Surname Lütkes - Meaning and Origin
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Lütkes: What does the surname Lütkes mean?
The last name Lütkes (or Lutkes) is believed to be a German occupational surname. The word “Lütke” was derived from the Low German word “lutke”, which describes a type of small merchant or itinerant peddler. Thus, people bearing the surname Lütkes likely descended from a peddler or someone who sold goods from door to door.
Throughout the centuries, the surname Lütkes grew and spread from its Low German origin, eventually being found in the Netherlands and in Germany, particularly in the northwestern part of Germany. It is thought that modern-day individuals with this surname are descended from individuals who migrated to these areas during the Hanseatic League period in the Middle Ages.
The surname Lütke is also found in the United States, primarily among immigrants from Germany. Immigrants bearing the surname Lütke often settled in Wisconsin, Illinois, Minnesota, and other Midwestern states.
Today, the surname Lütkes can be found throughout the world, with many individuals bearing the name in the United States, Germany, Netherlands, Austria, Switzerland, and elsewhere. Regardless of the location, many of those who bear the last name Lütke share a common history of being descended from those Low German peddlers who followed trade routes and veterans to new countries centuries ago.
Order DNA origin analysisLütkes: Where does the name Lütkes come from?
The last name Lütkes is a German surname and is most commonly found in Germany. It is believed to be of Frisian origin, derived from a personal name composed of the elements “lut” (army or people) and “karo” (brave). It is an origination of the old Germanic tribe of the Saxons.
The last name is scattered in many parts of Germany, but it is particularly common in the states of Lower Saxony, North Rhine-Westphalia and Hamburg. Lütkes is a rare name in all other parts of the German-speaking world. The south German states of Bavaria and Baden-Württemburg record fewer examples of this surname.
Lütkes is also found in other countries. In the United States, the most common state for the name is New York, followed by Pennsylvania and California. In the Netherlands, the last name is most common in Gelderland, with some examples in the south of the country.
Although spread throughout much of the German-speaking world, Lütkes is uncommon in comparison to many German surnames and not commonly encountered in daily life.
Variations of the surname Lütkes
The surname Lütkes has multiple variants, spellings, and surnames that have the same origin. The most predominant variants are Lütke, Lutke, Lütkens, and Lütkemann.
In Dutch, the origin of the surname is as follows: from the personal name Ludekin, a form of Ludwig, composed of the Germanic elements “lud” meaning “famous” and “wig” meaning “fighter”; the personal name was particularly popular in central Germany.
In Germany, variants of this surname are: Lütke, Lütken, Lütkemann, Lutke, Lutkes, Lutkens, Lutkeman, Ludekin, Lutkmann, Lütkessen, Lütkman. Similarly, in the United States and other countries, variants of this surname are Lutkiewicz, Lutwick, Luttke, Lutick, or Lutics.
In Dutch, the diminutives of the given name Ludwig are Lowe, Loz, and Lut.
In some cases, the surname is associated with the English surnames Lutman, Luther, or Luckman, which are variants of the same German origin.
In the Low German language, the surname is written as Lüddeken, Lüteke, or Lütek.
The Lütke surname is most commonly found in The Netherlands, Germany, and the United States, yet can also be found in other countries worldwide.
Famous people with the name Lütkes
- Helmuth Lütkes: A German politician who served the defunct East German state of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) as, in succession, Minister of Sport, from 1965 to 1968, Minister for Trade and Supplies from 1967 to 1969, and finally Prime Minister of the GDR from 1969 to 1974.
- Simon Lütkes: A German mathematician who discovered the Lütkes invariants in topology and Lütkes’ theorem about circle actions.
- Hanjo Lütkes: A German film producer and author of Die schöne Seite des Films, a book about producing films.
- Jörg Lütkes: A German Olympic hockey player who represented West Germany at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul.
- Sylvia Lütkes: An Austrian ice dancer and former competitive skater who competed with Florian Just from Germany.
- Harro Lütkes: A German record producer, composer and songwriter who is known for his work in the genres of soul, funk and jazz.
- Marcus Lütkes: A German cyclist who competed in the Individual Pursuit event at the 2008 Summer Olympics.
- Olaf Lütke Schroth: A German actor, best known for his roles in the Netflix series Dark and the Amazon Prime series Das Boot.
- Annette Lütkes: A German painter and sculptor living in the Düsseldorf area who is best known for her works on North American Indians.
- Lena Lütke: A German actress and singer. She is best known for the role of Magda Leipold in the German drama series Das Traumschiff.
- Sarah Lütkes: A German track and field athlete who specialises in sprinting events. She is the 2019 German national champion in the 100m sprint and is currently training for the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.
- Jens Lütkes: A German football player who plays as left midfielder for Sauerland SV in the German Oberliga.
- Katrin Lütkes: A German-American glass artist known for her sculptures created in a combined glass blowing and sandblasting technique called glassblasting.