A German surname meaning 'wolf.' Also refers to various notable people including anatomist Caspar Friedrich Wolff.
From Old High German wolf, cognate with English 'wolf.' As a surname, it likely originated as a nickname for someone fierce or wolf-like, or possibly from a place name. The double 'f' represents a German spelling convention.
Wolff's Law in medicine (named after Julius Wolff) states that bones adapt to mechanical stress - a perfect example of how a 'wolf-named' scientist discovered something about strength and adaptation! The surname reflects medieval Germanic traditions of animal-based nicknames that became hereditary.
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