Family name origins & meanings
- German and Jewish (Ashkenazic) : from Middle High German bier ‘beer’, German Bier, Yiddish bir, a metonymic occupational name for a brewer of beer or a tavern owner, or in some cases perhaps a nickname for a beer drinker.
- South German : from the short form of a personal name formed with Old High German bero ‘bear’.
- Northern English and Scottish : variant of Byers.
