Updated June 9, 2019

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Family name origins & meanings

  • North German : occupational name for a frontier guard or the guardian of a fenced-off area (such as a woodland), Middle Low German markward, from mark ‘borderland’ + ward(e) ‘guardian’. In medieval folk stories Markwart occurs as a nickname for a jay; it is possible that this use may have influenced the acquisition of the surname in some cases.