AbazaArabic From the name of the Abazin (or Abaza) people native to the Northwest Caucasus. This name was adopted by Abazins, Circassians, and Abkhaz who were expelled from the Caucasus in the 19th century.
Abdul GayyoomDhivehi From the given name Abd al-Qayyum. Notable bearers include Maldivian presidents Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayyoom (1959-) and Maumoon Abdul Gayyoom (1937-).
AbdyldaevKyrgyz Means "son of Abdylday" from a given name either derived from Arabic Abdullah or from Arabic عبد ال (ʿabd al) meaning "servant of the" combined with the Turkish word day meaning "support, foundation".
AbecassisJudeo-Spanish From Hebrew אָב (áv) meaning "father" and Arabic قَصَّاص (qaṣṣāṣ) meaning "storyteller, narrator" (used as a title for community leaders and rabbis among North African Jews).
AbergelJudeo-Spanish Means "one-legged" or "one-footed" in Moroccan Arabic, from Arabic رِجْل (rijl) meaning "leg, foot".
AbgarowiczPolish (Rare) Meaning "son of Abgar". The name originates from a wealthy Armenian merchant family (called Sołtan at the time) who settled in Kyiv in the 16th century... [more]
AbitbolJudeo-Spanish Means "father of drums" (figuratively referring to a drum maker) from Arabic أَبُو (abū) meaning "father" and طَبْل (ṭabl) meaning "drum".
AbkhazavaGeorgian, Mingrelian Most likely from Georgian აფხაზი (apkhazi) meaning "Abkhaz". Alternately, it may be from the Adjaran (Muslim) given name Abkhas, derived from Arabic أب ('ab) meaning "father" and خاص (khas) meaning "special, particular".
AbulafiaJudeo-Spanish From Arabic أبو العافية (abū l-ʿāfiya) meaning "father of health" from أبو (abū) meaning "father" and عافية (ʿāfiya) meaning "health, well-being".
AcarTurkish Means "sturdy, hardy" or "bold, fearless" in Turkish.
AchmatowiczPolish (Rare) Means "son of Achmat", from a Polish form of the given name Ahmad. This name is primarily used among Lipka Tatar Muslims in Poland.
AdleibaAbkhaz Most likely from the given name Adlei, itself derived from Arabic عَادِل (ʿādil) meaning "fair, just", combined with Abkhaz аҧа (āpā) meaning "son"... [more]
AdvaniIndian, Sindhi Means "descendant of Adu" in Sindhi, Adu probably being the name of a past ancestor.
ƏfəndiyevAzerbaijani Means "son of the effendi" from the Ottoman title افندي (efendi) meaning "lord, master".
AfghanzadaPersian, Afghan Means "son of the Afghan", from Pashto and Persian افغان (afǧân) referring to an inhabitant of Afghanistan or a member of the Pashtun ethnic group combined with the Persian suffix زاده (-zâde) meaning "offspring".
AghaeiPersian From the Persian title آقا (âqâ) meaning "sir, lord, mister".
AgrbaAbkhaz Most likely derived from Abkhaz агыруа (ā́gər-uā) meaning "Mingrelian, farm labourer, serf", historically used to refer to the Mingrelians, an ethic sub-group of the Georgians. Alternatively, it could be from Abkhaz агара (āgārā) meaning "to take" or "to bring"... [more]
AlamArabic, Bengali, Urdu, Persian Means "world, universe" (عالم) or "flag, sign, mark" (علم) in Arabic. This spelling represents two separate words in Arabic.
AlamiArabic (Maghrebi) Derived from Arabic عَلِيم (ʿalīm) meaning "knowing, learned, education" (see Alim), mainly used in a religious context.
AlaouiArabic (Maghrebi) From the given name Ali 1. This is the name of the current ruling royal family of Morocco, which was founded in 1631.
AlgerieArabic (Maghrebi) Derived from the French Algérie meaning "Algeria" (referring directly to the country itself). It also refers to someone from Annaba, Algeria.
Al-ghamdiArabic Means "the Ghamdi", referring to the Ghamd tribe of Saudi Arabia.
AlhadeffJudeo-Spanish Possibly an occupational name for a weaver from Arabic الهداف (al-̣haddāf) meaning "the weaver's shuttle". Alternately, it may be from Arabic الهدى (al-hadā) meaning "the guided one".
AlhambraSpanish Refers to the Alhambra, a palace complex located in Granada, Spain. The name itself is derived from Arabic الْحَمْرَاء (Al-Ḥamrā) meaning "the red one" or, ultimately, from Arabic أَحْمَر (ʾaḥmar) "red".
Al HarbiArabic Originally indicated a person from the Harb tribe derived from Arabic حَرْبيّ (ḥarbiyy) meaning "military, war, army".
AlmanzaSpanish Originally indicated a person from Almanza, a city in northern Spain. The city's name itself is derived from Arabic المنزل (al-manzil) meaning "the house".
Al-ZahraniArabic Means "the Zahrani" in Arabic, referring to the Zahran (زهران) tribe in Saudi Arabia. The name itself is derived from Arabic زهراني (zahran) meaning "flowering, blossoming", ultimately from زَهْرَة (zahra) meaning "flower, blossom" (see Zahrah).
AndronikashviliGeorgian Means "son of Andronikos". This was the name of a Georgian family of nobility that claimed descent from Andronikos I, the emperor of the Byzantine Empire from 1183-1185.
ArdzinbaAbkhaz Means "son of silver" from Abkhaz араʒны (aradzny) meaning "silver" and аҧа (apa) meaning "son".
ArfaouiArabic (Maghrebi) Possibly derived from Arabic عَرَفَ (ʿarafa) meaning "to know" or أَرْفَع (ʾarfaʿ) meaning "high, lofty, elevated" (chiefly Tunisian).
ArmasSpanish Occupational name for an arms maker or soldier, from Spanish armas meaning "arms, weapons".
AroraIndian, Hindi, Punjabi From the name of the ancient city of Aror in what is now the Sindh province, Pakistan. The city's name may have been derived from Hindi और (aur) meaning "more, also".
ArshbaAbkhaz Most likely from a contracted form of Arabic أَرْشَد (ʾaršad) meaning "most sensible, most reasonable" or Persian ارشد (arshad) "senior, superior, eldest" combined with Abkhaz аԥа (āpā) "son".
AsaharaJapanese From Japanese 朝 (asa) meaning "morning", 浅 (asai) meaning "shallow", or 麻 (asa) meaning "hemp" combined with 原 (hara) meaning "field, plain".
AsamuraJapanese From Japanese 浅 (asa) meaning "shallow" and 村 (mura) meaning "town, village".
AsherEnglish Name for someone who dwelled by an ash tree, from Middle English asche or asshe meaning "ash tree".
AshiqPunjabi, Urdu Derived from Arabic عَاشِق (ʿāšiq) meaning "enamored, infatuated" or "admirer, lover", ultimately from عِشْق (ʿišq) "being in love".
AshkatsaoAbazin Possibly from an Abkhaz word meaning "lazy", used as a nickname for a lazy person.
AshkenaziJewish From a nickname given by Jews in Slavic countries to Jews from Germany. It was also used to denote a Yiddish-speaking Jew who had settled in an area where non-Ashkenazic Jews were the majority. The name ultimately comes from Hebrew אַשְׁכְּנַז (ashk'náz), a location mentioned in the Hebrew Bible, which is likely from Assyrian Aškūza.
AshubaAbkhaz Possibly from Abkhaz ашә (āš°) meaning "cheese" or "beech" or ашәа (āš°ā) meaning "song".
AushevIngush (Russified) Russified form of an Ingush surname derived from Nakh ауш (aush) or аус (aus) literally meaning "rock, slope", figuratively meaning "strong, solid, confident".
AvanceñaFilipino Hispanicised form of Arabic اِبْن سِينَا (ibn sīnā) meaning "son of Sina". This was the Arabic name for Avicenna (980-1037), a Persian polymath.
AvidzbaAbkhaz Derived from Georgian ავი (avi) meaning "currish, severe, sullen" combined with ძე (dze) "son" and Abkhaz аԥа (āpā) "son". The name was most likely borne by Georgians under the spelling Avidze, which was modified with the Abkhaz suffix -ba after migration to Abkhazia.