Adelsname

German

Etymology

From Adel (“nobility”) +‎ -s- +‎ Name (“name”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈaːdəlsˌnaːmə/, [ˈʔaː.dl̩(t)sˌnaː.mə]
• Hyphenation: Adels‧na‧me

Noun

Adelsname m (weak, genitive Adelsnamens, plural Adelsnamen)

1. (law) a surname that includes a (former) title of nobility

Usage notes

• In Germany, titles of nobility have been abolished as such, but have been turned into naming elements. Accordingly, there are civil surnames like Freiherr/Freifrau von und zu XY, but such a name is not legally considered to include a title and has no legal consequences other than the right to bear it.
• In Austria, names and titles of nobility have been abolished entirely. Even the element von is illegal (except, de facto, in Germans or other foreign nationals who have received Austrian citizenship, though this case is debated).

Declension

Declension of Adelsname [masculine, weak]

	singular			plural
	indef.	def.	noun	def.	noun
nominative	ein	der	Adelsname	die	Adelsnamen
genitive	eines	des	Adelsnamens	der	Adelsnamen
dative	einem	dem	Adelsnamen	den	Adelsnamen
accusative	einen	den	Adelsnamen	die	Adelsnamen

Hypernyms

• Nachname, Familienname