Does the surname Rosenthal have Jewish or German roots?

Answer 1

It's both. Many Jews were German, so they took surnames in the same way that their Christian neighbors did. But not all Rosenthals were Jewish. Many were Christian Germans.

Answer 2

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Till the 19th century jewish people had no family names. They often used patronymics like Isaac Ben Moshe (Isaac son of Moshe) for example. Then legislation in many central European countries required them to have a surname. So in Germany and Austria (which then extended far into Eastern Europe), where most of the European jews lived at that time, they were given German surnames by government officials. It depended on the mood of the official and the wealth of the people to be named whether this name just derived from the occupation (e.g. Kaufmann - merchant, Kohn/Cohen - priest, Kantor - singer), the origin (Frankfurter - from Frankfurt, Pinkas - from Pinsk), had a poetic meaning (Mandelbaum - almond tree, Morgenthau - morning dew, Rosenthal - valley of roses) or sometimes even was derogatory (Ochsenschwanz - oxtail).

Answer 3

Rosenthal Name

Answer 4

Rosenthal is originally a German Jewish name. It is a German word and means "rose valley". When the German Jews became German citizens in 19th century they had to take "civil" surnames they didn't have before and some chose names that have something to do with plants (other such names are Rosenzweig -"rose bough" or Mandelbaum - "almond tree") and these words had not been used as surnames before in Germany.

Answer 5

that is my name and I still cannot find out - my Dad says it is a Dutch name but I wonder how far back he is going in the family geneology. He does not like to discuss it at all but I would like to know and would not mind if I was Jewish at all