East to represent the last name Vogelsang. In Chinese, for example, it is written as 鳥のローテジ.

One of the earliest known recorded instances of the Vogelsang name can be found in documents from 1177 AD, in the city of Naumburg in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. One such document names one of the city's most prominent citizens, Anselo de Voselsang.

Today, the name Vogelsang continues to be widely used wherever there has been a German influence. Although it is not a terribly common surname, there are still a significant number of people bearing the name, including novelist and filmmaker Irma Vogelsang and heavy metal drummer Sebastian Vogelsang.

Vogelsang: Where does the name Vogelsang come from?

The last name Vogelsang is most common today in Germany, although it is also present in other parts of Europe such as Austria, Switzerland, and the Netherlands. Of the over 6,000 people living with the Vogelsang name today, the majority of them reside in Germany.

Geographically, Vogelsang surname is most popular in the western German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the Bavarian states of Upper Bavaria and Lower Bavaria. In North Rhine-Westphalia alone there are over 1,000 individuals with at least one person with the last name in almost every city.

The Vogelsang name is thought to originate in Germany and has been present since the Middle Ages. It began as a identity-forming name, taken by those working in woodlands or those of a similar profession. The name translates to “bird song”, possibly indicating someone who lived close to a singing birds. By the 1600s, the Vogelsang surname had spread throughout the country and today is present in other countries throughout Europe.

The Vogelsang surname also has an interesting religious component. Many individuals with the surname have been Catholic priests or lay religious figures. This could have been due to the Church’s major influence in Germany during the Middle Ages as many people adopted their faith’s surnames. Thousands of years later, the Vogelsang surname still exists and is predominantly located in Germany.

Variations of the surname Vogelsang

The surname Vogelsang has various spellings depending on language and regional dialect. Some of the most common variations are Vogelsangg, Vogelsen, Vogelsanger and Vogelzang. It has multiple variants as well, including Vogelsinger, Voiglsang, Fegelsang, Vogelzong and Vogelzaang.

In German, Vogelsang is derived from the Middle High German 'vogelsante', which in English translates to 'bird song'. As such, it is thought to have once been a nickname for someone who sang like a bird or was related to a person with such a talent.

The surname Vogelsang is of German origin, however, there may be Dutch variants as well. In Dutch, Vogelsang- would likely be spelled Vogelzang-, while other Dutch spelling variants may include Vogelzong and Feggelsang.

In addition to these spelling variations, there are also a few related surnames that are derived from the same origin as Vogelsang. These include Vogelsinger, Vogelsang, Vogelzanger and Vogelsohn.

The Vogelsang surname is found in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, the Netherlands and parts of the United States, such as Pennsylvania. It has also spread to Canada, where it is a common spelling variant. Therefore, these variants and the related surnames are likely to be found in many different countries and regions.

Famous people with the name Vogelsang

• Thomas Vogelsang, known as the founder of German football club Fortuna Düsseldorf in 1895
• Bryan Vogelsang, a professional mixed martial artist
• Georg Vogelsang, former professional football and rugby player
• Christopher Vogelsang, intersectional civil rights activist
• Edwin Vogelsang, prolific German actor
• Wolfgang Vogelsang, internationally renowned professor of political sciences
• Jerry Vogelsang, an award-winning American cinematographer
• Patrick Vogelsang, Swiss businessman and former politician
• Will Vogelsang, American author and entrepreneur
• Robert Vogelsang, a German artist

Other surnames

VogelsaengerVogelsangerVogelsängerVogelsangs

Comments or additions to the name "Vogelsang"

12.01.2024
There a number of Austral1ans with the surname name Vogelsang - many of these people live in South Australia. Ancestors have been in Australia since 1850 and follow the Lutheran Religion.