Qvarforth is a
surname
In many societies, a surname, family name, or last name is the mostly hereditary portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family. It is typically combined with a given name to form the full name of a person, although several give ...
whose origins may have begun in
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
. Qvarforth, or one of its derivatives, is a surname used in
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a subregion#Europe, subregion of northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. It can sometimes also ...
, Germany,
Belgium
Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...
and other areas located in northern Europe.
Its origin can be traced back to
Anders Qvarfordt born in
Querfod,
Saxony
Saxony, officially the Free State of Saxony, is a landlocked state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, and Bavaria, as well as the countries of Poland and the Czech Republic. Its capital is Dresden, and ...
(Germany).
This may have later developed into the surname of two melters, Mikkel and Anders Querfood, who worked at Baerums factory in
Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...
in 1610.
The name Qvarfordt is first mentioned in 1627 from an area then known as
Risinge until 1942, since 1971
Finspång Municipality
Finspång Municipality () is a municipality in Östergötland County in Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Finspång, with some 21 654 (30 September 2024), inhabitants.
Nature
The municipality refers to itself as Sweden's most lake-den ...
,
Östergötland County
Östergötland County () is a county or '' län'' in southeastern Sweden. It has land borders with the counties of Kalmar to the southeast, Jönköping to the southwest, Örebro to the northwest, and Södermanland to the northeast. It also has a ...
,
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...
, with Anders Qvarfordt. He and his nine children are mentioned in a court order in Risinge 1695. Five of his six sons were
blacksmith
A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from #Other metals, other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such ...
s and two of his three daughters were married to blacksmiths.
The theory is that the family is German and not from
Wallonia
Wallonia ( ; ; or ), officially the Walloon Region ( ; ), is one of the three communities, regions and language areas of Belgium, regions of Belgium—along with Flemish Region, Flanders and Brussels. Covering the southern portion of the c ...
. There is a town in Saxony called
Querfurt
Querfurt () is a town in the Saalekreis district, or ''Kreis'', in southern Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is located in a fertile area on the Querne, west from Merseburg. In 2020, the town had a population of 10,454. The town Querfurt consists of Q ...
and it is believed that descendants of Querfurt as they moved throughout got the name "Franz of Querfurt", which over time turned into varieties of Querfurt in the different regions. There are 16 different varieties of Qvarfordt. The form Qvarfordt makes up about half of all instances of the broader name.
Qvarforth comes in many varieties:
References
{{reflist
*Baerums verks historie, Yngvar Hauge, Oslo 1953
*Kurt G Trägårdh (Barn III:5, s)
*Homepage for a family lin
Surnames