Necchi ItalianPossibly from Italian
neccio, a type of flat bread.
Negri ItalianNickname derived from Italian
negro "black", used to refer to someone with dark hair or dark skin.
Nelson 1 EnglishMeans
"son of Neil". This name was borne by the British admiral Horatio Nelson (1758-1805).
Nepi ItalianFrom the town of Nepi in central Italy, which is of uncertain origin.
Neri ItalianFrom Italian
nero "black", indicating a person with a dark complexion or dark hair.
Nervetti ItalianPossibly a nickname for an innkeeper, from archaic Milanese
nervètt, a local meal prepared from a calf.
Nervi ItalianFrom the name of the town of Nervi in Liguria, northwestern Italy.
Nespoli ItalianFrom the name of towns such as Nespoli and Nespoledo, derived from Italian
nespola meaning "medlar (tree)".
Ness English, Scottish, NorwegianFrom English
ness and Norwegian
nes meaning
"headland, promontory", of Old Norse origin, originally referring to a person who lived there.
Neuville FrenchFrom the names of various French towns meaning "new town".
Neville English, IrishFrom the names of towns in Normandy, variously
Neuville or
Néville, meaning "new town" in French.
Newport EnglishGiven to one who came from the town of Newport (which means simply "new port"), which was the name of several English towns.
Newton EnglishFrom the name of one of many English towns meaning "new town". A famous bearer was the English physicist Isaac Newton (1643-1727).
Nguyễn VietnameseVietnamese form of
Ruan, from Sino-Vietnamese
阮 (nguyễn). This is the most common Vietnamese surname, accounting for over a third of the population.
Nicastro ItalianFrom the name of the town of Nicastro in Calabria, southern Italy.
Nicchi ItalianFrom the Italian word
nicchio meaning
"shell", possibly a nickname for people related to the sea.
Nickleby LiteratureCreated by Charles Dickens for the title character in his novel
Nicholas Nickleby (1839). He probably based it on
Nicol, a medieval vernacular form of
Nicholas, with the common English place name suffix
-by, which is derived from Old Norse
býr meaning "farm, settlement".
Nicolosi ItalianFrom the name of the town Nicolosi on Sicily, itself named for Saint Nicholas.
Nieddu ItalianFrom Sardinian
nieddu meaning
"black", derived from Latin
niger.
Niemczyk PolishFrom Polish
Niemiec meaning
"German" and the patronymic suffix
-czyk.
Nisi ItalianMeans
"son of Niso", an Italian form of the mythological name
Nisus.
Nixon EnglishMeans
"son of Nick". A famous bearer was the American president Richard Nixon (1913-1994).
Nizzola ItalianFrom the name of the Italian town of Nizzola near Modena.
Noel French, EnglishEither from the given name
Noël, or else derived directly from Old French
noel "Christmas" and given to a person who had a particular connection with the holiday.
Nogueira Portuguese, GalicianFrom Portuguese and Galician
nogueira meaning
"walnut tree", from the Late Latin
nucarius, ultimately from Latin
nux meaning "nut".
Norman EnglishReferred to a person who was originally from Scandinavia or Normandy. Even before the Norman Conquest, Scandinavians were settling the north and east of England. The Normans who participated in the Conquest were originally from Scandinavia, but had been living in Normandy, France for over a century and spoke French.
Norris 1 English, ScottishMeans
"from the north" from Old French
norreis. It either denoted someone who originated in the north or someone who lived in the northern part of a settlement.
Norris 2 EnglishMeans
"wet nurse, foster mother" from Old French
norrice, from Latin
nutricius.
Northrop EnglishOriginally denoted one who came from a town of this name England, meaning "north farm".
Norton EnglishFrom the name of various towns in England meaning "north town" in Old English.
Nørup DanishFrom the name of Danish villages named
Nørup or
Norup.
Norwood EnglishOriginally taken from a place name meaning "north wood" in Old English.
Noschese ItalianFrom the name of the town of Nusco in Campania, southern Italy.
Notaro ItalianOccupational name for a clerk, derived from Latin
notarius.
Novosad m CzechFrom place names meaning
"new orchard" in Czech.
Nowakowski m PolishHabitational name for a person from various towns called
Nowakowo or similar, derived from Polish
nowy meaning "new".
Nowicki m PolishHabitational name for a person from any of the towns in Poland called
Nowice. The name is derived from Polish
nowy meaning "new".
Nurmi FinnishMeans
"meadow, field" in Finnish. It was the surname of the athlete Paavo Nurmi (1897-1973).
Nye EnglishOriginally indicated a person who lived near a river, from Middle English
atten eye meaning
"at the river".
Nyitrai HungarianIndicated someone from Nitra, a city and historic principality of Slovakia (formerly in Hungary). Its name is derived from that of a local river, which is of unknown meaning.
Nyman SwedishFrom Swedish
ny (Old Norse
nýr) meaning "new" and
man (Old Norse
maðr) meaning "person, man".
Nyström SwedishOrnamental name derived from Swedish
ny (Old Norse
nýr) meaning "new" and
ström (Old Norse
straumr) meaning "stream".
O KoreanAlternate transcription of Korean Hangul
오 (see
Oh).
Oakley EnglishFrom a place name meaning "oak clearing" in Old English. It was borne by American sharpshooter Annie Oakley (1860-1926).
Obama LuoFrom a rare Luo given name meaning
"crooked, bent". It was possibly originally given to a baby who had an arm or leg that looked slightly bent immediately after birth or who was born in the breech position.
Obando SpanishHabitational name for someone who came from Obando in Extremadura, Spain.
Oberst GermanFrom Old High German
obar meaning
"above, upper", indicating a person from the uppermost end of a village or the top of a house.
Ó Carra IrishMeans
"descendant of Carra",
Carra being a nickname meaning "spear".
Ó Cnáimhín IrishMeans
"descendant of Cnámh",
Cnámh being a nickname meaning "bone".
Ó Cochláin IrishMeans
"descendant of Cochlán", where the given name
Cochlán is derived from Irish
cochal "cape" or "hood". This surname originated in County Cork, Ireland.
Ó Comhraidhe IrishMeans
"descendant of Comhraidhe", in which the given name
Comhraidhe is of unknown meaning.
Ó Corra IrishMeans
"descendant of Corra" in Irish. The given name
Corra means "spear".
Ó Cuilinn IrishMeans
"descendant of Cuileann",
Cuileann being a nickname meaning "holly".
Odell EnglishOriginally denoted a person who was from Odell in Bedfordshire, derived from Old English
wad "woad" (a plant that produces a blue dye) and
hyll "hill".
Ó Duibh IrishMeans
"descendant of Dubh",
Dubh being a byname meaning "dark".
Oelberg GermanMeans
"oil hill" from Middle High German
öl "oil" and
berg "mountain, hill".
Offermans DutchFrom Dutch
offer meaning
"offering, donation", referring to a person who collected money in a church.
Ogtrop DutchOriginally denoted a person who was from the town of Ochtrup in Germany, which is of uncertain origin.
O'Hannagain IrishFrom Irish
Ó hAnnagáin, which means
"descendant of Annagán". The given name
Annagán was a diminutive of
Annadh meaning "delay".
O'Hara IrishFrom the Irish
Ó hEaghra, which means
"descendant of Eaghra",
Eaghra being a given name of uncertain origin. Supposedly, the founder of the clan was Eaghra, a 10th-century lord of Luighne. A famous fictional bearer of this surname is Scarlett O'Hara, a character in Margaret Mitchell's
Gone With The Wind (1936).
Ó hÉideáin IrishMeans
"descendant of Éideán" in Irish. The given name
Éideán is a diminutive of
éideadh meaning "clothes, armour".
Ó hÉidín IrishMeans
"descendant of Éidín" in Irish. The given name
Éidín is a diminutive of
éideadh meaning "clothes, armour".
Ohme GermanFrom Middle High German
oem meaning
"maternal uncle".