LABRIOLAItalianOriginally indicated a person from the town of Abriola in southern Italy.
LACHAPELLEFrenchMeans "the chapel" in French. It was most likely used to denote a person who lived by a church or a chapel.
LÀCONIItalianSardinian surname from a name of the town Làconi near the city of Nuoro.
LACYEnglishDerived from
Lassy, the name of a town in Normandy. The name of the town was Gaulish in origin, perhaps deriving from a personal name which was Latinized as
Lascius.
LAGANÀItalianDerived from Greek dialects that are spoken in southern Italy, namely in Calabria. It is an occupational surname meaning "greengrocer" (
ortolano in Italian). Surnames derived from Greek dialects often end with an accent on final the
a,
o or
i.
LAGOMARSÌNOItalianLocative surname of Genoa and surroundings derived from the place name Lagomarsino (near Genoa).
LAGORIOItalianFrom a nickname meaning "green-lizard". This little reptile is respected because it supposedly protects against vipers. The surname is typical of the Genoa region.
LAGUARDIAItalianOriginally an occupational surname meaning "sentry" or "sentinel". It also had a locative meaning "watchtower". Fiorello Laguardia (1882-1947) was the first mayor of New York of Italian origin.
LAGUNOVRussianPatronymic name derived from Russian
lagun "water barrel". It was most likely used to denote the descendants of a person who made water barrels.
LAMAItalianDerived from the name place
Lama, quite common around Italy.
LAMARFrench, EnglishOriginally from a place name in Normandy, which was derived from Old French
la mare meaning "the pool".
LAMONItalianLocative surname from the name of a village near the city of Belluno. This surname is from the area of Venice.
LANE (1)EnglishOriginally designated one who lived by a lane, a narrow way between fences or hedges, later used of any narrow pathway, including one between houses in a town.
LANE (2)FrenchDerived from a French word meaning "wool", designating one who worked in the wool trade.
LANE (3)IrishFrom Irish
Ó Luain meaning "descendant of Luan", a given name meaning "warrior".
LANGBROEKDutchFrom the name of a small town in the province of Utrecht, Holland. In this context
lang means "wide" and
broek means "meadow". This surname was given to people living in Langbroek.
LANGDONEnglishDerived from an Old English place name meaning "long hill" (effectively meaning "ridge").
LANGLEY (1)EnglishFrom any of the various places with this name, all derived from Old English
lang "long" and
leah "woodland, clearing".
LANIKCzechDerived from Czech
lan, a measure of land equal to approximately 18 hectares. The name loosely translates as "farmer" and thus is considered a Moravian cognate of
Sedlák.
LANINGAFrisianFrisian for "of the land", or "from the land". It could be understood as "works the land".
LAPOINTEFrenchMeans "point of a lance" in French. The name was originally a nickname for a soldier.
LATERZAItalianTypical of southern Italy: it comes from the place name Laterza, a town near Taranto in the Puglia region.
LAURITOItalianFrom the name of the town Laurito, near Salerno in the area of Naples.
LAUWENSDutchMeans "son of
LAWRENCE". It is rather rare in mainly Flanders, Belgium, and often families were either spelled
Lauwens or
Lauwers (a bit more common) in the Duchy of Flanders and the Duchy of Brabant (14th century and further). These former regions nowadays are part of Belgium, the Netherlands, and France. In some occasions, the name can be found in the former Burgundy, and thus includes the contemporary Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, and part of Germany.
LAVIGNEFrenchMeans "the vineyard" in French. The name referred to a person who lived close to a vineyard, or was from the town of Lavigny.
LAVOIEFrenchDerived from French
voie "road". The name started as a nickname for someone who lived close to a road.
LAWRENCEEnglishDerived from the given name
LAURENCE (1). Famous bearers include revolutionary T. E. Lawrence (1888-1935) and author D. H. Lawrence (1885-1930).
LAYTONEnglishDerived from a place name meaning "settlement with a leek garden" in Old English.
LEACHEnglishOriginally indicated a person who was a physician. It comes from the medieval practice of using leeches to bleed people of ills.
LEAVITTEnglishFrom Livet, a region in Normandy, France. Vikings conquered the area and a particular family had taken up the name by the time of the Battle of Hastings 1066, when William the Conqueror invaded England.
LEBEAUFrenchMeans "the handsome one" from French
le "the" and
beau "beautiful, handsome".
LEBLANCFrenchMeans "the white", from French
blanc "white". The name referred to a person who was pale or whose hair was blond.
LECCEItalianOriginally indicated a person from Lecce, Italy.
LÉCUYERFrenchLiterally means "the shield-bearer" in French. The name was used to denote an esquire (a person of the nobility one rank below a knight).
LEDFORDEnglishMeans "path leading across a ford" from Old English
lædan, Middle English
leden "to lead" and
ford, a shallow area in a stream that may be crossed by wading.
LEE (1)EnglishOriginally given to a person who lived on or near a
leah, Old English meaning "woodland, clearing".
LEEUWENHOEKDutchMeans "lion's corner" in Dutch. The first bearer of this name lived on the corner (Dutch
hoek) of the Lion's Gate (Dutch
Leeuwenpoort) in the city of Delft.
LEFEBVREFrenchVariant of
LEFÈVRE, the spelling most likely influenced by the Latin word
faber "craftsman".
LEFURGEYFrenchFrom French
forger meaning "to forge". This was an occupational last name taken by blacksmiths, equivalent to the English
Smith.
LEGGIÈRIItalianSicilian surname indicating a "light" person, not serious, superficial.
LEHMANNGermanFrom Middle High German
lehenman "vassal, liege man".
LEITNERGermanReferred to one who dwells on the hillside; one who came from the
Leite "slope". This is the name of several places in Germany.
LEITZKEGermanDerived from either
Leitzkau, a town close to Magdeburg, Germany, or from
LEITZ.
LEMAIREFrenchMeans "the mayor" in French. It was a title given to a town official, or else a nickname for someone who was pompous and officious.
LÉMIEUXFrenchDerived from the place name
Leymieux, a town in the Rhône-Alpes region of France.
LENNONIrishAnglicized form of the Irish name
Ó Leannáin, which means "descendant of Leannán". The given name
Leannán means "lover". The name was borne by the musician John Lennon (1940-1980).
LENNOXScottishFrom the name of a district in Scotland, called
Leamhnachd in Gaelic, possibly meaning "place of elms".
LENZGermanMeans "springtime" in German, from a nickname.
LEROYFrenchMeans "the king" in French. It referred to one connected in some way with a king's household or one who played the part of a king in a pageant or a play.
LESLIEScottishFrom a Scottish place name, probably derived from Gaelic
leas celyn meaning "garden of holly".
LÉVESQUEFrenchDerived from French
évêque meaning "bishop", ultimately derived from Greek
episkopos "overseer".
LEWIS (1)EnglishDerived from the given name
LEWIS. The author C. S. Lewis (1898-1963) was a bearer of this surname.
LI (1)ChineseFrom Chinese
李 (lǐ) meaning "plum, plum tree". This was the surname of Chinese emperors of the Tang dynasty.
LIAOChineseFrom Chinese
廖 (liào) which refers to the ancient state of Liao, which was located in present-day Henan province.
LINCOLNEnglishOriginally indicated that the bearer was from the English city of Lincoln, called
Lindum Colonia by the Romans, derived from Brythonic
lindo "lake, pool" and Latin
colonia "colony". A famous bearer was Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865), president of the United States during the American Civil War.
LINDGRENSwedishMeans "branch of a linden tree" from Swedish
lind "linden tree" and
gren "branch". A famous bearer of this name was Swedish author Astrid Lindgren (1907-2002).
LINDQUISTSwedishDerived from the Swedish words
lind "linden tree" and
qvist "twig, branch".
LINDSTRÖMSwedishMeans "linden stream", and is derived from the swedish words
lind meaning "linden (lime) tree", and
ström which means "stream".
LINNAFinnishMeans "castle". A famous namesake in Finland is Väinö Linna (1920-1992), author of 'The Unknown Soldier'.
LINTONEnglishOriginally from place names meaning either "flax town" or "linden tree town" in Old English.
LINVILLEFrenchRefers to one who came from Linivilla, meaning "Lennius's estate", now Ninville, in France.
LINWOODEnglishOriginally derived from a place name meaning "stream forest" in Old English.
LISPolishMeans "fox" in Polish. It is a nickname for a sly person.
LISTERScottishAnglicized form of the Gaelic
Mac an Fleisdeir meaning "son of the arrow maker".
LITHGOWScottishHabitation name meaning "pool, damp, hollow". A famous bearer of this name is actor John Lithgow (1945-).
LIUChineseFrom Chinese
刘 (liú) meaning "kill, destroy". This was the surname of Chinese emperors of the Han dynasty.
LJUNGSwedishFrom the Swedish name of the heather plant. There are many combinations of this name in Sweden, for example
Ljungberg "heather mountain",
Ljungblad "heather leaf", and so on.
LLOYDWelshOriginally a nickname from the Welsh word
llwyd meaning "grey".
LOCATELLIItalianFrom Locatello, a place in Lombardy near the city of Bergamo in Northern Italy.
LOMBARDIItalianOriginally indicated someone who came from the Lombardy region in Italy. The region got its name from the Lombards, a Germanic tribe who invaded in the 6th century.
LONDONEnglishFrom the name of the capital city of the United Kingdom, the meaning of which is uncertain.
LONGEnglishOriginally a nickname for a person who had long limbs or who was tall.
LONGSTAFFEnglishName for a tipstaff or beadle who carried a long staff as a badge of office, or else referred to someone who was very tall.
LOSNEDAHLNorwegianFrom a place name:
dahl means "valley" in Norwegian, and
Losne is a place in Norway.
LOVEEnglishFrom the Old English given name
Lufu meaning "love".
LOWELLEnglishDerived from a Norman French nickname, from
lou "wolf" and a diminutive suffix.
LOYOLASpanish, BasqueFrom Basque
loya meaning "mud". This was the surname of Saint Ignatius of Loyola (1491-1556), the founder of Jesuits.
LUChineseFrom Chinese
吕 (lǚ) meaning "musical note" and also referring to the former state of Lu, which was situated in what is now Henan province.
LUMEnglishFrom places in Lancashire and West Yorkshire called Lumb, both apparently originally named for Old English
lum(m) "pool". The word is not independently attested, but appears also in Lomax and Lumley, and may be reflected in the dialect term
lum denoting a well for collecting water in a mine. In some instances the name may be topographical for someone who lived by a pool, Middle English
lum(m).
LUNDDanish, Swedish, Norwegian, EnglishIndicated a person who lived near a grove of trees, from Old Norse
lundr meaning "grove". There are towns in Sweden and Britain called Lund.
LYNCHIrishFrom Irish
Ó Loingsigh meaning "descendant of Loingseach", a given name meaning "mariner".
LYNDONEnglishOriginally from a place name meaning "linden tree hill" in Old English.
LYNEScottishHabitational name for someone who lived in places of this name in Ayrshire, Peeblesshire, and Wigtownshire.
LYON (1)English, FrenchHabitational name from either the Lyon in southern central France, or Lyons-la-Forêt in Eure, Normandy.