Blakesley EnglishFrom the name of a town in Northamptonshire, itself meaning "Blæcwulf's meadow" in Old English.
Blæcwulf is a byname meaning "black wolf".
Bleier GermanOccupational name for a worker of lead, derived from German
blei "lead".
Bloodworth EnglishOriginally indicated someone from the town of Blidworth in Nottinghamshire, which was derived from the Old English byname
Blīþa (meaning "happy, blithe") combined with
worð "enclosure".
Bloxham EnglishFrom a place name meaning "Blocca's homestead". The Old English byname
Blocca is of uncertain origin.
Bodrogi HungarianOriginally denoted someone living near the Bodrog, a river in northeastern of Hungary.
Boerefijn DutchPossibly an adaptation of French
beurre fin meaning
"good butter".
Böhler GermanDerived from the name of several German towns called
Boll or
Böhl, meaning "hill".
Böhm GermanOriginally indicated a person from the region of
Bohemia (
Böhmen in German).
Bokor HungarianTopographic name derived from Hungarian
bokor "bush". This is also the name of a village in Hungary.
Bolívar SpanishFrom
Bolibar, the name of a small Basque village, derived from Basque
bolu "mill" and
ibar "meadow". This name was borne by the revolutionary Simón Bolívar (1783-1830).
Bologna ItalianFrom the name of the city of Bologna in northern Italy. It may derive from a Celtic word meaning "settlement".
Bolton EnglishFrom any of the many places in England called Bolton, derived from Old English
bold "house" and
tun "enclosure".
Bondesan ItalianVenetian name derived from the name of the town of Bondeno in northern Italy.
Boon 2 EnglishOriginally indicated a person from the town of Bohon, in Manche in France. The town's name is of unknown origin.
Borde FrenchFrom Old French
bord meaning
"board, plank", derived from Frankish *
bord. This name belonged to a person who lived in a house made of planks.
Borgia ItalianItalian form of
Borja. This was the name of an Italian noble family who were influential during the Renaissance period.
Borgnino ItalianFrom a nickname derived from the Piedmontese dialect word
borgno meaning
"one-eyed". This was the real surname of American actor Ernest Borgnine (1917-2012).
Borgogni ItalianFrom the name of the French region of Burgundy (called Bourgogne in French), which is named after the Germanic tribe the Burgundians, meaning "people from the high land".
Borja SpanishOriginally indicated a person from the Spanish town of Borja in Aragon, derived from Arabic
برْج (burj) meaning "tower".
Botello GalicianOccupational name for a maker of bottles, from Galician
bottela meaning
"bottle".
Botterill EnglishProbably indicated someone from the town of Les Bottereaux in Normandy, itself derived from Old French
bot "toad".
Bouvier FrenchMeans
"cowherd" in French, from Latin
boviarus, a derivative of
bos "cow".
Bowie ScottishAnglicized form of Scottish Gaelic
Buidheach, derived from
buidhe meaning
"yellow". A famous bearer was the American pioneer James Bowie (1796-1836), for whom the bowie knife is named. The British musician David Bowie (1947-2016), born David Robert Jones, took his stage name from the American pioneer (and the knife).
Boyd ScottishFrom the name of the Scottish island of Bute (
Bód in Gaelic), which is of unknown meaning.
Boyko UkrainianOriginally indicated a member of the Boykos, an ethnic group of western Ukraine.
Boyle IrishFrom Irish
Ó Baoighill meaning
"descendant of Baoigheall". The meaning of the given name
Baoigheall is uncertain, but it is thought to be connected to Irish
geall meaning "pledge".
Božić CroatianMeans
"Christmas" in Croatian, a diminutive of
bog meaning "god".
Braband GermanDerived from the name of the region of Brabant in the Netherlands and Belgium. It possibly means "ploughed region" or "marshy region" in Old High German.
Bradford EnglishDerived from the name of the city of Bradford in West Yorkshire, which meant "broad ford" in Old English. This is also the name of other smaller towns in England.
Bradshaw EnglishFrom any of the places by this name in England, derived from Old English
brad "broad" and
sceaga "thicket".
Brady IrishAnglicized form of the Irish name
Ó Brádaigh meaning
"descendant of Brádach". A famous bearer is the American football quarterback Tom Brady (1977-).
Brahms GermanDerived from the given name
Abraham. A famous bearer of this surname was the German composer Johannes Brahms (1833-1897).
Brambilla ItalianDerived from the Italian town of Brembilla in Lombardy, itself named after the Brembo river.
Brandon EnglishFrom the name of various places in England meaning
"hill covered with broom" in Old English.
Breda ItalianFrom the name of a town near Venice, possibly derived from a Lombardic word meaning "field".
Breen IrishAnglicized form of Irish
Ó Braoin meaning
"descendant of Braon", a byname meaning "rain, moisture, drop".
Breisacher GermanOriginally denoted one who came from the town of Breisach, in Germany. The town's name is possibly from a Celtic word meaning "breakwater".
Brennan IrishFrom Irish
Ó Braonáin meaning
"descendant of Braonán", a byname meaning "rain, moisture, drop" (with a diminutive suffix).
Brent EnglishOriginally derived from the name of a hill (or the village nearby) in Somerset, perhaps derived from a Celtic word meaning "hill".
Bretz GermanIndicated a person from the town of Breetz in Brandenburg, Germany. The meaning of the town's name is unknown.
Brigham EnglishOriginally referred to one who came from a town called Brigham, meaning "homestead by the bridge" in Old English. This is the name of towns in Cumberland and Yorkshire.
Brioschi ItalianDerived from the town of Briosco, near Milan. It may be of Lombardic origin.
Bristol EnglishFrom the name of a city in England meaning "the site of the bridge".
Bristow EnglishFrom the name of the city of Bristol, originally
Brycgstow in Old English, meaning "the site of the bridge".
Britton EnglishOriginally given to a person who was a Briton (a Celt of England) or a Breton (an inhabitant of Brittany).
Brivio ItalianFrom the name of the town of Brivio in Lombardy. Supposed it derives from a Celtic word meaning "bridge".
Brock EnglishDerived from Old English
brocc meaning
"badger", ultimately of Celtic origin.
Brontë IrishVariant of
Brunty adopted by the Irish-born Englishman Patrick Brunty (1777-1861) as an adult. He was the father of Charlotte, Emily, and Anne Brontë, each prominent authors.
Brouwer DutchOccupational name for a brewer of beer or ale, Middle Dutch
brouwer.
Broz CroatianDerived from
Broz, a diminutive of
Ambrozije. This was the birth surname of the Yugoslavian dictator Josip Broz Tito (1892-1980).
Bruce ScottishPossibly from the name of the town of Brix in Normandy, which is of unknown meaning. It was brought to Scotland in the 12th century by the Anglo-Norman baron Robert de Brus. It was later borne by his descendant Robert the Bruce, a hero of the 14th century who achieved independence from England and became the king of Scotland.
Brunet FrenchFrom a diminutive of French
brun meaning
"brown".
Buchanan ScottishFrom the name of a region in Stirlingshire, Scotland, which means "house of the canon" in Gaelic.
Buckley 2 IrishFrom Irish
Ó Buachalla meaning
"descendant of Buachaill", a nickname meaning "cowherd, servant".
Budai HungarianOriginally indicated a person from the Hungarian city of
Buda (one of the two cities that were joined to make Budapest in 1873).
Büki HungarianDerived from the name of the Bükk Mountains, which means "beech tree" in Hungarian (probably of Slavic origin).
Bulgari ItalianOriginally denoted a person who came from Bulgaria, which is named after the Turkic tribe of the Bulgars, itself possibly from a Turkic root meaning "mixed".
Bunnag ThaiFrom the name of Bunnag, an 18th-century general of Persian heritage.
Bunschoten DutchOriginally indicated a person from the Dutch town of Bunschoten, which might mean "raised, enclosed land".
Buonarroti ItalianFrom the medieval Italian given name
Buonarroto meaning "good increase". This was the surname of the Renaissance painter and sculptor Michelangelo (1475-1564).
Bureau FrenchFrom Old French
burel, a diminutive of
bure, a type of woollen cloth. It may have originated as a nickname for a person who dressed in the material or as an occupational name for someone who worked with it.
Bureš m CzechDerived from a diminutive of the old Czech given name
Burjan, a derivative of
Jan 1.
Burnett EnglishMeans
"brown" in Middle English, from Old French
brunet, a diminutive of
brun.
Burnham EnglishFrom the name of various towns in England, typically derived from Old English
burna "stream, spring" and
ham "home, settlement".
Burrows EnglishTopographic name derived from Old English
beorg meaning
"hill, mountain" or
burg meaning
"fort". Alternatively, it could come from a compound of
bur "room, cottage, dwelling" and
hus "house".
Busto Spanish, ItalianFrom the name of towns in Spain and Italy, derived from Late Latin
bustum meaning "ox pasture".
Butler English, IrishOccupational name derived from Norman French
butiller "wine steward", ultimately from Late Latin
butticula "bottle". A famous bearer of this surname is the fictional character Rhett Butler, created by Margaret Mitchell for her novel
Gone with the Wind (1936).
Cabello SpanishMeans
"hair" in Spanish, used as a nickname for a person with a large amount of hair.
Cabral PortugueseFrom places named from Late Latin
capralis meaning
"place of goats", derived from Latin
capra meaning "goat".
Cabrera SpanishFrom various place names derived from Late Latin
capraria meaning
"place of goats", from Latin
capra meaning "goat".
Caden IrishFrom Irish
Mac Cadáin meaning
"descendant of Cadán", a given name of unknown meaning.
Cai ChineseFrom Chinese
蔡 (cài) referring to the ancient state of Cai that existed during the Zhou dynasty in what is now Henan province.
Caiazzo ItalianFrom the name of a city near Naples, originally
Caiatia in Latin, a derivative of the given name
Caius.
Caivano ItalianFrom the name of the town of Caivano near Naples, derived from Latin
Calvianum, derived from the Roman cognomen
Calvus.
Calabrese ItalianOriginally given to a person who came from the region of Calabria in southern Italy.
Campana Italian, SpanishOccupational name from Late Latin
campana meaning
"bell", ultimately derived from the Italian region of Campania, where bells were produced.
Campbell ScottishFrom a Gaelic nickname
cam beul meaning
"wry or crooked mouth". The surname was later represented in Latin documents as
de bello campo meaning "of the fair field".
Cannon EnglishFrom the ecclesiastical usage of
canon, referring to a church official or servant who worked in a clergy house.
Cantù ItalianFrom Cantù, an Italian town located in Lombardy, itself of uncertain origin.
Cao ChineseFrom Chinese
曹 (cáo) referring to the ancient state of Cao, which existed during the Zhou dynasty in what is now Shandong province.
Cárdenas SpanishFrom the name of towns in the Spanish provinces of Almería and La Rioja. They are derived from Spanish
cárdeno "blue, purple".
Cardona CatalanFrom the name of a town in Catalonia, of uncertain meaning.
Carlisle EnglishFrom the name of a city in northern England. The city was originally called by the Romans
Luguvalium meaning "stronghold of
Lugus". Later the Brythonic element
ker "fort" was appended to the name of the city.
Carman 1 EnglishOccupational name for a carter, from Middle English
carre "cart" (of Latin origin) and
man "man".
Carmody IrishAnglicized form of Irish
Ó Cearmada meaning
"descendant of Cearmaid", a Gaelic given name.
Carmona SpanishFrom the name of the city of Carmona in Andalusia, Spain. It is possibly derived from Phoenician
𐤒𐤓𐤕 𐤇𐤌𐤍 (Qart Ḥamun) meaning "city of Hammon" (the name of a Carthaginian god, see
Ba'al Hammon).
Carrara ItalianFrom the name of a city in Tuscany famous for its marble quarries. It is probably derived from Late Latin
quadreria meaning "quarry".
Carroll IrishFrom the given name
Cearbhall. A famous bearer was Lewis Carroll (1832-1898), whose real name was Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, the author of
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.
Carson ScottishMeaning uncertain, possibly from the town of Courson in Normandy.
Casas SpanishFrom Spanish
casa meaning
"house", of Latin origin.
Cassano ItalianIndicated a person from any of the various towns named Cassano in Italy.
Cassidy IrishFrom Irish
Ó Caiside meaning
"descendant of Caiside".
Caiside is a given name meaning "curly haired".
Castañeda SpanishHabitational name from any of various places called Castañeda, from a Spanish word meaning
"chesnut grove", itself derived from
castaña meaning "chesnut".
Castilla SpanishOriginally indicated a person from Castile, a region (and medieval kingdom) in Spain. The name of the region is derived from Late Latin
castellum meaning "castle".
Castro Spanish, PortugueseMeans
"castle" in Spanish and Portuguese, referring to one who lived near a castle. A famous bearer was Fidel Castro (1926-2016), revolutionary and president of Cuba.
Catalán SpanishOriginally indicated a person who came from Catalonia, a region of eastern Spain.
Čech m CzechMeans
"Czech". The name was used to differentiate a native of Bohemia from the natives of Silesia, Moravia and other regions that are now part of the Czech Republic.
Cecil WelshFrom the Welsh given name
Seisyll, which was derived from the Roman name
Sextilius, a derivative of
Sextus.
Chadwick EnglishFrom the name of English towns meaning "settlement belonging to
Chad" in Old English.
Chalupník m CzechDerived from Czech
chalupa meaning
"cottage". The name referred to a peasant farmer who owned a very small piece of land.
Chamberlain EnglishOccupational name for one who looked after the inner rooms of a mansion, from Norman French
chambrelain.
Chambers EnglishFrom Old French
chambre meaning
"chamber, room", an occupational name for a person who worked in the inner rooms of a mansion.
Chaplin English, FrenchOccupational name for a chaplain, or perhaps for the servant of one, from Middle English, Old French
chapelain. A famous bearer was the British comic actor Charlie Chaplin (1889-1977).
Chaput FrenchFrom a diminutive of the Old French word
chape meaning
"cloak, hood". The name referred to a person who made, sold or often wore cloaks.
Charbonneau FrenchDerived from a diminutive form of French
charbon "charcoal", a nickname for a person with black hair or a dark complexion.