Da Gama PortugueseVariant of
Gama. This name was borne by the Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama (c. 1460-1524).
Dahl Norwegian, Swedish, DanishFrom Old Norse
dalr meaning
"valley". A famous of this surname was author Roald Dahl (1916-1990) who is mostly remembered for children's stories such as
Matilda and
Henry Sugar.
Dalí SpanishFrom a given name, itself a diminutive of names beginning with the Old German element
adal meaning "noble". This was the surname of the Spanish surrealist painter Salvador Dalí (1904-1989).
Dallas 2 ScottishFrom the name of a place in Moray, Scotland possibly meaning
"meadow dwelling" in Gaelic.
Dalton EnglishDerived from a place name meaning "valley town" in Old English. A notable bearer of the surname was the English chemist and physicist John Dalton (1766-1844).
Daly IrishAnglicized form of Irish
Ó Dálaigh meaning
"descendant of Dálach".
D'Aramitz FrenchOriginally denoted one who came from Aramits, the name of a town in the French Pyrenees that is possibly derived from Basque
haran meaning "valley".
Darby EnglishFrom the name of the English town
Derby, derived from Old Norse
djúr "animal" and
býr "farm, settlement".
Darcy EnglishFrom Norman French
d'Arcy, originally denoting someone who came from the town of Arcy in La Manche, France. A notable fictional bearer is Fitzwilliam Darcy from Jane Austen's novel
Pride and Prejudice (1813).
Darnell 2 EnglishFrom the name of a town near Sheffield, derived from Old English
derne "hidden" and
halh "nook".
Darrell EnglishOriginally denoted one who came from the town of Airel in Normandy, derived from Late Latin
arealis meaning "open space".
Daubney EnglishFrom any of the various towns in France called Aubigny, derived from the Gallo-Roman personal name
Albinus.
Davis English, ScottishMeans
"son of David". This was the surname of the revolutionary jazz trumpet player Miles Davis (1926-1991).
Dean 2 EnglishOccupational surname meaning
"dean", referring to a person who either was a dean or worked for one. It is from Middle English
deen (ultimately from Latin
decanus meaning "chief of ten").
Debenham EnglishOriginally denoted a person from the town of Debenham in Suffolk, derived from the name of the River Deben (meaning "deep" in Old English) combined with
ham meaning "home, settlement".
Delacroix FrenchMeans
"of the cross" in French. It denoted one who lived near a cross symbol or near a crossroads. A notable bearer was the French painter Eugène Delacroix (1798-1863).
Dempsey IrishAnglicized form of Irish
Ó Díomasaigh meaning
"descendant of Díomasach", a given name meaning "proud".
Deng ChineseFrom Chinese
邓 (dèng) referring to the ancient state of Deng, which existed during the Shang and Zhou dynasties in what is now either Henan or Hubei province. A famous bearer was the Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping (1904-1997).
Denzil EnglishFrom the place name
Denzell, a manor in Cornwall, which is of unknown meaning.
Derrick EnglishDerived from the given name
Derrick (see
Derek). A famous bearer of this surname is the character Stephan Derrick from the German television series
Derrick (1974-1998).
Desmond IrishAnglicized form of Irish
Ó Deasmhumhnaigh meaning "descendant of the man from South Munster", originally indicating a person who came from the region of South Munster (Desmond) in Ireland.
Devereux EnglishIndicated a person from Evreux in France, itself named after the Gaulish tribe of the Eburovices, which was probably derived from a Celtic word meaning "yew".
Devlin IrishAnglicized form of the Irish
Ó Doibhilin meaning
"descendant of Doibhilin", a given name that may be derived from the Gaelic term
dobhail meaning "unlucky".
Dibra AlbanianFrom the Albanian name for the city of Debar in Macedonia, originally given to someone who came from there.
Di Caprio ItalianFrom the name of the island of Capri near Naples, itself possibly derived from Latin
capra meaning "goat" or Greek
κάπρος (kapros) meaning "wild boar".
Dickens EnglishFrom the medieval given name
Dicun, a medieval diminutive of
Dick 1. A famous bearer of this surname was the British author Charles Dickens (1812-1870).
Dickinson EnglishMeans
"son of Dicun",
Dicun being a medieval diminutive of
Dick 1. American poet Emily Dickinson (1830-1886) was a famous bearer.
Disney EnglishMeans
"from Isigny", referring to the town of Isigny in Normandy. This surname was borne by the American animator and filmmaker Walt Disney (1901-1966).
Doherty IrishFrom the Irish
Ó Dochartaigh meaning
"descendant of Dochartach". The byname
Dochartach means "obstructive".
Donaldson EnglishMeans
"son of Donald". A notable bearer is the online personality Jimmy Donaldson (1998-), who goes by the alias MrBeast.
Donnelly IrishFrom Irish
Ó Donnghaile meaning
"descendant of Donnghal". The given name
Donnghal means "brown valour", from
donn "brown" and
gal "valour". This surname is associated with the descendants of Niall of the Nine Hostages.
Doran IrishFrom Irish
Ó Deoradháin meaning
"descendant of Deoradhán", where
Deoradhán is a given name meaning "exile, wanderer".
Dorsey EnglishMeans
"from Orsay", referring to the town of Orsay near Paris, its name deriving from the Latin personal name
Orcius.
Douglas ScottishFrom the name of a town in Lanarkshire, itself named after a tributary of the River Clyde called the Douglas Water, derived from Gaelic
dubh "dark" and
glais "water, river" (an archaic word related to
glas "grey, green"). This was a Scottish Lowland clan, the leaders of which were powerful earls in the medieval period.
Doyle IrishFrom the Irish
Ó Dubhghaill, which means
"descendant of Dubhghall". A famous bearer was Arthur Conan Doyle (1859-1930), the author of the Sherlock Holmes mystery stories.
Draper EnglishOccupational name for a maker or seller of woollen cloth, from Anglo-Norman French
draper (Old French
drapier, an agent derivative of
drap "cloth").
Dresdner GermanOriginally indicated a person who came from the city of Dresden in German.
Dressler GermanMeans
"turner" from Middle High German
dreseler, an agent derivative of
drehen "to turn". A turner was a person who used a lathe to create small objects from wood or bone.
Driscoll IrishFrom Irish
Ó hEidirsceóil meaning
"descendant of the messenger".
Drummond ScottishFrom various Scottish place names that are derived from Gaelic
drumainn, a derivative of
druim meaning
"ridge".
Duffy 1 IrishDerived from Irish
Ó Dubhthaigh meaning
"descendant of Dubthach". Their original homeland was Monaghan where the surname is still the most common; they are also from Donegal and Roscommon.
Dumbledore LiteratureFrom the dialectal English word
dumbledore meaning
"bumblebee". It was used by J. K. Rowling for the headmaster of Hogwarts in her
Harry Potter series of books, first released in 1997.
Dunbar ScottishFrom the name of a town in East Lothian, Scotland, derived from Gaelic
dùn meaning "fort" and
barr meaning "summit", so called from its situation on a rock that projects into the sea.
Durnin IrishFrom Irish
Ó Doirnáin meaning
"descendant of Doirnín", a given name meaning "little fist".
Easton EnglishFrom the name of various places meaning "east town" in Old English.
Eaton EnglishFrom any of the various English towns with this name, derived from Old English
ea "river" and
tun "enclosure, yard, town".
Ebner 1 GermanOriginally indicated a dweller on a flat piece of land, derived from Middle High German
ebene "plateau".
Eccleston EnglishDenoted a person from any of the various places named Eccleston in England, derived from Latin
ecclesia "church" (via Briton) and Old English
tun "enclosure, yard, town".
Edison EnglishMeans
"son of Eda 2" or
"son of Adam". The surname was borne by American inventor Thomas Alva Edison (1847-1931).
Ellington EnglishFrom the name of multiple towns in England. The town's name is derived from the masculine given name
Ella (a short form of Old English names beginning with the elements
ælf meaning "elf" or
eald meaning "old") combined with
tun meaning "enclosure, town".
Ellison EnglishPatronymic form of the English name
Ellis, from the medieval given name
Elis, a vernacular form of
Elijah.
Ellsworth EnglishHabitational name for a person from the town of Elsworth in Cambridgeshire. The town's name is derived from the masculine given name
Ella (a short form of Old English names beginning with the elements
ælf meaning "elf" or
eald meaning "old") combined with
worþ meaning "enclosure".
Ely EnglishFrom the name of a town in eastern England meaning "eel district".
Elzinga DutchProbably from a place name that was a derivative of Dutch
els meaning "alder tree".
Emerson EnglishMeans
"son of Emery". The surname was borne by Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), an American writer and philosopher who wrote about transcendentalism.
Emmet EnglishVariant of
Emmett. This name was borne by the Irish nationalist Robert Emmet (1778-1803).
English EnglishDenoted a person who was of English heritage. It was used to distinguish people who lived in border areas (for example, near Wales or Scotland). It was also used to distinguish an Anglo-Saxon from a Norman.
Escamilla SpanishDerived from the name of the town of Escamilla in Gualadajara, Spain.
Escobar SpanishDerived from Spanish
escoba meaning
"broom plant", from Latin
scopa. It originally indicated a person who lived near a prominent patch of broom.
Esparza SpanishDerived from the Basque place name
Espartza, a town in the province of Navarre.
Espinosa SpanishFrom Spanish
espinoso meaning
"thorny", ultimately from Latin
spinosus, a derivative of
spina meaning "thorn, spine". This was the real surname of the Dutch philosopher Baruch Spinoza (1632-1677), who was of Portuguese Jewish origin.