IGLESIAS SpanishFrom Spanish
iglesia meaning
"church", from Latin
ecclesia (of Greek origin).
IKEDA JapaneseFrom Japanese
池 (ike) meaning "pool, pond" and
田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".
IM KoreanFrom Sino-Korean
林 (im) meaning
"forest", making it the Korean form of
LIN, or
任 (im) of uncertain meaning, making it the Korean form of
REN.
INGERSLEBEN GermanFrom the name of the town of Ingersleben, Germany, which meant "Inge's village".
INGHAM EnglishFrom the name of an English town, of Old English origin meaning "
INGA's homestead".
INOUE JapaneseMeans
"above the well", from Japanese
井 (i) meaning "well, mine shaft, pit", an unwritten possessive marker
の (no), and
上 (ue) meaning "above, top, upper".
IONESCO RomanianVariant of
IONESCU. French-Romanian playwright Eugène Ionesco (1909-1994), born
Ionescu, is a famous bearer of this surname.
IORDANOU GreekFrom the name of the Jordan river, which is from Hebrew
יָרַד (yarad) meaning "descend" or "flow down".
IRVING Scottish, EnglishOriginally derived from a Scottish place name (in North Ayrshire) meaning "green water".
ITŌ JapaneseFrom Japanese
伊 (i) meaning "this" and
藤 (tō) meaning "wisteria". The final character may indicate a connection to the Fujiwara clan.
ITURBURUA BasqueMeans
"by the fountain" in Basque, from
iturri "fountain, spring".
IWATA JapaneseFrom Japanese
岩 (iwa) meaning "cliff, rocks" and
田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".
IYER TamilReferred to a person belonging to the Iyer subcaste of the larger Brahmin caste. The Iyer subcaste is traditionally devoted to the God Vishnu.
JACKSON EnglishMeans
"son of JACK". Famous bearers of this name are the American president Andrew Jackson (1767-1845) and the singer Michael Jackson (1958-2009).
JÄGER GermanMeans
"hunter" in German, from Old High German
jagon meaning "to hunt".
JAIN Indian, Hindi, Marathi, GujaratiReferred to a person who followed the principles of Jainism, a religion practiced in India. Jains are the followers of Lord Mahavira (599-527 BC).
JANKOWSKI PolishHabitational name for a person from a town named
Jankowo or
Janków, all derived from the given name
JANEK.
JANOWSKI PolishHabitational name for a person from a town named
Janowo,
Janów or
Janowice, all derived from the given name
JAN (1).
JANVIER FrenchEither from the given name
JANVIER or the French word
janvier meaning
"January", perhaps indicating a person who was baptized in that month.
JÄRVINEN FinnishDerived from Finnish
järvi meaning
"lake". It is one of the most common surnames in Finland.
JASKÓLSKI PolishOriginally indicated a person from various Polish towns named
Jaskółki, derived from Polish
jaskółka "swallow (bird)".
JASO BasqueDerived from Basque
jats meaning
"sorghum", a type of cereal grass.
JEDLIČKA CzechDerived from Czech
jedle meaning
"fir tree", perhaps given to a person who lived near a prominent one.
JEFFERS EnglishPatronymic from the given name
JEFFREY. A famous bearer was poet Robinson Jeffers (1887-1962).
JEFFERSON EnglishMeans
"son of JEFFREY". A famous bearer was American president Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826). Since this surname was sometimes adopted by freed slaves, it is now more common among the African-American population.
JEHLIČKA CzechFrom Czech
jehla meaning
"needle", most likely borne by tailors in reference to their occupation.
JEKYLL EnglishDerived from the Breton given name
JUDICAËL. This name was used by Robert Louis Stevenson for the character of Dr Henry Jekyll in the book
Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde (1886).
JELEN CzechFrom a nickname meaning "stag" in Czech.
JENKINS EnglishFrom the given name
Jenkin, a diminutive of
Jen, itself a Middle English form of
JOHN.
JENNINGS EnglishFrom the given name
Jenyn, a diminutive of
Jen, itself a Middle English form of
JOHN.
JERNIGAN EnglishPossibly derived from the old Breton name
Iarnogon meaning "iron famous".
JEROME EnglishDerived from the given name
JEROME. A famous bearer of this surname was the American-born Jennie Jerome (1854-1921), Lady Randolph Churchill, mother of Sir Winston Churchill.
JEŻ PolishMeans
"hedgehog" in Polish. It may have originally been given to a person who resembled a hedgehog in some way.
JINKS EnglishMeans
"son of Jenk", a short form of
Jenkin, a diminutive of
Jen, itself a Middle English form of
JOHN.
JO KoreanAlternate transcription of Korean Hangul
조 (see
CHO).
JOHN EnglishDerived from the given name
JOHN. A famous bearer is British musician Elton John (1947-), born Reginald Dwight.
JOHNSON EnglishMeans
"son of JOHN". Famous bearers include American presidents Andrew Johnson (1808-1875) and Lyndon B. Johnson (1908-1973).
JOINER EnglishOccupational name for a carpenter (that is, a person who joins wood together to make furniture).
JÖLLENBECK GermanFrom the name of a village in western Germany, itself derived from the name of the Jölle, a small river, combined with Low German
beck "stream".
JOLY FrenchFrom Old French
joli meaning
"happy, jolly, pretty".
JONKER DutchFrom the Dutch title
jonkheer meaning
"young lord". It was originally a medieval noble designation (not an actual title) for a young nobleman.
JORDAN (2) JewishDerived from the name of the Jordan river, which is from Hebrew
יָרַד (yarad) meaning "descend" or "flow down".
JUGHASHVILI Georgian (Rare)Meaning uncertain. One theory suggests Ossetian roots with the meaning
"son of the herder", derived from Ossetian
дзуг (dzug) meaning "herd, flock, troop". Alternately, it could be derived from the name of the village of
ჯუღაანი (Jughaani) in eastern Georgia. The most notable bearer was Joseph Stalin (1878-1953), born Ioseb Jughashvili, a leader of the Soviet Union.
KAHLER GermanFrom a nickname derived from German
kahl meaning
"bald".
KAISER GermanFrom Middle High German
keiser meaning
"emperor", originally a nickname applied to someone who acted kingly. The title ultimately derives from the Roman name
CAESAR.
KALB GermanOccupational name meaning
"calf (animal)" in German.
KALBFLEISCH GermanOccupational name for a butcher who dealt in veal, from German
kalb meaning "calf" and
fleisch meaning "meat".
KALMÁR HungarianOccupational name meaning
"merchant, shopkeeper" in Hungarian, of German origin.
KAMIŃSKI PolishFrom Polish
kamień meaning
"stone", a name for a stonecutter or for one who lived at a place with this name.
KAPANADZE GeorgianMeans
"son of the one from Kapan", originally denoting someone who came from the city of Kapan in present-day Armenia (from Armenian
կապել (kapel) meaning "to tie, to fasten").
KAPPEL German, DutchName for a person who lived near or worked at a chapel, ultimately from Late Latin
cappella, a diminutive of
cappa "cape", arising from the holy relic of the torn cape of Saint
Martin, which was kept in small churches.
KARDOS HungarianFrom Hungarian
kard meaning
"sword". It could have been applied to soldiers, sword makers, or one with a pugnacious nature.
KÄSTNER GermanMeans
"cabinet maker", derived from Middle High German
kaste "box".
KASUN CroatianPossibly derived from the old Slavic word
kazati meaning
"to order, to command".
KATIRCI TurkishDerived from Turkish
katır meaning
"mule", a name for a person who made transports by mule.
KATŌ JapaneseFrom Japanese
加 (ka) meaning "add, increase" and
藤 (tō) meaning "wisteria". The latter character may indicate a connection to the Fujiwara clan.
KATSAROS GreekMeans
"curly" in Greek, referring to a person with curly hair.
KAUBE GermanFrom the name of the town of Kaub in Germany.
KAUR Indian (Sikh)Means
"princess", ultimately from Sanskrit
कुमारी (kumari) meaning "girl". In 1699 Guru Gobind Singh gave all his Sikh female followers the surname
Kaur and all males
Singh. In many instances, it is also used as a middle name with the family name serving as the surname.
KAVANAGH IrishDerived from the Irish Gaelic name
Caomhánach, which means "a student of saint
CAOMHÁN". It was the name used by a 12th-century king of Leinster, Domhnall Caomhánach, the eldest son of the historic Irish king Diarmait Mac Murchada.
KAWAGUCHI JapaneseMeans
"mouth of the river", from Japanese
川 (kawa) meaning "river, stream" and
口 (kuchi) meaning "mouth, entrance".
KAY (2) EnglishDerived from Old French
kay meaning
"wharf, quay", indicating one who lived near or worked on a wharf.
KAZLOW BelarusianPatronymic from Belarusian
казёл (kaziol) meaning
"male goat", probably used to denote a goatherd.
KEARNEY IrishFrom the Irish name
Ó Ceithearnaigh meaning
"descendant of Ceithearnach", a given name meaning "warrior".
KECSKEMÉTI HungarianOriginally indicated a person who came from the Hungarian city of Kecskemét, derived from
kecske meaning "goat".
KĘDZIERSKI PolishFrom a nickname meaning
"curly", describing a person with curly hair.
KEEFE IrishAnglicized form of the Irish
Ó Caoimh meaning
"descendant of CAOMH".
KEEGAN IrishFrom Irish
Mac Aodhagáin meaning
"descendant of Aodhagán". The given name
Aodhagán is a double diminutive of
AODH.
KEEN EnglishFrom Old English
cene meaning
"bold, brave".
KEIGHLEY EnglishDerived from an English place name meaning "clearing belonging to Cyhha". The Old English given name
Cyhha is of unknown meaning.
KEIL GermanMeans
"wedge shaped" in German. It was used to denote a person who owned a wedge-shaped piece of land.
KEITH ScottishFrom a place name that is probably derived from the Brythonic element
cet meaning
"wood". This was the surname of a long line of Scottish nobles.
KELLER GermanMeans
"cellar" in German, an occupational name for one in charge of the food and drink.