Family name origins & meanings
- German : from an agent derivative of Middle High German aigen ‘own’, a status name originally denoting a smallholder who held his land outright, rather than by rent or feudal obligation. In the Middle Ages this was sufficiently rare to be worthy of remark and was normally a special privilege granted in recognition of some exceptional service.
- Jewish (Ashkenazic) : from German Eigner ‘owner’, presumably adopted as an indication of property-owning status.