Garfinkle? Is this last name peculiar to the Jewish people?

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[+3] - Setanta - 02/23/2011I found this information for you (the page where i found it was a re-direct from Garfinkel--Garfinkle was described as a variant of Garfinkel): [quote]Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name or...

Garfinkle and Garfunkle are names which, although not common, are often the family names of Jews. Whether or not they are exlusive to Jews, i could not say.

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I found this information for you (the page where i found it was a re-direct from Garfinkel--Garfinkle was described as a variant of Garfinkel):

Quote:

Jewish (Ashkenazic): ornamental name or nickname from Yiddish gorfinkl ‘carbuncle’, German Karfunkel. This term denoted both a red precious or semi-precious stone, especially a garnet or ruby cut into a rounded shape (in which case it is an ornamental name), and a large inflamed growth on the skin like a large boil (in which case it is a descriptive nickname).

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@Setanta,

There is an Irish family name Garfinkel, complete with coat of arms. There are some various guesses as to which Irish names Garfinkel could be derived from, but nothing sure. Possibly, since Jews were in Ireland in the 12th and 13th century, one married into an Irish family and the name was carried on.

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Garfinkle? Is this last name peculiar to the Jewish people?

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