The following map, showing the current distribution of the BASTIN surname in Germany, is provided courtesy of Thomas Scharnowski of Germany. Also included is a map of Germany from the CIA Factbook from the Government Printing Office to allow seeing where these BASTINs live.
As can be seen, BASTINs in Germany are rather few in number. Most of them live in, or around, the North-Western part of Germany, close to the Netherlands, Belgium, and France, all of which have sizable numbers of BASTINs. This part of Germany is the Ruhr area and is densely populated due to the presence of coal mines and steel factories. As Thomas Scharnowski points out, these BASTINs may have popped over from France and the Netherlands. The remaining BASTINs are distributed even more sparsely, with only a few appearances evident in the larger metropolitan areas such as Berlin. There is another interesting concentration between Berlin and the Czech republic: the villages names are Tettau, Kroppen, Ruhland, Schwarzbach and Hohenbocka. Thomas wonders, as do I, if they went there after the German reunification or if they have been there all along. If they have been there all along, how did they come to be there???
According to some sources, BASTIN is a very old surname with roots in England dating back to the time of King Inne. However, others claim that it originates near Charleroi, Belgium. It is not proven yet if the name originated in England, spreading across the English Channel after the 13th Century, and subsequently spreading farther eastward into Germany at some later date, but it appears likely.
Does anyone have any information on the origin of these German BASTINs, whether in more recent times, or during the middle ages?
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