Herman surname meaning

Herman comes from a Germanic personal name built from heri or hari, “army,” plus man, “man.” That given name underlies surnames in English, French, Dutch, Flemish, Hungarian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Slovenian, and Croatian, and Herman is also the usual Americanized form of German Hermann. Ashkenazic Jewish Herman follows the same German personal name. Weaker English alternatives (a shortened Herniman topographic, or a theoretical “hired man”) appear in dictionaries but lack strong medieval support. Parent’s name is high confidence for the army-man personal-name core.