Following along from my post two weeks ago, I am currently posting surnames that were approved and suggested by the government of Livland in the 1820s for peasants if they needed some ideas and inspiration.
This week’s category: Personal Attributes and Characteristics, that either one has, aspires to, or wants their descendants to aspire to. These names are not very common, but I have seen some in old records. As before, modern renditions in brackets. If I am not familiar with a name, I’ve made my best guess as to how it would be rendered in modern spelling.
| Agrs (Agrs) | Ahtrs (Ä€trs) | Baggats (BagÄts) | Bahrsdains (BÄrzdains) |
| Balts (Balts) | Bees (Bīss) | Besbehdis (Bezbēdis) | Behrnigs (Bērnīgs) |
| Behrnischks (Bērnišķs) | Brangs (Brangs) | Brohsch (Brašs) | Brohdigs (Brodīgs) |
| Dahrgs (DÄrgs) | Dailsch (Daiļš) | Dedsigs (DedzÄ«gs) | Derigs (DerÄ«gs) |
| Disch (Dižs) | Drohsch (Drošs) | Dseltans (Dzeltens) | Dsihws (Dzīvs) |
| Dsilsch (Dziļš) | Gaddigs (GadÄ«gs) | Gahdigs (GÄdÄ«gs) | Gahrds (Gards) |
| Gaisch (Gaišs) | Garsch (Garš) | Gattaws (Gatavs) | Gaudens (Gaudens) |
| Gaumigs (Gaumīgs) | Gausigs (Gausīgs) | Geldigs (Geldīgs) | Glaums (Glauns) |
| Glihts (Glīts) | Gluds (Gluds) | Gohdigs (Godīgs) | Greesigs (Griezīgs) |
| Gresns (Grezns) | Gudrs (Gudrs) | Jautrs (Jautrs) | Ihss (Īss) |
| Ihstens (Īstens) | Kahrs (KÄrs) | Kahrtigs (KÄrtÄ«gs) | Karsts (Karsts) |
| Kaunigs (KaunÄ«gs) | Klahjigs (KlÄjÄ«gs) | Klausigs (KlausÄ«gs) | Kluss (Kluss) |
| Knasch (Knašs) | Kohpigs (Kopīgs) | Kohsch (Košs) | Krahschns (Krašņs) |
| Kreetns (Krietns) | Kupls (Kupls) | Lahgs (LÄgs) | Laimigs (LaimÄ«gs) |
| Laipnigs (Laipnīgs) | Leels (Liels) | Leesmains (Liesmains) | Leetigs (Lietīgs) |
| Lehns (Lēns) | Lihdsens (Līdzens) | Lihdsigs (Līdzīgs) | Lihgsms (Līgsms) |
| Lipnigs (Lipnīgs) | Lohkains (Lokains) | Lohzigs (Locīgs) | Lustigs (Lustīgs) |
| Mahzigs (MÄcÄ«gs) | Mannigs (MÄnÄ«gs) | Mantigs (MantÄ«gs) | Masais (Mazais) |
| Masisks (Mazisks) | Meddigs (Medīgs) | Meerigs (Mierīgs) | Melns (Melns) |
| Melnazzis (Melnacis) | Mihksts (Mīksts) | Mihls (Mīļš) | Mihligs (Mīlīgs) |
| Mohdrs (Modrs) | Mudrs (Mudrs) | Muddigs (Mudīgs) | Pastars (Pastars) |
| Pilns (Pilns) | Pirmais (Pirmais) | Plasch (PlaÅ¡s) | Prahtigs (PrÄtÄ«gs) |
| Prahws (PrÄvs) | Rahms (RÄms) | Rahtns (RÄtns) | Raibs (Raibs) |
| Raschens (Ražens) | Redsigs (Redzīgs) | Remdens (Remdens) | Resns (Resns) |
| Rohsch (Rožs) | Ruhpigs (RÅ«pÄ«gs) | Sahtns (SÄtins) | Saldans (Saldans) |
| Saļsch (Zaļš) | Sarkans (Sarkans) | Saudsigs (Saudzīgs) | Sauss (Sauss) |
| Schaurs (Šaurs) | Schigls (Žigls) | Schķihsts (Šķīsts) | Seltans (Zeltains) |
| Semmigs (Zemīgs) | Sihks (Sīks) | Silsch (Zilš) | Sillazzis (Zilacis) |
| Silts (Silts) | Sirdigs (Sirdīgs) | Skaists (Skaists) | Skreisch (Skreišs) |
| Skunstigs (Skunstīgs) | Slawens (Slavens) | Smags (Smags) | Smaidigs (Smaidīgs) |
| Smalks (Smalks) | Smidrs (Smidrs) | Spihdigs (Spīdīgs) | Spirgts (Spirgts) |
| Spohdrs (Spodrs) | Spohsch (Spožs) | Spulgazzis (Spulgacis) | Stahws (StÄvs) |
| Stalts (Stalts) | Stiprs (Stiprs) | Swabbads (Zvabads) | Swanigs (Zvanīgs) |
| Swarrigs (Svarīgs) | Sweiks (Sveiks) | Swesch (Svešs) | Taisns (Taisns) |
| Tauks (Tauks) | Teesigs (Tiesīgs) | Tihrs (Tīrs) | Tikls (Tīkls) |
| Trekns (Trekns) | Tschakls (Čakls) | Tuksch (Tukšs) | Tumsch (Tumšs) |
| Turrigs (Turīgs) | Uggunigs (Ugunīgs) | Uhdains (Ūdains) | Warrens (Varens) |
| Weegls (Viegls) | Wehrts (VÄ“rts) | Wehss (VÄ“ss) | Weikls (Veikls) |
| Wessels (Vesels) | Wezs (Vecs) | Zeenigs (Cienīgs) | Zeetigs (Cītīgs) |
| Zeets (Ciets) | Zerrigs (Cerīgs) |
Surname Saturday – Government Approved, Part 2
My father-in-law’s surname is Ozols, he had to leave Latvia at the end of WW2, is this a common name? He lived on a farm called EZENI in the Vecpiebalg district. Can you help with his family history.
Regards
David
David,
Ozols is the 5th most common surname in Latvia, so it is very popular. It is good that you have the name of the farm he lived on, because this will be key to tracing his ancestry. According to my 1930s-era map, Ezēni was a farm south of the main centre of Vecpiebalga, on a side road off the main road on the way to Vējava. The farm does not appear on modern maps.
Please read my blog post Getting Started with Latvian Research for tips on the best way for you to proceed with your research. Best of luck!
Hello,
I think I posted on here once before, but I’ve been having trouble finding the origins of my grandfather’s last name, MeikÅ¡a.
After some research, I have figured out that the ending -a is the female form of the name. I have also found a town called “MeikÅ¡ani.” Is there a possiblity that his family name could’ve come from this region and that our family adapted it into a name?
Thanks for any information,
Audrey
Audrey,
Sometimes what appear to be feminine endings of names are also the whole name, such as Apse, Goba, and so on. I think MeikÅ¡a could be one of those cases as well, but if it did have a masculine ending it would be MeikÅ¡s. I do think it could be quite possible that people with the surname MeikÅ¡a could have come from a place called MeikÅ¡ani – good catch! This would definitely be a place I’d investigate in your research.
Most of them are oldstyle surnames.
Real surnames – Stalts, Sarkans.
Real different forms – from BagÄts – BagÄtais, Gudrs-Gudrais, ÄŒakls – ÄŒaklais, etc.
pronuncation of this – “ais” iz similar like english “ice”.
I have been searching for many years for my Grandfathers relatives “Janis GRASIS.â€â€¦.I have no photto of him at all. he and my Grandmother remarried..she became Bruveris amd I do not have a name of his new wife..she had sons of her own…I am also rying to find the sons of myAunt Veronica,( she died in childbirth) Dainis and Janis my cousins..Dainis lived with our Gmother as both of his wifes died he has a daughter Zenta..of this side I have a few phottos….can anyone help
thanks
cheers….
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