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Updated June 9, 2019

Family name origins & meanings

  • Swiss German : probably from a pet form of Birr, Pirr, which is a short form of French Pierre or of Pirmin (the name of an 8th century bishop who founded several monasteries in southern Germany, including Reichenau and Murbach). This is a typical Pennsylvania German name; in Switzerland it is common in Emmental and the canton Bern.

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