Pritzker

Part of speech: noun, adjective

Definitions

1. An annual award honoring living architects for outstanding work, named after a Chicago family of philanthropists ; a surname borne by a wealthy Chicago family of business and political figures
2. The top international prize for architecture, bestowed each year on a living designer ; the family name of influential Chicago entrepreneurs and public officials
3. A high-profile architecture honor given yearly to living builders and designers ; a family surname linked to Chicago hospitality business and state politics

Etymology: "Pritzker" is a surname, so its story is that of the family who carried it. Jay Pritzker and his relatives built the Hyatt hotel chain from a Chicago base, and the family's name is now attached to the Pritzker Architecture Prize, often called the field's highest honour. Through that prize and the hotels, the surname has become far better known than most family names of its origin. The surname itself appears to belong to the German-speaking Jewish world of Central and Eastern Europe, and it is likely a place-based name, though the specific town it came from is uncertain. Surnames of this kind were usually adopted from a home village or district, which is why so many family names record where an ancestor lived rather than what they did.