MascheranoItalian Occupational name for maker of masks, derived from Italian mascherare meaning "to mask". The Argentine former soccer player Javier Mascherano (1984-) is a famous bearer of this name.
MaslovRussian, Jewish Derived from Russian масло (maslo) meaning "butter", originally used as an occupational name for someone who worked as a dairyman or sold dairy products.
MassaraItalian, Greek Either a feminine form of Massaro or from the equivalent occupational or status name in medieval Greek, (massaras meaning ‘peasant’ or ‘share cropper’) which is from the word massaria meaning ‘small farm’.
MasseterEnglish Perhaps means "brewery worker" (from Middle English mash "fermentable mixture of hot water and grain" + rudder "rudder-shaped stirrer").
MastermanEnglish occupational name meaning "servant of the master" from Middle English maister "master" (Latin magister "teacher, master, leader") and mann "man".
MastinFrench, Flemish, Walloon occupational name for a household servant or guard from Old French mastin "watchdog, manservant" (from Latin mansuetudinus "domestic"). The Old French word had the further sense of a bad-tempered dog and was used as an adjective in the sense of "bad cruel".
MastrangeloItalian From Italian mastro "master, expert craftsman" combined with the given name Angelo.
MastrantonioItalian From the Italian title mastro meaning "master craftsman", combined with the given name Antonio. A famous bearer is American actress and singer Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio (1958-).
MastromonicoItalian The meaning is Mastro-"master" of the- monico"-monastery."
MatassaItalian Occupational name for a producer of silk, from Sicilian matassa "hank", "skein", also the name of a type of silk (cf. Metaxas).
MateerNorthern Irish (Anglicized) A variant of Mcateer used chiefly by Northern Irish Protestants. The change in spelling of the element Mac or Mc, meaning "son" in Irish, removed its bearers' connections to Irish-speaking Catholics during a time when it would have been socially beneficial to be seen as Protestant Unionists.
MauserGerman Occupational name for a mouse catcher.
MayoralSpanish Occupational name for the foreman of a gang of agricultural workers or the leader of a group of herdsmen mayoral (from Late Latin maioralis originally an adjective derivative of maior 'greater').
MaysonetProvençal Deriving from the Old French word machun, which meant 'stone cutter.' Inferring the original bearer of the name worked in stone or mason.
MazáčCzech, Slovak From workers on a buildings, who were gluing bricks to each other
McelweeIrish, Scottish Of Gaelic origin, found in Ireland and Scotland. Derives from Mac Giolla Ruaidh, meaning "son of the servant of the red-haired youth", possibly a reference to a Dane or Norseman.
MeadesEnglish The name Meades is a plural variation of the name Meade, Mead, Mede, etc., the spelling being rather arbitrary and phonetic in the middle ages (even among the very few scribes, clerics and high-born persons who were literate) and without due consideration of standarized form, hence the various spellings of the name today... [more]
MeeruEstonian Meeru is an Estonian surname derived from "meer" meaning "mayor".
MeesterDutch, Flemish, German Occupational name for a teacher, lecturer or a master craftsman, or a nickname for someone who had a bossy demeanor, derived from Dutch meester meaning "master". A famous bearer of this surname is the American actress, singer and model Leighton Meester (1986-).
MeleroSpanish Occupational name for a collector or seller of honey, melero (Late Latin mellarius, an agent derivative of mel, genitive mellis, ‘honey’).
MelilloSpanish, Italian describing someone who worked on an apple orchard,harvesting and selling apples from the italian mela
MenonMalayalam Means "accountant" in Malayalam, itself derived from the title മേലവൻ (melavan) meaning "overseer, boss, exalted one", from മേല (mel) meaning "top, above, high" and the third person pronoun അവൻ (avan) meaning "he".
MesmerGerman Occupational name for a maker of knives from Middle High German messer meaning "knife". A famous bearer was Franz Mesmer (1734-1815), a German doctor known for his theory of "animal magnetism", which was eventually incorporated into the field of hypnosis.
MesserScottish Occupational name for someone who kept watch over harvested crops, Middle English, Older Scots mess(i)er, from Old French messier (see Messier).
MesserschmidtGerman Name given to a knife smith. From German "messer" meaning knife, and "schmidt" meaning smith.
MessierFrench Occupational name for someone who kept watch over harvested crops, Old French messier 'harvest master' (Late Latin messicarius, agent derivative of messis 'harvest').
MessingGerman, Jewish Derived from Middle High German messinc meaning "brass", referring to a person who makes or repairs brass objects. A famous bearer is American actress Debra Messing (1968-).
MetcalfeEnglish An occupational name from Northern England, from Old English mete, 'food' and calf, 'calf', i.e calfs being fattened for consumption in late summer. Thus, making this surname an occupational name for either a slaughterer or herdsman... [more]
MetsavahtEstonian Metsavaht is an Estonian surname meaning "forest guard" and "forest warden".
MetsurEstonian Metsur is an Estonian surname meaning "forester".
MézecBreton Mézec derives from mezeg which means physician in Breton
MickGerman, Dutch, Irish Short form of the given name Mikolaj or an occupational name from Middle Low German and Middle Dutch micke "(wheat or rye) bread"... [more]
MilkEnglish Probably from Middle English milk ‘milk’, applied as a metonymic occupational name for a producer or seller of milk.In some instances, probably a translation of German Milch, a variant of Slavic Milich or of Dutch Mielke (a pet form of Miele), or a shortening of Slavic Milkovich.
MillayEnglish This surname is thought to be a respelling of Millais, which may come from the French surname Millet, a metonymic occupational name for a grower or seller of millet or panic grass (derived from a diminutive form of Old French mil which is then derived from Latin milium meaning "millet").... [more]
MilletFrench, Catalan metonymic occupational name for a grower or seller of millet or panic grass or a topographic name for someone who lived by a field of millet from French and Catalan millet (from Latin milietum a derivative of milium in Old French mil "millet").
MillsapEnglish (American), English Judging by the name and how it sounds, I guess it's occupational. This is the name of a town in Texas, named after Fuller Millsap.
MillwoodEnglish, Anglo-Saxon The name was originally given to a miller or the keeper of a mill. The surname Millwood is derived from the Old English word mylenweard.
MilmanEnglish From the old English word mylen meaning "mill" and mann meaning "man", which in this sense means a worker
MinerEnglish English occupational name for someone who built mines, either for the excavation of coal and other minerals, or as a technique in the medieval art of siege warfare. The word represents an agent derivative of Middle English, Old French mine ‘mine’ (a word of Celtic origin, cognate with Gaelic mein ‘ore’, ‘mine’).
MinionFrench French form of Miner, an occupational name for a someone working in a mine.
MiodownikPolish, Jewish The literal translation is "honey cake", from the Polish word/root surname miod, meaning "honey." An occupational surname to those in the honey business, mainly beekeepers and bakers.... [more]
MiragliaItalian From the Old Sicilian military title miraglia di mari meaning "admiral".
MisoJapanese (Rare) Miso is made up of two symbols literally referring to "miso soup". Approximately less than 140 people in Japan possess this last name.
MitnickUkrainian, Jewish Occupational name from Ukrainian mytnyk, Polish mytnik, which means ‘toll collector’.
MolinaroItalian Occupational name for a miller, derived from Italian mulino meaning "mill".
MolinaroloItalian Probably from a person's occupation, with molino/mulino meaning "mill" in Italian. The second part may come from rullo, meaning "a roller" or "I roll."
MonetaItalian from moneta "money" probably applied as either a nickname for a rich man or as a metonymic occupational name for a moneyer or money lender.
MoneymakerEnglish (American) Translated form of German Geldmacher or Geldschläger, occupational names for a coiner.
MongerEnglish Name for a retail trader or a stallholder in a market, Middle English monger, manger.
MonierFrench, English, French (Huguenot) French variant of Monnier and occupational name for a moneyer from Middle English monier "moneyer" (Old French monier) or for a miller from Old French monier "miller".
MonomachosGreek Meaning gladiator or 'the one that fights alone.' A surname of a Byzantine family from Nicomedia (Izmit).
MontalbanSpanish Spanish (Montalbán): habitational name from Montalbán de Córdoba from Latin montem albanum 'white mountain'.
MontisciItalian Originated in Sardinia, Italy in the 17th century given to fishermen
MonzoItalian Possibly a variant of Monsu, which may be an occupational name for a cook, Calabrian munsu, or a nickname or title from Milanese monsu ‘sir’, ‘lord’, ‘gentleman’.
MorkovinRussian From Russian морковь (morkov) meaning "carrot".
MostGerman Metonymic occupational name for a producer or seller of must, i.e. unfermented grape juice, from Middle High German most, ultimately derived from Latin mustum vinum meaning "young (i.e. fresh) wine"... [more]
MridhaBengali From a title for a high-ranking commander or security guard who was employed by a zamindar (a landowner) during the Mughal era, presumably derived from Sanskrit मृध (mrdha) meaning "battle, war".
MudaliarTamil "Mudaliar" is a combination of a Tamil word "Mudali" which means "First" and "yar" which is an honorific suffix. So the surname means "First People" or "Elite People" in Tamil.
MuehlhauserOld High German The German surname Müehlhauser is derived from the Middle High German words "mülle" and "hûs" which respectively mean mill and house. It is roughly translated to mean "mill-house" and is believed to have evolved from an individual who was either the owner of a mill or lived in a house attached to a mill in earlier times.
MüllerleileGerman Derived from Middle High German mülnære, müller meaning "miller" (see Müller), and the German given names Lawlin, Lauwelin and Lawelin, medieval diminutives of Nikolaus.
MunchDanish, French, Norwegian (Rare) Either a variant of Münch or Munk, both meaning "monk". A notable bearer was Norwegian painter Edvard Munch (1863-1944), whose best known work is 'The Scream'.
MunichGerman From the lower German word for monk, most likely first used as a surname for a former member of a monastery.
MunshiUrdu, Bengali Derived from Persian منشی (monshi) meaning "secretary, teacher, writer", ultimately of Arabic origin.
MutterGerman (also Mütter): occupational name for an official employed to measure grain, from Middle High German mutte, mütte 'bushel', 'grain measure' (Latin modius) + the agent suffix -er.
MüüriseppEstonian Müürisepp is an Estonian surname meaning "brick mason" (literally: "wall smith").
MuzykaBelarusian, Russian, Ukrainian Derived either from Belarusian музыка (muzyka) or Ukrainian музика (muzyka), both possibly derived from German Musiker meaning "musician".
MyōchinJapanese (Rare) From Japanese 明珍 (myōchin), the 2 characters used in 明らかに珍しい (akiraka ni mezurashii) meaning "evidently rare". This is from the event in the Heian Period, of an armorer who created an armor that was then praised by Emperor Konoe... [more]
NacrourArabic The name of a family of Lebanese goldsmiths descended from the Ottoman Prince Hanna, the name itself refers to the actual sound the hammer makes as it hits the gold. This is the French spelling but the original Arabic spelling is äÞÑæÑ ; other spellings in the Latin alphabet include Nakrour and Nacrur.
NadelGerman, Jewish Metonymic occupational name for a maker of needles, or in some cases for a tailor, from Middle High German nadel(e), German Nadel "needle".
NaiduIndian, Telugu Means "chief" in Telugu, ultimately from Sanskrit नाय (naya) meaning "guide, leader" combined with the Telugu masculine suffix డు (du).
NaismithEnglish Means either "nail-maker" (from Old English nægelsmith) or "knife-maker" (from Old English cnīfsmith).
NalciTurkish Occupational surname denoting a horse-shoe maker, from the Turkish word nal meaning "horse-shoe" and the particle -cı a suffix appended to words to create a noun denoting a profession or occupation.
NapierScottish, English Scottish occupational name for a producer or seller of table linen or for a naperer, the servant in charge of the linen in use in a great house from the Middle English, Old French nap(p)ier, an agent derivative of Old French nappe ‘table cloth’ (Latin mappa)... [more]
NasmithScottish, English This surname is derived from an occupation, "nail-smith", but may also mean "knife-smith".
NastGerman Topographic name for someone who lived in a thickly wooded area, or a metonymic occupational name for a woodcutter, from Middle High German nast meaning "branch", a regional variant of ast, resulting from the misdivision of forms such as ein ast meaning "a branch".
NaterGerman (Swiss) Derived from Middle High German nâtaere "tailor; furrier".
NauGerman A variant of Neu; meaning "ship" or "boat."
NawabUrdu, Punjabi From a title traditionally used by Muslim officials in South Asia who acted as local governors and rulers of deputy states. It is ultimately derived from Arabic نائب (na'ib) via Persian.
NestlerGerman Derived from the middle high German word nesteler meaning "maker of string or thread".
NestorIrish Derived from the surname Mac Girr an Adhastair (sometimes shortened to Mac an Aghastair), meaning "Short man of the halter." The Mac Girr an Adhastair were associated with the local lords, the Ó Lochlainn family.
NeuwirthGerman German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): nickname for a new innkeeper, from Middle High German niuwe ‘new’ + wirt and German neu + Wirt ‘master of a house’, ‘innkeeper’.
NgoyCentral African Means "lion" in Baluba cultures, identifying someone from a warrior or hunting family.
NichterGerman, Yiddish Possibly means "negator, negate" from Middle High German nicht meaning "not", or "sober", from Middle High German nüchter. Perhaps it originally denoted a person who was a philosopher, judge, or bartender.
NiedermeierGerman, German (Austrian) Occupational name for a farmer who had a farm lower than the neighboring one(s). This surname and its variant spellings are common to Austria and the state of Bavaria in Germany.
NiedermeyerGerman, Dutch Distinguishing name for a farmer (see Meyer) who had a farm lower (Middle High German nider(e)) than the neighboring one(s).
NiidasEstonian Niidas is an Estonian surname derived from "niide" meaning "hay harvest", "mowing" and "hay crop".
NimanbeguAlbanian Nimanbegu or Nimani , given "beg" from Turks in Ottoman Empire
NongChinese From Chinese 农 (nóng) meaning "farming, agriculture, cultivation", also referring to the ancient official position Nong Zheng (農正) meaning "agriculture officer".
NonnenmacherGerman Occupational name for a gelder of hogs, from Middle High German nunne, nonne meaning "nun", and by transfer "castrated hog" + an agent derivative of machen meaning "to make".
NoolEstonian Nool is an Estonian surname meaning "arrow".
NushiroJapanese (Rare) From Japanese 主代 (nushiro), a contraction of 主代 (nushishiro), from 主 (nushi), a variant reading of 主 (shu), a clipping of 主人 (shujin) meaning "master, owner, host" and 代 (shiro), a variant reading of 代 (dai), a clipping of 代理 (dairi) meaning "surrogation; proxy", referring to someone who would represent their master.
NutterEnglish Means either (i) "scribe, clerk" (from Middle English notere, ultimately from Latin notārius); or (ii) "person who keeps or tends oxen" (from a derivative of Middle English nowt "ox")... [more]
ObućaBosnian Derived from obuća meaning ''footwear'', denoting someone who made or sold footwear.
ObukhovRussian Occupational name for a lumberjack or a maker of axes, derived from Russian обух (obukh) meaning "butt" (referring to the thicker end of a tool or weapon like an axe).
O'CarrollIrish (Anglicized) Originates from the ancient Gaelic name Mac Cearbhaill or O'Cearbhaill, deriving from the word "Cearbh" which means to "Hack". Making it a possible name for a warrior or blacksmith.
OchsnerGerman (Swiss) Means "oxen herder" in Swiss, from Middle High German ohse "ox".
OechslinGerman (Swiss) South German (also Öchslein): from Middle High German ohse ‘ox’ + the diminutive suffix -lin. An occupational name for someone who tended cattle, or for a cattle dealer; or a nickname for a farmer who used oxen for plowing, or for someone perceived to resemble an ox.
OfficerEnglish (Canadian), English (American, Rare) Occupational name for the holder of any office, from Anglo-Norman French officer (an agent derivative of Old French office ‘duty’, ‘service’, Latin officium ‘service’, ‘task’).
OgorodnikovRussian From Russian огородник (ogorodnik) meaning "truck farmer, market gardener".
OikonomosGreek Means "housekeeper, steward" from the Greek word οἰκόνομος (oikonomos), derived from οἶκος (oikos) "house, household" and νόμος (nomos) "law, custom"... [more]
OotonoJapanese (Rare) Oo means "big, great, large, huge" and tono is an outdated honorific that literally means "lord".
ÖövelEstonian Öövel is an Estonian surname, a derivation of "hööve" meaning "plane" and "jointer", or "röövel" meaning "gunman", "robber" and "bandit".
OrganEnglish Metonymic occupational name for a player of a musical instrument (any musical instrument, not necessarily what is now known as an organ), from Middle English organ (Old French organe, Late Latin organum ‘device’, ‘(musical) instrument’, Greek organon ‘tool’, from ergein ‘to work or do’).
OrpinEnglish Means "herbalist" (from Middle English orpin "yellow stonecrop", a plant prescribed by medieval herbalists for healing wounds). A variant spelling was borne by British painter Sir William Orpen (1878-1931).
OrtolanoItalian, Spanish occupational name for a cultivator or seller of fruit and vegetables ortolano "gardener" from a derivative of orto "vegetable garden" (from Latin hortus "garden"). The term was also used in the medieval period to denote both a cleric with a fervant devotion to pastoral work and a rough or uncouth person and in some instances may have been applied as a nickname in either sense... [more]
OslerEnglish Possibly derived from Ostler (from the the Norman 'Hostelier') meaning clerk or bookkeeper. First used in England after the Norman invasion of 1066. Surname of a 19th cent... [more]
PabalatTagalog (Filipinized, Archaic) A Filipino surname meaning "cover, saddle" or "saddle maker". This surname was probably created when a Spanish surveyor conducts a census sometime in the 19th century in Cavinti, Laguna, Philippines... [more]
PachGerman Pach is an occupational hereditary surname for a baker in Old German. Pach is also a German local name for someone who lived by a stream, which was originally derived from the German word "bach" which means stream... [more]
PagourtzisGreek Derived from Greek Παγούρι (Pagouri) meaning "flask, canteen", a vessel containing (usually) water.
PainterEnglish, Medieval French, German English: from Middle English, Old French peinto(u)r, oblique case of peintre ‘painter’, hence an occupational name for a painter (normally of colored glass). In the Middle Ages the walls of both great and minor churches were covered with painted decorations, and Reaney and Wilson note that in 1308 Hugh le Peyntour and Peter the Pavier were employed ‘making and painting the pavement’ at St... [more]
PajusaluEstonian Pajusalu is an Estonian name meaning "willow grove".
PalacioSpanish Palacio is derived from the Spanish word "palaciao," meaning a "palace," and as a surname, was no doubt taken on by someone who lived near a palace or mansion, or perhaps by someone who worked there.
PalaiologosGreek From the Greek words palaios logos, lit. "old word", most likely signifying an "antique collector".The surname of the last ruling Byzantine family.
PaleyJewish, Yiddish, Belarusian, Ukrainian Occupational name for a distiller, derived from an East Slavic word (Russian палить (palitʹ), Ukrainian палити (palyty)) meaning "to burn". A famous bearer was Princess Olga Valerianovna Paley (1865-1929), the morganatic second wife of Grand Duke Paul Alexandrovich of Russia.
PalfreymanEnglish Occupational name for a man responsible for the maintenance and provision of saddle-horses.