Browse Surnames

Pettersen Norwegian
Means "son of Petter".

Pettersson Swedish
Means "son of Petter".

Peura Finnish
Means "deer" in Finnish.

Phạm Vietnamese
Vietnamese form of Fan, from Sino-Vietnamese 范 (phạm). This is the fourth most common surname in Vietnam.

Phelps English
Means "son of Philip".

Philips English, Dutch
Means "son of Philip". Famous bearers of this surname were Frederick Philips (1830-1900) and his son Gerard (1858-1942), the Dutch founders of the company Philips.

Phillips English
Means "son of Philip".

Picasso Italian
From Italian pica meaning "magpie". This probably denoted someone who was talkative or prone to stealing, although it may have described someone's unusual colouring. The Spanish painter and sculptor Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) was a famous bearer of this name.

Pierson English
Means "son of Piers".

Pietrzak Polish
Means "son of Piotr".

Pires Portuguese
Means "son of Pedro".

Plourde French
Possibly derived from French palourde, a type of a shellfish.

Pocock English
Variant of Peacock.

Popov m Russian, Bulgarian
Means "son of the priest", derived from Russian and Bulgarian поп (pop).

Popović Croatian, Serbian
Means "son of the priest", derived from Serbo-Croatian pop meaning "priest".

Popovski m Macedonian
Means "son of the priest" in Macedonian.

Porcher English, French
Means "swineherd" from Old French and Middle English porchier, from Latin porcus "pig".

Pottinger English
Occupational name, either for an apothecary, from Old French potecaire, or a seller of stew, from Old French potagier.

Poulin French
Derived from Old French poule meaning "chicken". It was most likely used to denote a person who raised or sold poultry.

Poulsen Danish
Means "son of Poul".

Pound English
Occupational name for a person who kept animals, from Old English pund "animal enclosure".

Powell Welsh, English
Derived from Welsh ap Hywel meaning "son of Hywel".

Prebensen Norwegian, Danish
Means "son of Preben".

Price Welsh
Derived from Welsh ap Rhys, which means "son of Rhys".

Prinsen Dutch
Means "son of the prince", the term prince would have denoted someone who acted in a regal manner.

Pritchard Welsh
From Welsh ap Richard meaning "son of Richard".

Probert Welsh
Derived from Welsh ap Robert, which means "son of Robert".

Prunty Irish
From Irish Ó Proinntigh meaning "descendant of Proinnteach", a given name probably derived from Irish bronntach meaning "generous".

Pugh Welsh
Derived from Welsh ap Hugh meaning "son of Hugh".

Purcell English
From Old French pourcel "piglet", from Latin porcellus, a derivative of porcus "pig". This was a nickname or an occupational name for a swineherd.

Qasımov m Azerbaijani
Means "son of Qasım".

Qodirov m Uzbek, Tajik
Means "son of Qodir".

Quigg Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Cuaig meaning "descendant of Cuaig", a given name of unknown meaning.

Quigley Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Coigligh meaning "descendant of Coigleach", a given name meaning "untidy".

Quinlan Irish
From Irish Ó Caoindealbháin, which means "descendant of Caoindealbhán", a given name meaning "handsome form" (using a diminutive suffix).

Quinn Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Cuinn meaning "descendant of Conn".

Quiñones Spanish
From various Spanish place names derived from quiñón meaning "shared piece of land", derived from Latin quinque "five".

Quirke Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Cuirc meaning "descendant of Corc", a given name meaning "heart".

Quliyev m Azerbaijani
Means "son of Qulu".

Qurbanov m Azerbaijani
Means "son of Qurban".

Qurbonov m Uzbek, Tajik
Means "son of Qurbon".

Rademaker Dutch
From the occupation of rademaker meaning "maker of wheels", from Dutch rad meaning "wheel".

Radev m Bulgarian
Means "son of Rade", a diminutive of Radoslav or Radomir.

Radkov m Bulgarian
Means "son of Radko".

Rafferty Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Rabhartaigh meaning "descendant of Rabhartach". The given name Rabhartach means "flood tide".

Ragno Italian
From a nickname meaning "spider" in Italian.

Ragnvaldsson Swedish
Means "son of Ragnvald".

Ramires Portuguese
Means "son of Ramiro" in Portuguese.

Ramírez Spanish
Means "son of Ramiro" in Spanish.

Rana Italian, Spanish
Means "frog" in Italian and Spanish.

Rapp 2 German
From Middle High German raben meaning "raven", a nickname for a person with black hair.

Rasmussen Danish, Norwegian
Means "son of Rasmus".

Ratti Italian
From Italian ratto meaning "rat", originally denoting a sly individual.

Ravn Danish
Means "raven" in Danish, from Old Norse hrafn.

Ray English
Variant of Rey 1, Rey 2, Rye or Wray.

Reagan Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Riagáin meaning "descendant of Riagán". A famous bearer was the American president Ronald Reagan (1911-2004).

Rebane Estonian
Means "fox" in Estonian.

Reier German
Variant of Reiher.

Reiher German
Means "heron" in German, a nickname for a person with long legs.

Rey 2 English
Means "female roe deer" from Old English ræge, probably denoting someone of a nervous temperament.

Reyer German
Variant of Reiher.

Ricchetti Italian
Diminutive form of Ricci.

Richardson English
Means "son of Richard".

Rigó Hungarian
Means "thrush" in Hungarian.

Riordan Irish
From Irish Ó Ríoghbhárdáin meaning "descendant of Rígbarddán".

Rivero Spanish
Variant of Rivera.

Rivière French
French cognate of Rivers.

Rizzi Italian
Variant of Ricci.

Rizzo Italian
Variant of Ricci.

Robbins English
Derived from the given name Robin.

Roberts English
Means "son of Robert".

Robertsen Danish
Means "son of Robert".

Robertson English
Means "son of Robert".

Róbertsson Icelandic
Means "son of Robert".

Robertsson Swedish
Means "son of Robert".

Robin French
From the given name Robin.

Robinson English
Means "son of Robin".

Robson English
Means "son of Rob".

Rodrigues Portuguese
Means "son of Rodrigo" in Portuguese.

Rodríguez Spanish
Means "son of Rodrigo" in Spanish. This is among the most common surnames in Spain.

Róg Polish
Means "animal horn" in Polish.

Rogerson English
Means "son of Roger".

Rolvsson Norwegian
Means "son of Rolf".

Romanov m Russian
Means "son of Roman". This was the surname of the last dynasty of Russian tsars.

Romeijnsen Dutch
Means "son of Romein" in Dutch.

Romijnsen Dutch
Means "son of Romein" in Dutch.

Rosenfeld German, Jewish
Means "field of roses" in German. As a Jewish surname it is ornamental.

Rotolo Italian
From the Italian word for a measure of weight, from southern Italian dialects, derived from Greek via Arabic.

Ruiz Spanish
Means "son of Ruy" in Spanish.

Ryba u & m Polish, Czech
Means "fish" in Polish and Czech, an occupational name for a fisher.

Rybár m Slovak
Means "fisher" in Slovak, from ryba meaning "fish".

Rybář m Czech
Czech form of Rybár.

Sadıqov m Azerbaijani
Means "son of Sadıq".

Şahin Turkish
Means "hawk" in Turkish (of Persian origin), probably used to refer to someone who was a hawk tamer.

Saidov m Uzbek, Tajik
Means "son of Said".

Salihović Bosnian
Means "son of Salih".

Samuelson English
Means "son of Samuel".

Samuelsson Swedish
Means "son of Samuel".

Sánchez Spanish
Means "son of Sancho".

Sanderson English
Means "son of Alexander".

Sargsyan Armenian
Means "son of Sargis" in Armenian.

Sas Hungarian
Means "eagle" in Hungarian.

Sass Hungarian
Variant of Sas.

Sault French
French cognate of Soto.

Sawyer English
Occupational name meaning "sawer of wood, woodcutter" in Middle English, ultimately from Old English sagu meaning "saw". Mark Twain used it for the main character in his novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876).

Scarlett English
Denoted a person who sold or made clothes made of scarlet, a kind of cloth, possibly derived from Persian سقرلاط (saqrelat).

Schlender German
From Middle High German slinderen "to dawdle" or Middle Low German slinden "to swallow, to eat".

Seegers Dutch
Means "son of Sieger".

Segers Dutch
Means "son of Sieger".

Seghers Dutch
Means "son of Sieger".

Serpico Italian
From a nickname derived from Italian serpe "serpent, reptile".

Seward 2 English
Means "swineherd" from Old English su "sow, female pig" and hierde "herdsman, guardian".

Shannon Irish
From Irish Ó Seanáin meaning "descendant of Seanán".

Sharipov m Uzbek, Tajik
Means "son of Sharif".

Shaw 2 Scottish
From a given name or byname that was derived from Gaelic sitheach meaning "wolf" (Old Irish sídach).

Sheach Scottish
Variant of Shaw 2.

Shen Chinese
From Chinese 申 (shēn) referring to the ancient state of Shen, which existed during the Zhou dynasty.

Shepard English
Variant of Shepherd.

Shepherd English
Occupational name meaning "shepherd, sheep herder", from Old English sceaphyrde.

Sheppard English
Variant of Shepherd.

Sheridan Irish
From the Irish name Ó Sirideáin meaning "descendant of Sirideán". The given name Sirideán possibly means "searcher".

Shin Korean
Korean form of Shen, from Sino-Korean 申 (sin).

Shiratori Japanese
From Japanese 白 (shira) meaning "white" and 鳥 (tori) meaning "bird".

Siegel 1 German
Occupational name for a maker of seals or signet rings, ultimately from Latin sigillum "seal".

Sigurdsson Icelandic, Swedish
Means "son of Sigurður".

Sigurðsson Icelandic
Means "son of Sigurður".

Sikora Polish
Means "tit (bird)" in Polish.

Simeonov m Bulgarian
Means "son of Simeon".

Šimić Croatian
Means "son of Šime".

Simões Portuguese
Means "son of Simão" in Portuguese.

Šimonis m Lithuanian
Means "son of Simonas".

Simonis Dutch
Means "son of Simon 1".

Simonsen Danish, Norwegian
Means "son of Simon 1".

Simonson English
Means "son of Simon 1".

Simpson English
Means "son of Sim", Sim being a medieval short form of Simon 1. This is the name of a fictional American family on the animated television series The Simpsons, starting 1989.

Šimunović Croatian
Means "son of Šimun".

Singh Hindi, Marathi, Nepali, Punjabi, Indian (Sikh)
From Sanskrit सिंह (sinha) meaning "lion". In 1699 Guru Gobind Singh gave all his Sikh male followers the surname Singh and all females Kaur. It is among the most common surnames in India.

Slávik m Slovak
Slovak cognate of Slavík.

Slavík m Czech
Means "nightingale" in Czech.

Slavkov m Bulgarian
Means "son of Slavko".

Sloan Irish
From Irish Ó Sluaghadháin meaning "descendant of Sluaghadhán".

Smagulov m Kazakh
Means "son of Smagul".

Soares Portuguese
Means "son of Suero".

Sobel Jewish
Variant of Sobol.

Soból Polish
Polish cognate of Sobol.

Sobol Ukrainian, Russian, Jewish
Occupational name for a fur trader, from the Slavic word sobolĭ meaning "sable, marten". As a Jewish name it is ornamental.

Sodiqov m Uzbek
Means "son of Sodiq".

Sokal Polish
Polish cognate of Sokol.

Sokół Polish
Polish cognate of Sokol.

Sokol m & u Slovak, Czech, Jewish
From Czech and Slovak sokol meaning "falcon", a nickname or an occupational name for a falconer. As a Jewish name it is ornamental.

Sokoll Jewish
Variant of Sokol.

Sokolof Jewish
Means "son of Sokol".

Sokoloff Jewish
Means "son of Sokol".

Sokolov m Russian, Bulgarian
Means "son of Sokol".

Sokolovsky m Russian
Means "son of Sokol".

Sokołowski m Polish
Usually refers to the city of Sokołów Podlaski in Poland. It may sometimes be derived from Polish sokół meaning "falcon".

Sokolsky Jewish
Means "son of Sokol".

Sólyom Hungarian
Means "hawk, falcon" in Hungarian.

Sørensen Danish, Norwegian
Means "son of Søren".

Soto Spanish
Means "grove of trees, small forest" in Spanish, ultimately from Latin saltus.

Sówka Polish
From a diminutive of Polish sowa meaning "owl".

Specht German
Means "woodpecker" in German.

Speight English
English form of Specht, probably a loanword from German or Dutch.

Spurling English
From Middle English sparewe "sparrow" and the diminutive suffix -ling.

Spyrou Greek
Means "son of Spyros".

Stanev m Bulgarian
Means "son of Stane", Stane being a diminutive of Stanislav.

Stankić Serbian, Croatian
Means "son of Stanko".

Stanković Serbian
Means "son of Stanko".

Steensen Danish
Means "son of Steen".

Stefanidis m Greek
Means "son of Stefanos" in Greek.

Stefanov m Bulgarian, Macedonian
Means "son of Stefan".

Stefanović Serbian
Means "son of Stefan".

Stefansen Danish
Means "son of Stefan".

Stefánsson Icelandic
Means "son of Stefán".

Stefansson Swedish
Means "son of Stefan".

Steffensen Danish
Means "son of Steffen".

Steinsson Icelandic
Means "son of Steinn".

Stephenson English
Means "son of Stephen".

Stigsson Swedish
Means "son of Stig".

Stjepanić Croatian
Means "son of Stjepan".

Stoddard English
Occupational name for a horse keeper, from Old English stod "stallion, stud" and hierde "herder".

Stojanov m Macedonian
Means "son of Stojan".

Stojanović Serbian, Croatian
Means "son of Stojan".

Stojanovski m Macedonian
Means "son of Stojan".

Stolarz Polish
Occupational name from Polish stolarz meaning "joiner, maker of furniture".

Stoyanov m Bulgarian
Means "son of Stoyan".

Strnad m & u Czech, Slovene
Means "bunting (bird)" in Czech and Slovene.

Styles English
Locational name for one who lived near a steep hill, from Old English stigol "stile, set of steps".

Suárez Spanish
Means "son of Suero".

Sulaymanov m Kyrgyz
Means "son of Sulayman".

Suleimenov m Kazakh
Means "son of Suleimen".

Sullivan Irish
Anglicized form of the Irish name Ó Súileabháin meaning "descendant of Súileabhán". The name Súileabhán means "dark eye".

Sultanov m Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Azerbaijani
Means "son of Sultan".

Sultonov m Uzbek, Tajik
Means "son of Sulton".

Svendsen Danish, Norwegian
Means "son of Svend".

Svensen Norwegian
Means "son of Sven".

Svensson Swedish
Means "son of Sven".

Swallow English
From the name of the bird, from Old English swealwe, a nickname for someone who resembled or acted like a swallow.

Sydykov m Kyrgyz
Means "son of Sydyk".

Sýkora m Czech, Slovak
Means "tit (bird)" in Czech and Slovak.

Szarka Hungarian
From Hungarian szarka meaning "magpie", often used as a euphemistic term for a thief.

Szarvas Hungarian
Means "deer" in Hungarian.

Tadić Croatian, Serbian
Means "son of Tadija".

Taggart Irish, Scottish
Anglicized form of Irish Mac an tSagairt meaning "son of the priest". This name comes from a time when the rules of priestly celibacy were not strictly enforced.

Tahirović Bosnian
Means "son of Tahir".

Takeda Japanese
From Japanese 武 (take) meaning "military, martial" and 田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".

Taube German
From a nickname meaning "dove" in German.

Teagan Irish (Rare)
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Tadhgáin meaning "descendant of Tadhgán".

Teague 1 Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Taidhg meaning "descendant of Tadhg".

Teahan Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Téacháin meaning "descendant of Téachán". The given name Téachán possibly means "fugitive".

Teel English
From Middle English tele meaning "teal, duck".

Teke 2 Turkish
Occupational name for a goat herder, from Turkish teke "goat".

Tennison English
Means "son of Denis".

Tennyson English
Means "son of Denis".

Teunissen Dutch
Means "son of Teunis".

Theodorou Greek
Means "son of Theodoros".

Theunissen Dutch
Means "son of Theunis".

Thomassen Norwegian, Danish
Means "son of Thomas".

Thompson English
Means "son of Thomas".

Þórirsson Icelandic
Means "son of Þórir".

Thorsen Danish, Norwegian
Means "son of Thor".

Thrussell English
From Old English þrostle meaning "song thrush", referring to a cheerful person.

Tierney Irish
From Irish Ó Tíghearnaigh meaning "descendant of Tighearnach".

Tilki Turkish
From a nickname meaning "fox" in Turkish.

Tinker English
Occupational name for a mender of kettles, pots and pans. The name could derive from the tinking sound made by light hammering on metal. It is possible that the word comes from the word tin, the material with which the tinker worked.

Tjäder Swedish
Means "wood grouse" in Swedish.

Tod English
Variant of Todd.

Todd English
Means "fox", derived from Middle English todde.

Todorov m Bulgarian, Macedonian
Means "son of Todor".

Tómasson Icelandic
Means "son of Tómas".

Tomasson Swedish
Means "son of Tomas".

Tomić Serbian, Croatian
Means "son of Toma 2".

Tomov m Bulgarian
Means "son of Toma 2".

Torosyan Armenian
Means "son of Toros" in Armenian.

Tracey 2 Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Treasaigh meaning "descendant of Treasach".

Trajkovski m Macedonian
Means "son of Trajko".

Trifonov m Bulgarian, Russian
Means "son of Trifon".

Troelsen Danish
Means "son of Troels".

Trudu Sardinian
Means "thrush" in Sardinian (from Latin turdus).

Tsvetanov m Bulgarian
Means "son of Tsvetan".

Tsvetkov m Bulgarian
Means "son of Tsvetko".

Tuominen Finnish
Derived from Finnish tuomi meaning "bird cherry".

Tupper English
Occupational name for a herdsman, derived from Middle English toupe "ram".

Turnbull English, Scottish
Nickname for someone thought to be strong enough to turn around a bull.

Uccello Italian
Means "bird" in Italian, either a nickname for a person who resembled a bird or an occupational name for a birdcatcher.

Ulfsson Swedish
Means "son of Ulf".

Underhill English
Means "dweller at the foot of a hill", from Old English under and hyll.

Underwood English
Means "dweller at the edge of the woods", from Old English under and wudu.

Utkin m Russian
Derived from Russian утка (utka) meaning "duck".

Vacca Italian
Means "cow" in Italian, originally denoting a person who worked with cattle.

Vaccaro Italian
Occupational name meaning "cowherd" in Italian.

Valdez Spanish
Means "son of Baldo".

Valentini Italian
Means "son of Valentino".

Valentinov m Bulgarian, Russian
Means "son of Valentin".

Valeriev m Bulgarian
Means "son of Valeri".

Vanags m Latvian
Means "hawk" in Latvian.

Vanchev m Bulgarian
Means "son of Vancho".

Vanev m Bulgarian
Means "son of Vane", a diminutive of Ivan.

Vankov m Bulgarian
Means "son of Vanko", a diminutive of Ivan.

Van Leeuwenhoek Dutch
Variant of Leeuwenhoek. A famous bearer of this surname is Antonie van Leeuwenhoek (1632-1723), a pioneer in the field of microscopy.

Vardanyan Armenian
Means "son of Vardan".

Vasilescu Romanian
Means "son of Vasile".

Vasilev m Bulgarian
Means "son of Vasil".

Vasiliauskas m Lithuanian
Means "son of Vasilijus".

Vasiliou Greek
Means "son of Vasilios".

Vasilyev m Russian
Means "son of Vasil".

Vásquez Spanish
Means "son of Vasco".

Vasylyshyn Ukrainian
Means "son of Vasyl".

Velichkov m Bulgarian
Means "son of Velichko".

Vergoossen Dutch
Means "son of Goswin".

Verhoeven Dutch
Means "from the farm" in Dutch, derived from hoeve "farm", and so indicated a person who lived on a farm.

Vernersen Danish
Means "son of Verner".

Vespa Italian
From an Italian nickname meaning "wasp".

Victorsson Swedish
Means "son of Victor".

Vidović Croatian
Means "son of Vid".

Viktorov m Russian, Bulgarian
Means "son of Viktor".

Vilhjálmsson Icelandic
Means "son of Vilhjálmur".

Villalobos Spanish
Habitational name for a person from the town of Villalobos, Spain, which is derived from Spanish villa "town" and lobo "wolf".

Vincent 2 Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Mac Dhuibhinse meaning "son of Duibhinse", a given name meaning "black island".

Vinković Croatian
Means "son of Vinko".

Visscher Dutch
Variant of Visser.

Visser Dutch
Occupational name meaning "fisherman" in Dutch.

Vladimirescu Romanian
Means "son of Vladimir".

Vlček m Czech, Slovak
Diminutive form of Czech and Slovak vlk meaning "wolf".

Vogel German, Dutch
From Old High German and Old Dutch fogal meaning "bird". It was originally an occupational name for a bird catcher, or a nickname for a person who liked to sing.

Vogels Dutch
Variant of Vogel.

Volkov m Russian
Derived from Russian волк (volk) meaning "wolf".

Voronin m Russian
Derived from Russian ворона (vorona) meaning "crow".

Vos Dutch
Dutch cognate of Voss.

Voss German
From Middle Low German vos meaning "fox". It was originally a nickname for a clever person or a person with red hair.

Voß German
Variant of Voss.

Vrabec u & m Croatian, Slovene, Czech, Slovak
Means "sparrow" in several languages, from Old Slavic vorbĭ.

Vrubel m Czech
From a dialectal variant of Czech vrabec "sparrow".

Vũ Vietnamese
Vietnamese form of Wu 2, from Sino-Vietnamese 武 (vũ).

Waldfogel Jewish
Variant of Waldvogel.

Waldvogel German, Jewish
From a nickname for a carefree person, derived from German Wald meaning "forest" and Vogel meaning "bird". As a Jewish name it is ornamental.

Walentowicz Polish
Means "son of Walenty".

Walkenhorst German
Possibly derived from a German place name Falkenhorst, from Falken meaning "falcons" and Horst meaning "thicket".

Walterson English
Means "son of Walter".

Ward 2 Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Mac an Bhaird, which means "son of the bard".