Lantz (surname)


Lantz is a surname of German and Swedish origin.

German origins

The German surname Lantz is thought to have several origins. It is thought to possibly be a variant habitational surname adopted by people from settlements called "Lanz," a shortened habitational name derived from "Lanzo" or "Lando," which was originally a short form of various compound names using the element "land" or "territory", or possibly derived as a warrior's name from the weapon lance. Though found throughout Germany, today the surname is most heavily concentrated in the states of Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein in the north, and Hesse, Rhineland-Palatinate, and Saarland in the southwest. Geographically, it may have originated in the region of Old Saxony.

Swedish origin

The Swedish surname Lantz is thought to have originated as a military-related name derived from "lance," which is a pole weapon designed to be used by a mounted warrior or cavalry soldier called a Lancer. Military-related names became relatively common in the Swedish military in the 17th and 18th centuries as members were required to adopt unique surnames as a means to distinguish themselves from one another.

German Variants

  • Lanz
  • Lanze
  • Lantze
  • Lanitz
  • Land
  • Lanzo
  • Lando

Notable people with the surname