“I haven’t the slightest idea,” said the Hatter. [D.R.H.]
In the 16th century, with the rise of humanism and the rediscovery of classical culture, scholars in Germany began to translate their surnames into Latin or Greek. As one scholar (Eckhard Bernstein) puts it:
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://www.etymonline.com/columns/post/why-is-a-dollar-like-a-neanderthal