Dear List members,
In my genealogy documents I encounter two issues I can't get my head around:
What is the proper English translation and historical meaning in the Rhineland of Hof versus Gut (both being different from a house). My ancestors seem to have had a "Gutt".
Second, with my family name a suffix appears in the name between the given name and family name, the suffix being "tho". Hence: given name tho surname. What does "tho" mean?
Thanks,
Martijn
Hi Martijn,
The difference between Hof and Gut can be roughly compared in English as
between farm (Hof) and manor or very large estate with a long history (Gut)
although in some areas namely in the eastern provinces of the German Empire
every property was called a "Gut".
"Tho" is lower German for "zu" meaning in this case English "at". Some
persons or families were sort of described by their origin or place of
residence. A family e.g. Meyer tho Upusen (or Meyer zu Uphusen) meant that
this family Meyer had their domicile or origin in a place called Uphusen.
Mostly families from Güter (plural of Gut) used this kind of name, not
necessarily belonging to the gentry or nobility.
I hope to have clarified your questions. Possibly others from the list will
give you more precise information.
Have a nice day
Jürgen
Hi Martijn,
Jürgen described everthing very well, so I have to tell you only one thing: in the Sources of the 16th, 17th and 18th century the word Hof often in the Rhinelands means a manor ( freiadliger Hof, Rittergut: the first means a allodial manor the second is a fief) of an convent or the nobility. Gut on the other hand was a farm of a farmer. After the prussian occupation in 1814 in official document mostly uses the terms like Jürgen told you but the manors calls today often Hof in the Rhinelands. So you have to look before 1800 how a Gut or Hof describes: adliger Hof/ Gut, freiadliger Hof/Gut, Rittergut/Rittersitz/Fronhof/Schultenhof/Sattermeiergut/Sattelmeierhof = manors of the nobility and Bauerngut/Bauernhof = farm of a famer.
Regards
Frank