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Updated June 9, 2019

Family name origins & meanings

  • Jewish (Ashkenazic) : patronymic from the Yiddish personal name Amsl, from German Anselm (see Anselmo).
  • German : from Amsel ‘(European) blackbird’ (a bird related to the American robin), hence either a nickname for someone fond of singing or an occupational name for a bird catcher.

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