WENDEL BROWN

Germanic: from the folk name for a Wend, a member of a Slavic people living in the area between the Elbe and the Oder, who were overrun by Germanic migrants in the 12th century. St Wendel was a 6th- or 7th-century shepherd and confessor, who is venerated especially at Sanktwendel on the River Nahe.

English, Scottish, and Irish: generally a nickname referring to the color of the hair or complexion, Middle English br(o)un, from Old English brūn or Old French brun. This word is occasionally found in Old English and Old Norse as a personal name or byname. Brun- was also a Germanic name-forming element. Some instances of Old English Brūn as a personal name may therefore be short forms of compound names such as Brūngar, Brūnwine, etc. As a Scottish and Irish name, it sometimes represents a translation of Gaelic Donn. As an American family name, it has absorbed numerous surnames from other languages with the same meaning.