Junker

Junker (German: Junker, Dutch: Jonkheer, English: Yunker, Scandinavian: Junker) is a noble honorific, derived from Middle High German Juncherre, meaning "young nobleman" or otherwise "young lord" (derivation of jung and Herr). The term is traditionally used throughout the German-speaking, Dutch-speaking and Scandinavian-speaking parts of Europe.

In Brandenburg, the "Junker" was originally one of the members of the higher edelfrei (immediate) nobility without or before the accolade. It evolved to a general denotation of a young or lesser noble, sometimes politically insignificant, understood as "country squire".

Martin Luther disguised himself as "Junker Jörg" at the Wartburg; he would later mock King Henry VIII of England as "Juncker Heintz".

As part of the nobility, many Junker families only had prepositions such as von or zu before their family names without further ranks. The abbreviation of Junker was Jkr., most often placed before the given name and titles, for example: Jkr. Heinrich von Hohenberg. The female equivalent Junkfrau (Jkfr.) was used only sporadically. In some cases, the honorific Jkr. was also used for Freiherren (Barons) and Grafen (Counts).

Junker (or its Dutch cognate Jonkheer) was traditionally used as a noble honorific throughout the German-speaking and Dutch-speaking part of Europe. The title today survives in its traditional meaning in the Netherlands and Belgium in the Dutch form Jonkheer.

...
Wikipedia