Look up scharf in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
The surnames Scharf, Schärf, Schaerff, Sharf, as well as similar spellings of these names, usually have their origins in either the German or Irish languages. As a result of emigration from Europe, these surnames are now also common throughout the United States, Canada and Australia.
The German variants, which were likely spelled Schärf or Schaerf originally, usually trace their origins to Bavaria, although the surname is now common over all of Germany. Literally meaning "sharp", it is regarded as having originated as a medieval nickname, i.e. it described an attribute of an individual's personality, such as "sharp-wittedness".[1] The Yiddish spelling Sharf, as well as the other variants, are found among Ashkenazi Jews.
In Ireland, Scharf and related surnames, such as Scariff, were originally found in the south-western counties of Kerry and Limerick.[citation needed] They are now also common in counties Kilkenny and Carlow.[2]
In Ireland, there are several different folk etymologies of the surname. One claims that it is indigenous to Ireland, although no Old Irish personal names closely resembling it have been identified. A second theory of the surname's origins holds that it came to Ireland with the Norse-speaking Vikings that invaded and settled in Ireland, becoming known as the Norse Gaels. Following the Viking invasions of Ireland in the 10th century, many Vikings and their descendants were gaelicized. According to this theory, one or more Vikings carried the name "Skarf", literally "cormorant", but also in a vernacular sense "glutton", "scoundrel" or "rascal".[3] After Oliver Cromwell invaded and reconquered Ireland, prejudicial laws were enacted by the British. The Statutes of Kilkenny banned the use of the Irish language (including personal names) in most of Leinster. Many indigenous Irish, anglicized their names to sound even more English. Hence, through complex and varying degrees of gaelicization and anglicization, a name such as Skarf may have become various names in different parts of Ireland, including Scarf, Scarffe, Scarriff and Scharf.[4]
Look up scharf in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. The surnames Scharf, Schärf, Schaerff, Sharf, as well as similar spellings of these names, usually have...
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