Baum is a German surname meaning "tree" in modern German (from Middle High German boum). As an occupational or topographic name, it originally referred to someone who lived near a prominent tree or worked with wood, such as a forester or carpenter. The surname is widely distributed in Germany and among German-speaking communities worldwide, including in the United States, where it was brought by immigrants from the 18th century onward. Notable Bearers The most famous bearer of the surname is the American author L. Frank Baum (1856–1919), best known for his children's classic The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900). Born Lyman Frank Baum in Chittenango, New York, he wrote numerous fantasy novels and sequels to the Oz series. Other notable individuals include the German politician Andreas Baum (born 1969), former member of the Bundestag; American electrical engineer Carl Edward Baum (1940–2010), noted for contributions to electromagnetics; and Gerhart Baum (1932–2025), a prominent German politician who served as Federal Minister of the Interior from 1978 to 1982. In the American armed forces, Friedrich Baum (1727–1777) was a colonel in the British army during the American Revolutionary War, commanding Hessian units. The surname also appears in entertainment, such as American comedian Bruce Baum (born 1952) and American jazz trumpeter Louis Armstrong's second wife, Alpha “Smiley” Baum. Variants and Related Names The German variant Baum occasionally evolved into other Germanic forms. Baumer (German: "tree dweller") exists as a distict surname. In Dutch, equivalent surnames include Beumer meaning "tree dweller?"-occupational, Beumers (metronymic plural), and form verboom () referenced sometimes ... This version makes flow easier reference Better rest of ...sure style consistent while lowering verbal complexity where. The surname also appears descriptively in other contexts. A verb construction only. Meaning: Tree (German) Origin: German (topographic/occupational) Type: Surname Regions: Germany, United States, German diaspora