Quirke IrishAnglicized form of Irish
Ó Cuirc meaning
"descendant of Corc", a given name meaning "heart".
Quiroga GalicianOriginally denoted a person from the town of Quiroga in Galicia, Spain.
Quirós SpanishDenoted a person from one of the various places of this name in Spain, which may derive from Galician
queiroa meaning
"heather".
Quixote LiteratureCreated by the Spanish author Miguel de Cervantes for the main character in his novel
Don Quixote (1605), about a nobleman who goes mad after reading too many heroic romances and decides to become a wandering knight under the name Don Quixote. His real name in part one of the book is conjectured to be
Quixada or
Quesada, though in part two (published 10 years after part one) it is revealed as Alonso
Quixano. The Spanish suffix
-ote means "large".
Rácz HungarianDerived from Hungarian
rác meaning
"Rascian", a former name for Serbians who lived in the Habsburg Empire.
Radcliff EnglishFrom various place names in England that mean "red cliff" in Old English.
Rademaker DutchFrom the occupation of
rademaker meaning
"maker of wheels", from Dutch
rad meaning "wheel".
Rafferty IrishAnglicized form of Irish
Ó Rabhartaigh meaning
"descendant of Rabhartach". The given name
Rabhartach means "flood tide".
Raine 1 EnglishFrom a nickname derived from Old French
reine meaning
"queen".
Raine 2 English, FrenchDerived from a Germanic name that was short for longer names beginning with the element
ragin meaning "advice, counsel".
Raines EnglishOriginally denoted a person from Rayne, Essex, England (possibly from an Old English word meaning "shelter") or from Rennes, Brittany, France (from the name of the Gaulish tribe of the Redones).
Rais ItalianOccupational name for the fisherman in charge of the boat, from Italian
rais "captain", of Arabic origin. It is typical of Sicily and Sardinia.
Rake EnglishOriginally a name for a dweller on a narrow pass or hillside, from Old English
hrace meaning
"throat, gorge".
Ralston ScottishOriginally denoted a person from Ralston, Scotland, which was derived from the given name
Ralph combined with Old English
tun meaning "enclosure, yard, town".
Ramos SpanishOriginally indicated a person who lived in a thickly wooded area, from Latin
ramus meaning
"branch".
Ramsey English, ScottishMeans
"garlic island", derived from Old English
hramsa "garlic" and
eg "island". The surname was brought to Scotland by the Norman baron Simundus de Ramsay.
Randrup DanishFrom the name of homesteads in Denmark (in Viborg or Rebild municipalities).
Ranta FinnishOriginally indicated a person who lived near the shore, from Finnish
ranta meaning
"shore, beach".
Rapp 1 SwedishFrom Swedish
rapp meaning
"quick, prompt", one of the names adopted by soldiers in the 17th century.
Rapp 2 GermanFrom Middle High German
raben meaning
"raven", a nickname for a person with black hair.
Raskopf GermanPossibly from German
rasch "quick" and
Kopf "head".
Rasputin m RussianFrom Russian
распутье (rasputye) meaning
"crossroads". A famous bearer was the Russian mystic Grigoriy Rasputin (1869-1916).
Ratti ItalianFrom Italian
ratto meaning
"rat", originally denoting a sly individual.
Rattray ScottishFrom a Scottish place name meaning "fortress town", from Gaelic
ráth meaning "fortress" and a Pictish word meaning "town".
Ravenna ItalianFrom the name of the city of Ravenna in northern Italy, which is of uncertain origin, possibly Etruscan.
Ravn DanishMeans
"raven" in Danish, from Old Norse
hrafn.
Read 1 EnglishMeans
"red" from Middle English
read, probably denoting a person with red hair or complexion.
Read 2 EnglishFrom Old English
ryd, an unattested form of
rod meaning
"cleared land". It is also derived from various English place names with various meanings, including "roe headland", "reeds" and "brushwood".
Ready 2 ScottishOriginally denoted a person from Reedie farm in Angus, Scotland.
Reagan IrishAnglicized form of Irish
Ó Riagáin meaning
"descendant of Riagán". A famous bearer was the American president Ronald Reagan (1911-2004).
Redondo SpanishMeans
"round" in Spanish, originally a nickname for a plump person, ultimately from Latin
rotundus.
Reenberg DanishMeaning unknown. The second element is probably from Old Norse
berg "mountain" (modern Danish
bjerg).
Reeve EnglishOccupational name derived from Middle English
reeve, Old English
(ge)refa meaning
"sheriff, prefect, local official".
Regenbogen German, JewishFrom a German nickname meaning
"rainbow", probably a habitational name for someone who lived in a house with the sign of a rainbow. As a Jewish surname it is ornamental.
Reich German, JewishNickname for a wealthy or powerful person, from Old High German
rihhi "rich, powerful".
Reiher GermanMeans
"heron" in German, a nickname for a person with long legs.
Reis German, JewishFrom Middle High German
ris meaning
"twig, branch, bush", denoting a person who lived in an overgrown area. As a Jewish name it is ornamental.
Remington EnglishFrom the name of the town of Rimington in Lancashire, derived from the name of the stream
Riming combined with Old English
tun meaning "enclosure, town".
Rendón SpanishPossibly derived from a variant of Spanish
de rondón meaning
"unexpectedly, rashly".
Rettig GermanDerived from Middle High German
retich, Middle Low German
redik meaning
"radish", an occupational name for a grower or seller of radishes.
Reuter 2 GermanFrom Middle High German
riutœre meaning
"highwayman, thief".
Rey 1 English, Spanish, French, CatalanMeans
"king" in Old French, Spanish and Catalan, ultimately from Latin
rex (genitive
regis), perhaps originally denoting someone who acted like a king.
Rey 2 EnglishMeans
"female roe deer" from Old English
ræge, probably denoting someone of a nervous temperament.
Rhodes EnglishTopographic name derived from Old English
rod meaning
"cleared land", or a locational name from any of the locations named with this word.
Ribeiro PortugueseMeans
"little river, stream" in Portuguese, ultimately from Latin
riparius meaning "riverbank".
Riber DanishOriginally indicated a person from the county or town of Ribe in southwestern Denmark.
Ricci ItalianFrom Italian
riccio meaning
"curly", a nickname for someone with curly hair. It is ultimately from Latin
ericius meaning "hedgehog".
Richelieu FrenchFrom the name of the town of Richelieu, derived from French
riche "wealthy" and
lieu "place". The historic figure Cardinal Richelieu (1585-1642), born Armand du Plessis, was so-called because he became the first Duke of Richelieu. He appears in Alexander Dumas' novel
The Three Musketeers (1844).
Richter GermanMeans
"judge" in German, from Middle High German
rihtære.
Ridge EnglishDenoted a person who lived near a ridge, from Old English
hrycg.
Ridley EnglishDenoted a person who hailed from one of the various places of this name in England. The places are derived from Old English
geryd "channel" or
hreod "reed" combined with
leah "woodland, clearing".
Rietveld DutchMeans
"reed field", from Dutch
riet "reed" and
veld "field". It is found mostly in the western part of the Netherlands (the Holland area).
Rigby EnglishOriginally derived from the name of a town in Lancashire, itself from Old Norse
hryggr "ridge" and
býr "farm, settlement".
Riggi ItalianFrom the name of the Italian city of Reggio Calabria, from Latin
Rhegium, of Greek origin.
Riley 1 EnglishFrom the name of the town of Ryley in Lancashire, derived from Old English
ryge "rye" and
leah "woodland, clearing".
Rimmer EnglishOccupational name meaning
"poet", from Middle English
rime meaning "rhyme".
Rios PortugueseOriginally denoted a person who lived near a river, from Portuguese
rios "river", ultimately from Latin
rivus.
Ripley EnglishFrom the name of various English towns, from Old English
rippel "grove, thicket" and
leah "woodland, clearing". A notable fictional bearer is the character Ellen Ripley from the movie
Alien (1979) and its sequels.
Ritter GermanFrom Middle High German
riter meaning
"rider, knight", a cognate of
Ryder.
Riva ItalianMeans
"bank, shore" in Italian, from Latin
ripa, denoting one who lived by a river or a lake.
Rivera SpanishFrom Spanish
ribera meaning
"bank, shore", from Latin
riparius.
Rivers EnglishDenoted a person who lived near a river, from Middle English, from Old French
riviere meaning
"river", from Latin
riparius meaning "riverbank".
Roach EnglishFrom Middle English and Old French
roche meaning
"rock", from Late Latin
rocca, a word that may be of Celtic origin. It indicated a person who lived near a prominent rock, or who came from a town by this name (such as Les Roches in Normandy).
Robledo SpanishMeans
"oak wood" from Spanish
roble "oak", ultimately from Latin
robur.
Robles SpanishOriginally indicated a person who lived near an oak tree or forest, from Spanish
roble "oak", from Latin
robur.
Robustelli ItalianFrom a nickname for a strong person, from Italian
robusto "strong", from Latin
robustus "firm, solid, oaken".
Rodney EnglishFrom a place name meaning
"Hroda's island" in Old English (where
Hroda is an Old English given name meaning "fame").
Roggeveen DutchMeans
"rye field" in Dutch. A famous bearer was Jacob Roggeveen (1659-1729), the first European explorer to Easter Island.
Roig CatalanMeans
"red" in Catalan, from Latin
rubeus, originally a nickname for a person with red hair or a red complexion.
Rojo SpanishMeans
"red" in Spanish, referring to the colour of the hair or complexion.
Romagna ItalianFrom the region of Romagna, on the Adriatic coast of Italy. It is derived from Latin
Romania meaning "land of the Romans".
Romano 2 ItalianDenoted a person from the city of
Rome, either a resident or someone who visited as a pilgrim. In Calabria it was also used to designate a person from New Rome, a name for Constantinople.
Romanov m RussianMeans
"son of Roman". This was the surname of the last dynasty of Russian tsars.
Roncalli ItalianFrom the names of places like Ronco or Ronchi, quite common in northern Italy, derived from
ronco meaning "cleared land, terraced land". It was the surname of Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli (1881-1963), the pope John XXIII.
Ronchi ItalianFrom Italian places named Ronchi, derived from
ronco meaning "cleared land, terraced land". It is most common in northern and central Italy.
Roosevelt DutchMeans
"rose field" from Dutch
roos "rose" and
veld "field". This was the surname of American presidents Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919) and Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882-1945).
Rosário PortugueseMeans
"rosary" in Portuguese. This name was often given to people born on the day of the festival of Our Lady of the Rosary.
Roscoe EnglishFrom the name of a town in Lancashire, derived from Old Norse
rá "roebuck" and
skógr "wood, forest".
Rose 1 English, French, German, JewishMeans
"rose" from Middle English, Old French and Middle High German
rose, all from Latin
rosa. All denote a person of a rosy complexion or a person who lived in an area abundant with roses. As a Jewish surname it is ornamental, from Yiddish
רויז (roiz).
Ross English, ScottishFrom various place names (such as the region of Ross in northern Scotland), which are derived from Scottish Gaelic
ros meaning "promontory, headland".
Rossi ItalianDerived from a nickname for a red-haired person, from Italian
rosso, Latin
russus meaning "red". This is the most common surname in Italy.
Rossini ItalianDiminutive form of
Rossi. A famous bearer was the Italian composer Gioachino Rossini (1792-1868).
Roth German, JewishFrom Middle High German
rot meaning
"red". It was originally a nickname for a person with red hair.
Rothbauer GermanFrom Old High German
riuten "to clear land" and
bur "peasant, farmer".
Rothenberg German, JewishFrom Middle High German
rot meaning "red" and
berg meaning "mountain". As a Jewish name it may be ornamental.
Rothschild JewishFrom Middle High German
rot "red" and
schilt "shield", or Yiddish
רויט (roit) and
שילד (shild). The famous Rothschild family of bankers took their name from a house with a red shield on it.
Rotolo ItalianFrom the Italian word for a measure of weight, from southern Italian dialects, derived from Greek via Arabic.
Rounds EnglishPatronymic derived from Middle English
rond meaning
"round, plump", ultimately from Latin
rotundus.
Rousseau FrenchDiminutive of
Roux. A famous bearer was the philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778) whose ideas influenced the French Revolution.
Roux FrenchDerived from Old French
ros meaning
"red", from Latin
russus, a nickname for a red-haired person.
Rovigatti ItalianFrom the name of the city of Rovigo in northeastern Italy near Venice. It was called
Rodigium in Latin, and is of unknown meaning.
Rowbottom EnglishOriginally indicated a person who lived in an overgrown valley, from Old English
ruh "rough, overgrown" and
boðm "valley".
Rowe 1 EnglishMeans
"row" in Middle English, indicating a dweller by a row of hedges or houses.
Rowntree EnglishOriginally given to a person who lived near a rowan tree or mountain ash.
Royce EnglishOriginally derived from the medieval given name
Royse, a variant of
Rose.
Roydon EnglishOriginally derived from a place name meaning
"rye hill", from Old English
ryge "rye" and
dun "hill".
Royer FrenchFrom French
roue meaning
"wheel", ultimately from Latin
rota, an occupational name for a wheelwright.
Royle EnglishOriginally derived from a place name meaning
"rye hill" from Old English
ryge "rye" and
hyll "hill".
Royston EnglishOriginally taken from an Old English place name meaning "Royse's town". The given name
Royse was a medieval variant of
Rose.
Ruan ChineseFrom Chinese
阮 (ruǎn), which refers to a type of musical instrument, similar to a lute.
Rubio SpanishNickname for a person with red hair, from Latin
rubeus "red".
Rudawski m PolishIndicated a person who lived near the Rudawa, a river in Poland.