Zeppelin (surname)

Zeppelin

Origin
Word/name	German
Region of origin	Germany
Other names
Variant form(s)	Zepelin, Zeppelin (without von)

The surname Zeppelin first appeared in a German document dated September 1286, indicating an origin in the town of Zepelin, which is now a municipality in the district of Rostock, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany.

In the Middle Ages, to be called von Zeppelin could mean simply "from Zeppelin". However, in later centuries the word "von" was added only as a nobiliary particle, indicating an ancestor who had been ennobled.

Zeppelin, originally a Slavic village spelled Cepelin [tsepelin], is named after the Cep, an ancient Slavic agricultural tool

Hauptmann Graf Zeppelin

People

Germany

• Ferdinand von Zeppelin (1838–1917), a German general and later aircraft manufacturer, who founded the Zeppelin airship company.
• Eberhard von Zeppelin (1842-1906), was a German Historian and brother of Ferdinand von Zeppelin
• Ferdinand Ludwig von Zeppelin, was a German diplomat and politician
• Friedrich von Zeppelin, was a German court official
• Karl von Zeppelin, was a German diplomat and head of state

See also

• Zeppelin (noble family) [de]
• Zeppelin (disambiguation)
• Graf Zeppelin (disambiguation) (German: Count Zeppelin)