|
The surname Name Mergenthaler can be found very often in the region "Vorderen Remstal" around the city Waiblingen (close to Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg). In the 16th century the appearance of this surname was often in the villages Hohenacker und Hegnach, less frequently in the surrounding villages. According to Bauder* " a Chuntzelin Mergerter appears in Hegnach within the "Urbaren" (compiled records for properties and real estate in the middle ages) which are written under the sovereignty of Earl "Eberhard dem Greiner" in 1350. This Chuntzelin Mergerter the oldest known member of the clan was a bearer of feud of Württemberg and had to pay interest of 12 Simri rye und 12 Simri oats yearly (Simri: former measure of capacity of corn and stands for about 240 l or 63 american gallons). Unfortunately there are no documentary sources for the following times and Chuntzelin is detached for the time being. In the following cadastral register of 1494 according to the ancient sources there are already documented five persons with name Mergenthaler in Hegnach and three persons with name Mergeter in Hohenacker."
The earliest ancestor of my family Heinrich Mergenthaler is first documentary mentioned at the birth of the son Michel Mergenthaler. His baptism was documented on Sept. 20, 1573 in the birth records of Kornwestheim, subsidiary Zazenhausen (smaller picture top left). Zazenhausen is situated few kilometer westward of Waiblingen. This son "Michel Mergenthaler from Beinstein" sold his fields in Zazenhausen and set up a separate family in Beinstein next to Waiblingen in the year 1593. His eldest son Hannes Mergenthaler was "Bürger" (citizen) and carter in Rommelshausen next to Waiblingen. His children were all born in Rommelshausen. His youngest son Erhard Mergenthaler, born in 1627, married 1650 in Beinstein, baught into Niederhofen next to Brackenheim in the year 1677 ("Eine Behaußung Scheuren, worunter ein Keller, Und Hofreithen be˙ dem oberen Bronnen, zwischen Martin Schmidten Und der Allmandtgassen."). The parish records of Niederhofen were burned up during the invasion of the French under the french general Melac and his burning hordes in the course of the war of succession of the Pfalz (1688-1697). The land charge registers ("Kaufbuch", 1676 – 1705), however, were preserved. On page 8 of Niederhofen's charge register there is the first of many charge records with which Erhardt Mergenthaler from Rommelshausen bought into Niederhofen. While it still was called in 1677 „Anno 1677, Actum d 18 to Mart˙ ... Kaufft Ehrhardt Mergenthaler von Romelshausen Cannstatder Ampts“, it was afterwards written "Actum den 13t Ma˙ 1700 Alt Erhard Mörgenthaler gibt zu kauffen". The spelling Mergenthaler and Mörgenthaler (engl. Moergenthaler) alternate in the charge records even though the identical person is described. The surname Mörgenthaler is documented as Mörgenthaler between 1677 and 1702 with very few exceptions. Beginning with February 2, 1702, when on the same page the notations Mörgenthaler and Mergenthaler were used, the preferred notation of the surname is Mergenthaler. From 1754 all Mergenthaler again were written as Mörgenthaler
Also in Fellbach next to Waiblingen appears the surname Mergenthaler at the beginning of the parish registers (start date 1558). Between 1577 and 1598 the notation was Mörgthaler. Beginning with 1603 only the notation Mergenthaler could be found in Fellbach.
As according to the preceding comments the original surname of the family was Mergenthaler it can be referred to the following interpretation of this name of Bauder*, in extracts can be retained:
From all surname interpreter the surname is listened among the names which indicate a location where the families are coming from, and from where the families emigrated to present places of residence. The names which can be traced back to a location or homeland are as old as the names indicating a attribute or a profession, and also a given name as family name or surname, respectively: The origine of the family names may be generated in the 12th and 13th century. Mergerter = Mergenthaler names are already verifiable in 1350.
Bauder* tries to verify the name's origine to a "Marienthal" (in the local dialect pronounced as Mergenthaler) to a valley which is referred to Virgin Mother Maria (locally pronounced that time as Merge). According to him no name interpreter, however, is able to guess correct the location where the Mergenthaler originally came from. Where also is the "Marienthal" located?
In his comments he tries to demonstrate the origine of the Mergenthaler family should be a location South Germany in using special idioms items of southern Germany dialect!
Bauder* further pointed out:
A Mergenthal can be all over South Germany, thus e.g. at the valleys of Neckar river, the Rems river, or in abother valley where due to a church or chapel referred to Maria or another religious cause the valley's name was called after Maria.
By accident it could be found during researches in the Staatsarchiv Stuttgart (public record office of Stuttgart) a nearly forgotten Mariental (Mergenthal) 12 km to Hegnach the "Würdig Gotteshaus zu Sanct Marienthal in Steinheimb an der Murr gelegen, Prediger Ordens und Speyerer Bistums".
This Lord's house was founded as a Dominican nunnery about 1250 from the noble childless Elisabeth of Steinheim together with her second lord Berthold of Blankenstein "in honore Sanctae Dei genetricis Mariae". This foundation was reconfirmed by bishop Heinrich of Speier on December 31, 1254, and also by pope Urban IV on October 13, 1261. The nunnery was built next to Steinheim, a location which is also famous for the "homo Steinheimensis" whose 365,000 years old bones were found there in 1933. Probably its name was "Mariental" as in the local cadastral register of 1568 and 1577 it was referred to as "Frawen-Closter zuo Stainhaim im Marienthal genanndt", or "das Kloster zu Stainhaim an der Murr im Marienthal", or "Frawen-Closter im Marienthal zu Steinen". January 14, 1643, it was burned down.
It may be assumed that the ancestor comes from this "Marienthal" or "Mergenthal", respectively.
There is also another "Mariental", namely the Cistercian nunnery next to Frauenzimmern and Brackenheim. It was used beginning with 1245. The location belongs since the 14th century to Württemberg. It seems also possible the Mergenthaler moved from there to other regions of Württemberg, as e.g. Hegnach. Bauder* further argued:
The mention of the the Cistercian nunnery next to Frauenzimmern and Brackenheim as a possible point of origin leads to following association of ideas: Why the Mergenthalers, long time afer the Thirty Years' War in Central Europe, moved from Rommelshausen direct to Niederhofen in 1677, not far away from Frauenzimmern, thus close to the before mentioned Cistercian nunnery? As common in ancient times the family's origine could be bequethed orally within the family, which may have been of importance when this family moved to Niederhofen due to reasons which are today not apparent. A reason could have been that this Niederhofen, originally belonging to Baden, since 1380 part of the "Widdum" of the Noble Antonia of Württemberg, was mortgaged 1485 to 1571 to the family of Gemmingen, came in the year 1677 to Württemberg.
To the ancient notation of the family's name Bauder* pointed out:
In the oldest military muster records of 1523, 1536 and 1546 only the name Mergerter was listed. For the recorder this name was not familiar in 1558, so he wrote Mergather or Mergether. In the military muster records of 1558 and 1560 mostly Mergerter ia documented. Sporadic also the name Mergenthaler was used, which exclusively was found in 1563/66.
| 
