[Ger-Poland-Volhynia] GARY WARNER-Need some help with surnames starting with O

[Otto]

Evening gary,
No.  It is not the same.
O'Sullivan is the surname Sullivan with a Gaelic 'O' prefix.
O'Sullivan = descendant of Sullivan


Öhl = Oil    Oehl and Oel = Oil  (present day Öl and Öler)
Sounds like 'Ehler'   (the 'h' (O'h'ler) may be older form of spelling.
(the root word Öhl would need more research... just in case)

The suffix 'er' added to Öhl-er  states what one does.  = Oil-er
(manufactures it?)

'e' after O indicates an umlaut O.

Oel-ike ?  Sounds like 'Ehlike' (almost but not quite)
(umlaut O sounds like the beginning of 'ai-r'-German E sounds like  
English long 'A'.

Oehl-ke   Sounds like "Ehlke   ('ke' is a diminutive suffix-little,  
son of)

Oeher and Eher appears to be a definite misspelling.
(unless the root word is 'Ehe', as in Ehefrau.(wife)


On May 6, 2006, at 11:32 PM, Gary Warner wrote:

> To all of you who have knowledge of surnames,
>
> I am trying to figure out the relationship between surnames that
> begin with an O, and what appears to be their counterpart names
> without the leading O.
>
> I am aware that a leading O in the British Empire means "of the
> family of" (for instance, O'Sullivan versus Sullivan).   In German
> surnames, is the same true?
>
> If the above is true, then are the following sample of such names
> related to each other?
>
> Oeher and Eher
> Oehler and Ehler
> Oehlike and Ehlike
> Oehlke and Ehlke
>
> Gary Warner
> SGGEE
>
>
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. . .  Otto

                      " The Zen moment..." wk. of March 5, 2006
                      ________________________________
                         "Remove what isn't... What is remains."