What does Von mean in a Germanic surname?

Question:A further discussion of Van and Von used as predicates is found in an article written by Susanna Matthes for the NYGandB Record in Oct 1893. The following is extracted from that article:

"It is a common mistake of Americans to think that the 'van' before a Dutch name signifies nobility. In the Low Countries, that is, in the kingdoms of the Netherlands and of Belgium, 'van' has no particular meaning. Names with 'van' are to be read on shops as well as on the doors of the most aristocratic mansions. The humblest persons have it as well as the most refined. On the other hand, a great number of the oldest families are without it. In Germany, 'von' means noble, and all persons belonging to the nobility have 'von' before their family names, without any exception. Persons who do not belong to the nobility cannot put 'von' before their names, as they have no right to do so, and would be found out directly if they assumed it, and make themselves ridiculous. But in case of a man being knighted for some reason or other, he has the right to put 'von' before his family name.

So, it appears that by this article, Von indeed means noble. I will source the link so that you can take a look. Go down to the 8th paragraph and begin reading. I hope this helps.

EDIT:Here is another article that may be helpful:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Von

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: A further discussion of Van and Von used as predicates is found in an article written by Susanna Matthes for the NYGandB Record in Oct 1893. The following is extracted from that article:

"It is a common mistake of Americans to think that the 'van' before a Dutch name signifies nobility. In the Low Countries, that is, in the kingdoms of the Netherlands and of Belgium, 'van' has no particular meaning. Names with 'van' are to be read on shops as well as on the doors of the most aristocratic mansions. The humblest persons have it as well as the most refined. On the other hand, a great number of the oldest families are without it. In Germany, 'von' means noble, and all persons belonging to the nobility have 'von' before their family names, without any exception. Persons who do not belong to the nobility cannot put 'von' before their names, as they have no right to do so, and would be found out directly if they assumed it, and make themselves ridiculous. But in case of a man being knighted for some reason or other, he has the right to put 'von' before his family name.

So, it appears that by this article, Von indeed means noble. I will source the link so that you can take a look. Go down to the 8th paragraph and begin reading. I hope this helps.

EDIT:Here is another article that may be helpful:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Von

Von = Of

An example in English would be: Robin of Locksley

Von can mean nobility in a German surname, but it may merely mean that an ancestor originally came from one place and moved to another where he was then subsequently referred to as being from or "von" his previous residence.

"von" means literally from
Most of the time though it is used as part of a aritocratic family name. A lot of aristocrats still have it in their name.
If a not aristocratic person has it in their name it can be that the family lost the status at one point in their history OR it is simply an old family name, that was was created to show where the person came from.

It quite literally means "of".

It means "of" or "from". Before fixed surnames were common, people were often refered to by patronymics (who their father was) or geonymics (where they came from - also known as habitational surnames).

So Fredrick von Heyek at one time meant Fredrick "from Heyek". But when fixed surnames were established, many people just kept their geonymic name but now it became a fixed family surname. So Fredrick von Heyek's children would also have the surname von Heyek even though they may have been born somewhere else.

It is not uncommon to see the "von" dropped over time. So an Fredrick might have a son or grandson who just went by John Heyek.

You did ask about Germanic surnames. Von exists in other regions and has slightly different meanings in some. In Nordic countries it is often used to in reference to a noble family. As in "of the xxx" family.

In the sense of "de" in Latin, it means "of", "from". For a period of time, it seemed to indicate nobility, but that is mostly because the nobles used surnames before surnames were required by kingly mandate.