Brief Life History of Elisa
When Elisa Wolf was born on 28 April 1867, in Lotzwil, Bern, Switzerland, her father, Christian Wolf, was 37 and her mother, Anna Maria Kaderli, was 35. She married Johann Christian Pfeifer on 29 January 1886, in Lotzwil, Bern, Switzerland. They were the parents of at least 1 son and 5 daughters. She died on 9 August 1911, in Basel, Basel-Stadt, Switzerland, at the age of 44.
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Family Time Line
Sources (3)
- Elise Wolf, "Switzerland, Catholic and Lutheran Church Records, 1418-1996"
- Elise Wolf in entry for Sophie Pfeifer, "Utah, Missionary Department Missionary Registers, 1860-1937"
- Elise Wolf, "Switzerland Baptisms, 1491-1940"
Spouse and Children
1859–1915 Male
1867–1911 Female
Children (6)
1886–1927 Male
1888–1957 Female
1889–1969 Female
1891–1894 Female
1893–1895 Female
+1 More Child
Parents and Siblings
1829–1870 Male
1832–1895 Female
Siblings (8)
1852– Female
1855–1880 Male
1858–1880 Male
1861–1862 Female
1864–1896 Male
+3 More Children
Name Meaning
German, English, Dutch, and Danish: from a short form of the various ancient Germanic compound names with the first element wolf ‘wolf’, or a byname or nickname with this meaning, or a topographic or habitational name referring to a house distinguished by the sign of a wolf. The wolf was native throughout the forests of Europe, including Britain, until comparatively recently. In ancient and medieval times it played an important role in ancient Germanic mythology, being regarded as one of the sacred beasts of Woden. The surname of German origin is also found in many other parts of Europe, e.g. in France (Alsace and Lorraine), Poland, Hungary, Czechia, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Croatia, often as a German translation of local equivalents. In North America, this surname has absorbed cognates from other languages, e.g. Hungarian Farkas , Czech and Slovak Vlk , Slovenian Volk , Ukrainian and Slovenian Vovk , Slovenian, Croatian, and Serbian Vuk , and also Czech, Slovenian, Croatian, Slovak, and Hungarian Volf . In part, this is a Gottscheerish (i.e. Gottschee German) surname, originating from the Kočevsko region in Lower Carniola, Slovenia (see Kocevar ). Compare De Wolf , Wolfe , Wolff , Woolf , Woulfe , and Wulf .
Jewish (Ashkenazic): from the Yiddish male personal name Volf meaning ‘wolf’, which is associated with the Hebrew personal name Binyamin (see Benjamin ). This association stems from Jacob's dying words ‘Benjamin shall ravin as a wolf: in the morning he shall devour the prey, and at night he shall divide the spoil’ (Genesis 49:27). Compare Volf .
Irish: variant of Woulfe .
Dictionary of American Family Names © Patrick Hanks 2003, 2006.
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