Swiss
names are used in the country of Switzerland in central Europe.
Submitted names are contributed by users of this website. The accuracy of these name definitions cannot be guaranteed.
Marner English, GermanOccupational name for a sailor from Anglo-Norman French
mariner Middle, High German
marnære "seaman". English variant of
Mariner.
Marois Norman, Picard, Frenchtopographic name from the Old French words "mareis", "maresc", mareis, marois meaning "marsh" ‘marshy ground’.
Marongiu ItalianFrom Sardinian
marongiu "to hoe, hoeing", from
marra "hoe, digging tool".
Marquis French, Englishfor someone who behaved like a marquis or an occupational name for a servant in the household of a marquis, from Old Northern French
marquis... [
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Marsteller GermanOccupational name for a stable boy in or for the supervisor of the stables on a noble estate, from Middle High German mar(c) 'noble horse' stall 'stable' + the agent suffix -er.
Martello ItalianSouthern Italian: nickname for someone with a forceful personality, from Italian
martèllo ‘hammer’ (Late Latin
martellus), or a metonymic occupational name for someone who used a hammer in their work.
Martirano ItalianLikely a habitational surname from a place in Catanzaro province in the Calabria region of Italy.
Martire Italianfrom
martire "martyr" probably a nickname for someone who had played the part of a Christian martyr in a religious play. However there was a Saint Martire and so the surname may be derived from a personal name.
Marugg RomanshDerived from the given name
Maurus, combined with the diminutive suffix
-ugg. Another theory, however, derives this name from Late Latin
maior domus "mayor of a palace" (compare
Meyer 1).
Marx GermanFrom a short form of the given name
Markus. A famous bearer was Karl Marx (1818-1883), a German philosopher known for his work in socioeconomic theory.
Mary FrenchHabitational name from places in Saône-et-Loire, Seine-et-Marne, and Nièvre, named in Latin as Mariacum meaning "estate of Marius".
Mascherano ItalianOccupational 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.
Maserati ItalianMost notably the Italian luxury car manufacturer Maserati, founded in Bologna, Italy all the way back in December 1914.
Masey English, Scottish, French, NormanEnglish and Scottish (of Norman origin) and French: habitational name from any of various places in northern France which get their names from the Gallo-Roman personal name
Maccius + the locative suffix
-acum.... [
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Massa ItalianA habitational name from any of the various places named Massa (for example, Massa Lubrense or Massa di Somma, both in the Metropolitan City of Naples, or Massa d’Albe in the Province of L'Aquila), which were all named from the medieval Latin word
massa, meaning ‘holding’ or ‘estate’.
Massara Italian, GreekEither 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’.
Massaro ItalianRegional or archaic form of Italian
massaio meaning "tenant farmer, share cropper".
Mast German, DutchDerived from Middle High German and Middle Dutch
mast "mast (fodder made of acorns and beechnuts); the process of fattening livestock", this used to be an occupational name for a pig farmer or a swineherd... [
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Mastin French, Flemish, Walloonoccupational 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".
Mastrantonio ItalianFrom 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-).
Matarese Italianhabitational name for someone from Matera (see
Matera ) from materräisë a local adjectival form of the placename (in standard Italian materano).
Matassa ItalianOccupational name for a producer of silk, from Sicilian
matassa "hank", "skein", also the name of a type of silk (cf.
Metaxas).
Matera ItalianHabitational name from Matera in Basilicata region.
Matheny French (Anglicized)Of French origin. According to Matheny family tradition, this surname comes from the name of a village in France named Mathenay. This may also have been a French Huguenot surname.
Mattei ItalianPatronymic or plural form
Matteo. The Mattei family was a powerful noble family in Rome during the Middle Ages.
Matthau GermanDerived from the given name
Matthias. This name was borne by the American actor Walter Matthau (1920-2000).
Maturin FrenchFrom the French male personal name
Maturin, from Latin
Mātūrīnus, a derivative of
Mātūrus, literally "timely". It was borne by the Irish "Gothic" novelist Charles Maturin (1782-1824).
Mauer German, JewishTopographic name for someone who lived near a wall, Middle High German
mure "wall".
Maurice English, FrenchThis surname is taken from a given name which is derived from the Roman name
Mauritius, a derivative of Maurus.
Mautz GermanMeaning "to gripe", or "to complain" in Swabian German.
Maxia ItalianPossibly from the dialectical term
maxia "magic", or
masia "farm, country house".
Mazzola ItalianFrom a diminutive of Italian
mazza meaning "maul, mallet".
Meaux FrenchHabitational name from a place in Seine-et-Marne, so named from the Gaulish tribal name
Meldi, or from Meaux-la-Montagne in Rhône.
Mecklenburg German, JewishRegional name for someone from this province in northern Germany. Derived from Old Saxon
mikil "big, great" and
burg "castle".
Mecone Italian (Modern, Rare)Giuseppe Meconi (Febuary 1860-April 21,1921) was born in San Massimo, Campbasso Province, Italy. Giuseppe arrived in Pennsylvania, United States in the late 1880s and married Elizabeth Magyar in 1885... [
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Medici ItalianPatronymic or plural form of
Medico. Medici is the family name of one of Italy's most powerful families.
Medico ItalianOccupational name for a physician, Italian medico (Latin
medicus, from
medere "to heal").
Mée FrenchFrench habitational name from places called (Le) Mée in Mayenne, Eure-et-Loir, and Seine-et-Marne, derived from Old French
me(i)s ‘farmstead’ (Latin
mansus).
Meester Dutch, Flemish, GermanOccupational 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-).
Meiler RomanshDerived from the place name
Meils (present-day
Mels in the canton of St. Gallen, Switzerland).
Melillo Spanish, Italiandescribing someone who worked on an apple orchard,harvesting and selling apples from the italian
mela Mellenthin GermanHabitational name from places so called near Berlin and on the island of Usedom.
Meloni ItalianFrom Italian
mela ("apple", from Latin
malum) or
melone ("melon", from Latin
melopepo), both ultimately from Ancient Greek μῆλον (
mêlon), meaning "apple", "fruit from a tree"... [
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Meltzer GermanGerman and Jewish (Ashkenazic): occupational name for a maltster, a brewer who used malt, from German Meltzer (an agent derivative of Middle High German malt ‘malt’, ‘germinated barley’), Yiddish meltser ‘maltster’... [
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Ménard FrenchFrom the Old German given name
Meginhard, making it a cognate of
Maynard. A notable bearer was André Ménard, Governor General in the French colonial empire.
Mendler GermanOccupational name for a maker of coats from an agent derivative of Middle High German
mantel,
mandel,
mendel "coat".
Mendola Italiantopographic name for someone who lived by an almond tree or trees or a habitational name from any of the places called with the dialect term
amendola mendula "almond almond tree" (see
Amendola ). Compare
Lamendola.
Mengele GermanDoctor Josef Mengele (Born on March 16, 1911 - Died on February 7, 1979), also known as the Angel of Death, was a German Schutzstaffel (SS) Officer and physician during World War II. He is mainly remembered for his actions at the Auschwitz concentration camp, where he performed deadly experiments on prisoners, was a member of the team of doctors who selected victims to be killed in the gas chambers and was one of the doctors who administered the gas.
Menke GermanDerived as a diminutive of several Germanic given names whose first element was derived from Germanic
*magin- and
*megin- "strength; force; power".
Mentzer GermanHabitational name with the agent suffix -er, either from Mainz, earlier Mentz, derived from the medieval Latin name Mogontia (Latin Mogontiacum, probably from the Celtic personal name Mogontios), or from Menz in Brandenburg and Saxony.
Mercante ItalianAn occupational name meaning "merchant, trader" in Italian, from Latin
mercans "trading".
Mercey FrenchDerived from the name of the commune in the Eure department in Normandy in northern France.
Merkh German (Anglicized, ?)Anglicized form of the name Märkh, a German name that existed in southern Germany with Arabic roots tied to the village of al-Märkh in Qatar; the name became Anglicized in the early 17th century. It is one of those surnames where anyone who possesses it is related to everyone else who possesses the name.
Merlette FrenchFeminine diminutive of French
merle "blackbird", this name was given as a nickname to a cheerful person or to someone who liked to sing.
Mertesacker GermanMeans "Merten's field" in German, derived from the given name
Merten and Middle High German
acker meaning "field". A famous bearer is the retired German soccer player Per Mertesacker (1984-).
Mesina ItalianFrom Sardinian
mesina "keg, small barrel", probably given as a nickname to someone with a round or fat build.
Mesmer GermanOccupational 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.
Messer GermanOccupational name for an official in charge of measuring the dues paid in kind by tenants, from an agent derivative of Middle High German
mezzen "to measure".
Messerschmidt GermanName given to a knife smith. From German "messer" meaning knife, and "schmidt" meaning smith.
Messi African, Arabic, ItalianFamous bearer of this surname is Lionel Messi (born 1987-), an Argentinian footballer of Italian descent.
Messiaen Dutch, FrenchDerived from
Messiaen, the (archaic) Dutch form of the latinate first name
Messianus, which itself is ultimately derived from the Roman praenomen
Messus. The meaning of
Messus is not wholly certain; it may be derived from the Latin verb
meto "to reap, to harvest, to cut, to sever", or from the latinized form of Greek
mesos or
messos "(the) middle, (the) middle one"... [
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Messier FrenchOccupational name for someone who kept watch over harvested crops, Old French messier 'harvest master' (Late Latin messicarius, agent derivative of messis 'harvest').
Messing German, JewishDerived 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-).
Metallo ItalianFrom the Greek vocabulary word
metallo "metal", used as a nickname for a miner or for someone with a clear or metallic tone of voice.
Metrejon Louisiana Creole (?), French (?)Maiden surname of Constance Leto (nee Metrejon). She was born in Louisiana and has Cajun(French) ancestry. The Metrejon line is traced back to Joseph Marie Maitrejean, who was born c. 1778, in Belle-Île-en-Mer, France, an island off the coast of Brittany.
Mezzadonna ItalianMeans "half a woman" in Italian, from
mezza "half" and
donna "lady, woman".
Mezzasalma ItalianFrom Italian
mezza "half" and
salma, an archaic term for a small unit of land, indicating that the bearer was not very wealthy.
Salma also coincides with an Italian word meaning "corpse".
Miano ItalianHabitational name from Miano in Naples, Parma, and Teramo; Miane in Treviso; or Mian in Belluno.
Mick German, Dutch, IrishShort form of the given name
Mikolaj or an occupational name from Middle Low German and Middle Dutch
micke "(wheat or rye) bread"... [
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Mickley FrenchIt originated when an immigrant family named Michelet came to New York from Northern France. Because they had a foreign surname, they made up the names Mickley and Michelin. The originator was Jean Jacques Michelet (John Jacob Mickley), a private in the Revolutionary War... [
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