Marx (surname)
Appearance
The surname Marx is a Germanic surname, believed to originate with Mark the Evangelist and the Roman praenomen Marcus, the latter deriving from the god Mars. The similarly-spelled Marks may share etymology with march (territory), especially near Wales, but most British Marxes have Jewish roots, typically in the Rhineland or former Pale of Settlement.[1] Famously, Karl Marx's father, born Herschel HaLevi Mordecai in Saarlouis, assimilated in 1817 or 1818 to Heinrich Marx because Prussia banned Jews from public service.[2] Amateur geneologist Colin Shelley suggests that Marx' prevalence there may have arisen as a macaronic acronym for māšīaḥ rex.[1]
Notable people with the surname
[edit]Politics
[edit]- Jenny Marx (1814–1881), a German socialist and the wife of Karl Marx
- Karl Marx (1818–1883), 19th-century philosopher
- Jenny Marx (1844–1883), activist and the eldest daughter of Karl Marx
- Eleanor Marx (1855–1898), politically active daughter of Karl Marx
- Laura Marx (1845–1911), daughter of Karl Marx and wife of Paul Lafargue
- Heinrich Marx (1777–1838), German lawyer and father of Karl Marx
- Henriette Marx (née Pressburg) (1788–1863), mother of Karl Marx
- Wilhelm Marx (1863–1946), German politician and Chancellor
- Marx Dormoy (1888–1941), French socialist
- Charles Marx (1903–1946), Luxembourgian doctor, political militant and minister
Television and film
[edit]- Marx Brothers, a team of American sibling comedians that appeared in vaudeville, stage plays, film and television
- The brothers:
- Chico Marx (1887–1961), also a musician
- Harpo Marx (1888–1964), also a musician
- Groucho Marx (1890–1977)
- Gummo Marx (1892–1977)
- Zeppo Marx (1901–1979)
- Other family members:
- Arthur Marx (1921–2011), son of Groucho Marx, writer
- Barbara Marx (1926–2017), wife of Zeppo Marx who later became the final wife of Frank Sinatra
- Gregg Marx (born 1955), grandson of Milton "Gummo" Marx, great-nephew of Groucho, Harpo, Chico and Zeppo Marx, actor known mainly for his work on daytime soap operas
- Melinda Marx (born 1946), daughter of Groucho Marx, writer
- Minnie Marx (1864/5–1929), mother and manager for the Marx Brothers, sister of Al Shean
- Miriam Marx (1927–2017), daughter of Groucho Marx, writer
- Sam Marx (1859–1933), father of the Marx Brothers
- The brothers:
- Brett Marx (born 1964), American actor
- Carey Marx (born 1966), British comedian
- Christy Marx, TV series writer
- Frederick Marx, film producer, editor, writer and director
- Samuel Marx (born 1955), MGM story editor, film producer, and author
- Sue Marx (1930-2023), American documentary film director and producer
Music
[edit]- Adolf Bernhard Marx (1799–1866), musicologue
- Bill Marx (pianist) (born 1937), American pianist, arranger, and composer
- Gary Marx (born 1959), rock musician
- Jeff Marx (born 1970), American composer of musicals
- Joseph Marx (1882–1964), Austrian composer
- Karl Marx (composer) (1897–1985), German composer
- Kerry Marx, American guitarist and Music Director of the Grand Ole Opry
- Patricia Marx (singer) (born 1974), Brazilian singer-songwriter
- Richard Marx (born 1963), American pop singer
Sports
[edit]- Daniel Marx (born 1995), American football fullback
- Eric Marx (1895–1974), South African cricketer
- Franz Marx (born 1963), Austrian wrestler
- Greg Marx (1950–2018), American football defensive end
- Jack Marx (bridge) (1907–1991), British bridge player
- Jan-Hendrik Marx (born 1995), German footballer
- Joachim Marx (born 1944), Polish footballer
- Josef Marx (1934–2008), German footballer
- Malcolm Marx (born 1994), South African rugby union player
- Michael Marx (born 1958), American fencer
- Nicolas Marx (born 1974), French footballer
- Onya Marx (born 1870), German field events sprinter
- Robert Marx (fencer) (born 1956), American fencer
- Thorben Marx (born 1981), German footballer
- Travis Marx (born 1977), American mixed martial artist
In other fields
[edit]- Adolph Marx (bishop) (1915–1965), American Roman Catholic bishop
- Anthony Marx (born 1959), President and CEO of New York Public Library
- Bill Marx (born 1937), American theater and arts critic
- Carl Marx (artist) (1911–1991) German artist and Bauhaus student
- Clare Marx (1954–2022), British surgeon
- Daniel Marx (born 1953), Argentine economist
- Ellen Marx (born 1939), German artist and author
- Enid Marx (1902–1998), English painter and designer
- Erwin Otto Marx (1893–1980), German engineer and inventor
- Friedrich Marx (1859–1941), German classical philologist
- Friedrich Marx (author) (1830–1905), Austrian poet and officer
- George Marx (1838–1895), German-born American arachnologist, scientific illustrator, and physician
- Gertie F. Marx (1912-2004), German-born American physician and pioneer of obstetric anaesthesia
- Graciela Gutiérrez Marx (1945–2022), Argentine artist
- György Marx (1927–2002), Hungarian physicist, astrophysicist, science historian, and professor
- Hellmuth Marx (1915–2002), Austrian sculptor
- Herbert Marx (politician) (1932–2020), Canadian lawyer, university law professor, politician, and judge
- Jack Marx (20th and 21st centuries), Australian journalist and author
- Karl Marx (medical missionary), German doctor
- Karl Friedrich Heinrich Marx, German physician and lecturer
- Leo Marx (1919–2022), professor at MIT
- Louis Marx (1896–1982), American toy maker and businessman
- Mona Magdeleine Marx; known more commonly by married name Mona Beaumont, French-born American painter, printmaker
- Paul Marx (monk) (1920–2010), American Roman Catholic priest, sociologist, anti-abortion activist, and writer
- Paul John Marx (1935–2018), French Roman Catholic bishop
- Philipp Marx (born 1982), retired German tennis player
- Reinhard Marx (born 1953), Cardinal, Archbishop of Munich and Freising
- Robert F. Marx (1936–2019), American underwater archaeologist
- Roberto Burle Marx (1909–1994), Brazilian landscape designer
- Thierry Marx (born 1962), French chef
Other media
[edit]- Bernard Marx, one of the main characters in the novel Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
- Carlo Marx, character in the novel On the Road by Jack Kerouac
- Skidd McMarxx, minor character in the game Ratchet and Clank, whose name is primarily a play on words (he plays a sport similar to Slalom snowboarding)
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b Shelley, Colin. "Marks surname meaning, history & origin". Select Surnames. Retrieved 8 Dec 2024. Originally published prior to 5 Feb 2016 at (now-defunct) selectsurnames4.com.
- ^ Megill, Allan. Karl Marx: the burden of reason (why Marx rejected politics and the market) 2002, page 72 ISBN 978-0742511668