Strauss, Strauß, or Straus is a common Germanic surname.

Outside Germany and Austria Strauß is usually spelled Strauss (the letter "ß" is not used in the German-speaking part of Switzerland).

The overlord of Gröna, for example, went by the name of Struz and used the image of an ostrich as his symbol.

[3] All the houses had names and these included Haus Strauß, complete with an image of an ostrich on the façade.

[4] When, for tax purposes, Napoleon made surnames obligatory in 1808, some more Jewish families decided to adopt the Straus(s) name.