Von
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In [[German language|German]], '''von''' [{{IPA|fɔn}}] is a [[preposition]] which approximately means ''of'' or ''from''.
When it is used as a part of a German [[family name]], it can indicate a member of the [[nobility]], like the [[French language|French]], [[Portuguese language|Portuguese]], and [[Spanish language|Spanish]] ''"de"''. At certain times and places, it has been illegal for anyone who was not a member of the nobility to use ''von'' before their [[family name]]. However, in the Middle Ages the "von" particle was still a common part of names and was widely used also by commoners, e.g. "Hans von Duisburg" meant ''Hans from [the city of] [[Duisburg]]''.
The abolition of the [[Monarchy|monarchies]] in [[Germany]] and [[Austria]] in [[1919]] meant that neither state had a privileged nobility, and both had exclusively [[republic]]an governments. In Germany, this meant that in principle ''von'' simply became an ordinary part of the names of the people who used it. There were no longer any legal privileges or constraints associated with this naming convention, although in practice, many people with ''von'' in their names are still listed in [[telephone book]]s and other files under the rest of their name. (e.g. [[Ludwig von Mises]] would be under ''M'' in the phone book rather than ''V''). In Austria, in contrast, not only were the privileges of the nobility abolished, their [[title]]s and [[preposition]]s were abolished as well. Thus, for example, ''Friedrich von Hayek'' became [[Friedrich Hayek]] in [[1919]] when Austria abolished all indicators of nobility in family names. On this issue, also see [[Austrian nobility]].
In the [[Nordic countries]], ''von'' is common but not universal in the names of noble families of German origin and has occasionally been used as a part of names of ennobled families of native or foreign, but non-German, extraction, as with the family of the philosopher [[Georg Henrik von Wright]], which is of [[Scotland|Scottish origin]].
Not all members of families whose names begin with "von" are holders of a title of some kind, regardless of whether their parents are living or dead—while it can be said that almost all German nobles use ''von'' not all users of ''von'' are noble. (Some very old noble families, usually members of the ''[[Uradel]],'' do not use ''von'' but are nevertheless still noble.) Also, a very few German families were elevated to the nobility without the use of the preposition ''von.'' Ancient families distinguish themselves from newly ennobled ones by abbreviating ''von'' to ''v.'' This is also the traditional practice of nobles in North Germany.
==Example==
In [[Thomas Mann]]'s novella [[Death in Venice]], the protagonist is a famous novelist, formerly named Gustav Aschenbach, who has recently changed his name to Gustav von Aschenbach. This change is symbolically important to him. It may mark his receiving a [[title]], but this is not spelled out.
Outside the literary world, [[Lars von Trier]], [[Diane von Fürstenberg]], [[Erich von Stroheim]], [[Josef von Sternberg]] and [[Dita von Teese]] did the same, neither "von" being bestowed in a correct manner.
==See also==
*[[Van (Dutch)|Van]]
[[Category:German nobility| Von]]
[[Category:Austrian nobility| Von]]
[[Category:Swedish nobility|*]]
[[Category:Danish nobility]]
[[da:Von]]
[[nl:Von]]
[[no:Von]]
[[sl:Von]]
[[sv:Von]]