Chaves Portuguese, SpanishFrom the name of a Portuguese city, derived from the Roman name
Flavius (being named for the emperor Vespasian, whose family name was Flavius).
Chávez SpanishVariant of
Chaves. A famous bearer was the labour leader César Chávez (1927-1993).
Chaykovsky m RussianRussian form of
Chayka. A famous bearer was the Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Chaykovsky (1840-1893), with the surname commonly Romanized as
Tchaikovsky.
Chen ChineseFrom Chinese
陈 (chén) meaning
"exhibit, display, old, ancient" and also referring to the former state of Chen, which existed in what is now Henan province from the 11th to 5th centuries BC.
Cheng 1 ChineseFrom Chinese
程 (chéng) meaning
"rule, order, regulations", also referring to the territory of Cheng (in present-day Henan province) that existed during the Zhou dynasty.
Cheshire EnglishOriginally indicated a person from the county of Cheshire in England. Cheshire is named for its city
Chester.
Chester EnglishFrom the name of a city in England, derived from Latin
castrum "camp, fortress".
Chevrolet FrenchFrom a diminutive of
chèvre meaning
"goat", indicating a person who cultivated goats.
Church EnglishFrom the English word, derived from Old English
cirice, ultimately from Greek
κυριακόν (kyriakon) meaning "(house) of the lord". It probably referred to a person who lived close to a church.
Cingolani ItalianFrom Cingoli, a town in the Marche region of Italy. It is derived from Latin
cingo "surround, ring".
Cino ItalianFrom the given name
Cino, a short form of names ending in
cino.
Cisternino ItalianFrom the name of the town of Cisternino, near the city of Bari in southern Italy.
Čížek m CzechMeans
"siskin" in Czech, referring to a type of bird in the finch family.
Clancy IrishFrom Irish
Mac Fhlannchaidh meaning
"descendant of Flannchadh". The given name
Flannchadh means "red warrior".
Clark EnglishMeans
"cleric" or
"scribe", from Old English
clerec meaning "priest", ultimately from Latin
clericus. A famous bearer was William Clark (1770-1838), an explorer of the west of North America.
Clay EnglishMeans simply
"clay", originally referring to a person who lived near or worked with of clay.
Clayton EnglishFrom the name of various places meaning "clay settlement" in Old English.
Clemens EnglishDerived from the given name
Clement. This was the surname of the author Samuel Clemens (1835-1910), also known as Mark Twain.
Clinton EnglishDerived from the English place name
Glinton, of uncertain meaning, or
Glympton, meaning "settlement on the River Glyme". This surname is borne by former American president Bill Clinton (1946-).
Cochrane ScottishFrom the name of a place in Renfrewshire, Scotland. Its origin is uncertain.
Cody IrishAnglicized form of Irish
Ó Cuidighthigh or
Mac Óda. A famous bearer was the American frontiersman and showman Buffalo Bill Cody (1846-1917).
Coelho PortugueseFrom the Portuguese word for
"rabbit", either a nickname or an occupational name referring to a hunter or seller of rabbits.
Cohen JewishMeans
"priest" from Hebrew
כֹּהֵן (kohen). It originally denoted one of the priestly tribe of Levi.
Cojocaru RomanianFrom Romanian
cojoc meaning
"sheepskin coat". This was an occupational name for a maker of these coats.
Collins 1 IrishAnglicized form of
Ó Coileáin. A famous bearer was Michael Collins, an Irish nationalist leader who was assassinated in 1922.
Colombera ItalianFrom a derivative of Italian
colomba "dove" indicating a house where doves were held.
Colombo ItalianEither from Italian
colomba "dove" indicating a dove keeper, or from the given name
Colombo, which is derived from the same word. This was the Italian surname of the 15th-century explorer Christopher Columbus.
Colt EnglishOccupational name for a keeper of horses, derived from Middle English
colt.
Como 2 ItalianFrom the name of the city of Como in Lombardy, the rival city of Milan during the Middle Ages. Its name may come from a Celtic root meaning "valley".
Comstock EnglishPossibly from the name of the River Culm in Devon, England. This name is seen in the Domesday book as Culmstoke or Colmstoke.
Conner EnglishFrom Middle English
connere meaning
"inspector", an occupational name for an inspector of weights and measures.
Connolly IrishAnglicized form of Irish
Ó Conghalaigh, which means
"descendant of Conghalach".
Conghalach is a nickname meaning "valiant".
Conroy IrishAnglicized form of Irish
Ó Conaire, which means
"descendant of Conaire".
Conaire is a nickname meaning "hound keeper".
Constable EnglishFrom Old French
conestable, ultimately from Latin
comes stabuli meaning "officer of the stable".
Contreras SpanishFrom the name of a town in Burgos, Spain, derived from Late Latin
contraria meaning "area opposite".
Conway Welsh, EnglishFrom the name of the River Conwy in Wales, or the town situated at the mouth of the river. It is possibly derived from Welsh
cyn "foremost" and the common river name suffix
wy.
Cook EnglishDerived from Old English
coc meaning
"cook", ultimately from Latin
coquus. It was an occupational name for a cook, a man who sold cooked meats, or a keeper of an eating house.
Coombs EnglishFrom Old English
cumb meaning
"valley", the name of several places in England.
Cooney IrishFrom Irish
Ó Cuana meaning
"descendant of Cuana".
Cuana probably means "handsome, elegant". The Cooney sept originated in County Tyrone.
Coppola ItalianFrom the name of a type of hat characteristic of Sicily and southern Italy. This surname indicated a person who wore or made these hats. A famous bearer is the filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola (1939-), as well as other members of his extended family also in show business.
Corcoran IrishFrom Irish
Ó Corcráin meaning
"descendant of Corcrán", a given name derived from the Gaelic word
corcair "purple".
Corey EnglishDerived from the Old Norse given name
Kóri, of unknown meaning.
Corleone Sicilian, LiteratureFrom the name of the town of Corleone in Sicily, which is of uncertain meaning. This surname is well known from the novel
The Godfather (1969) by Mario Puzo, as well as the films based on his characters. The story tells how Vito Andolini comes to America from Sicily, receiving the new surname
Corleone at Ellis Island, and starts a criminal empire based in New York.
Corna ItalianDerived from the names of places in northern Italy, especially Lombardy, from a word that means
"crag, cliff" in the Lombard dialect.
Corwin EnglishDerived from Old French
cordoan "leather", ultimately from the name of the Spanish city of Cordova.
Courtenay 1 EnglishFrom the name of towns in France that were originally derivatives of the Gallo-Roman personal name
Curtenus, itself derived from Latin
curtus "short".
Coutts ScottishFrom the name of the town of Cults in Aberdeenshire, derived from a Gaelic word meaning "woods".
Cremaschi ItalianFrom the name of the city of Crema in Lombardy, northern Italy.
Cremona ItalianFrom the Italian city of Cremona, south of Milan, in Lombardy.
Crosby EnglishFrom the name of various towns in England, derived from Old Norse
kross "cross" (a borrowing from Latin
crux) and
býr "farm, settlement".
Crowley 1 IrishFrom the Irish name
Ó Cruadhlaoich meaning
"descendant of Cruadhlaoch", a given name meaning "hardy hero".
Cruyssen DutchFrom the name of a place in the Netherlands, derived from
kruis "cross".
Čtvrtník m CzechDerived from Czech
čtvrtlán meaning
"one quarter of a lán", where a
lán is a medieval Czech measure of land (approximately 18 hectares). The name denoted someone who owned this much land.
Cuéllar SpanishDerived from the name of the town of Cuéllar in the Segovia province of Spain. It may be derived from Latin
collis meaning "hill".
Cullen 1 EnglishFrom the name of the German city of
Cologne, which was derived from Latin
colonia "colony".
Cunha PortugueseFrom any of the numerous places in Portugal called Cunha, possibly from Portuguese
cunha meaning "wedge".
Cunningham 1 ScottishFrom the name of place in the Ayrshire district of Scotland. It possibly comes from Gaelic
cuinneag meaning "milk pail".
Czajkowski m PolishOriginally indicated a person from any of the Polish towns named Czajków, all derived from Polish
czajka meaning "lapwing (bird)".
Dąbrowski m PolishHabitational name for someone from any of the various locations named
Dąbrowa or
Dobrów, derived from Polish
dąb meaning "oak".
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).