Browse Surnames

Motta Italian
From various names of places around Italy. It is derived from a Gaulish word meaning "hill".

Moya Spanish
From any of various towns named Moya in Spain, of uncertain meaning.

Muggia Italian
From the town of Muggia in northeastern Italy near the Slovenian border. It was called Muglae in Latin.

Murgia Sardinian
Means "brine" in Sardinian, perhaps a nickname for someone who pickled foods.

Mustafa Arabic, Urdu
From the given name Mustafa.

Nagasawa Japanese
From Japanese 長 (naga) meaning "long" and 沢 or 澤 (sawa) meaning "marsh".

Naggia Italian
Variant of Naggi.

Nakagawa Japanese
From Japanese 中 (naka) meaning "middle" and 川 (kawa) meaning "river, stream".

Nakahara Japanese
From Japanese 中 (naka) meaning "middle" and 原 (hara) meaning "field, plain".

Nakajima Japanese
From Japanese 中 (naka) meaning "middle" and 島 (shima) meaning "island".

Nakamura Japanese
From Japanese 中 (naka) meaning "middle" and 村 (mura) meaning "town, village".

Nakashima Japanese
Variant of Nakajima.

Nana Italian
From a diminutive of Giovanni.

Nespola Italian
Variant of Nespoli.

Nicosia Italian
From the name of the town of Nicosia on Sicily.

Nicotera Italian
From the name of the town of Nicotera in Calabria.

Niemelä Finnish
From Finnish niemi meaning "peninsula, cape" with the suffix -la indicating a place.

Nikula Finnish
From the given name Niku, a Finnish form of Nicholas.

Nishikawa Japanese
From Japanese 西 (nishi) meaning "west" and 川 (kawa) meaning "river, stream".

Nishimura Japanese
From Japanese 西 (nishi) meaning "west" and 村 (mura) meaning "town, village".

Nishiyama Japanese
From Japanese 西 (nishi) meaning "west" and 山 (yama) meaning "mountain, hill".

Nizzola Italian
From the name of the Italian town of Nizzola near Modena.

Nogueira Portuguese, Galician
From Portuguese and Galician nogueira meaning "walnut tree", from the Late Latin nucarius, ultimately from Latin nux meaning "nut".

Noguera Spanish, Catalan
Spanish and Catalan form of Nogueira.

Nozawa Japanese
From Japanese 野 (no) meaning "field, wilderness" and 沢 or 澤 (sawa) meaning "marsh".

Obama Luo
From a rare Luo given name meaning "crooked, bent". It was possibly originally given to a baby who had an arm or leg that looked slightly bent immediately after birth or who was born in the breech position.

Ó Buachalla Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Buckley 2.

Ó Carra Irish
Means "descendant of Carra", Carra being a nickname meaning "spear".

Ó Cearmada Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Carmody.

Ochoa Spanish
Spanish form of Otxoa.

Ó Ciardha Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Carey.

Ó Corra Irish
Means "descendant of Corra" in Irish. The given name Corra means "spear".

Ó Cuana Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Cooney.

Ó Donnchadha Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Donoghue.

Ó Foghladha Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Foley.

Ogawa Japanese
From Japanese 小 (o) meaning "small" and 川 (kawa) meaning "river, stream".

Ó Gráda Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Grady.

Ó hAodha Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Hayes 2.

O'Hara Irish
From the Irish Ó hEaghra, which means "descendant of Eaghra", Eaghra being a given name of uncertain origin. Supposedly, the founder of the clan was Eaghra, a 10th-century lord of Luighne. A famous fictional bearer of this surname is Scarlett O'Hara, a character in Margaret Mitchell's Gone With The Wind (1936).

Ó hEachthighearna Irish
Means "descendant of Echthigern" in Irish.

Ó hEaghra Irish
Irish Gaelic form of O'Hara.

Oja Estonian
Means "brook, creek" in Estonian.

Ojala Finnish, Estonian
From Finnish and Estonian oja meaning "ditch, channel, brook" with the suffix -la indicating a place.

Ojeda Spanish
From the name of the Ojeda river in Soria, Spain, possibly derived from Latin folia "leaves".

Okamura Japanese
From Japanese 岡 (oka) meaning "hill, ridge" and 村 (mura) meaning "town, village".

Okumura Japanese
From Japanese 奥 (oku) meaning "inside" and 村 (mura) meaning "town, village".

Ola Basque
From Basque ola meaning "hut, small house, forge".

Olayinka Yoruba
From the given name Olayinka.

Oliveira Portuguese
Means "olive tree" in Portuguese, ultimately from Latin oliva. It indicated a person who lived near or worked with olive trees.

Ó Maol Aodha Irish
Means "descendant of a follower of Saint Aodh". It is derived from Irish maol meaning "follower, servant".

Ó Mathghamhna Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Mahoney.

Ó Meadhra Irish
Means "descendant of Meadhra". The given name Meadhra is derived from the Gaelic meadhar meaning "merry, happy".

Ó Meara Irish
Variant of Ó Meadhra.

Ó Murchadha Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Murphy.

Oprea Romanian
From a medieval given name or nickname derived from Romanian opri meaning "stop".

Orellana Spanish
Originally indicated a person from one of the two towns named Orellana in Badajoz, Spain. Their names are probably derived from Latin Aureliana meaning "of Aurelius".

Ortega Spanish
From a Spanish place name (belonging to various villages) derived from ortiga "nettle".

Ó Séaghdha Irish
Means "descendant of Séaghdha".

O'Shea Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Séaghdha.

Ó Síoda Irish
Means "descendant of Síoda", a byname meaning "silk" in Irish.

Otxoa Basque
From Basque otso meaning "wolf".

Padilla Spanish
From various Spanish place names, derived from Spanish padilla, Latin patella meaning "shallow dish", used to indicate a depression in the landscape.

Palencia Spanish
Habitational name from the city or region of Palencia in northern Spain.

Pantoja Spanish
Originally indicated a person from the town of Pantoja, in Toledo, Spain.

Panza Italian, Literature
From a variant of the Italian word pancia meaning "stomach, paunch", originally a nickname for a chubby person. The Spanish author Miguel de Cervantes used it in his novel Don Quixote (1605), where it is the surname of Don Quixote's squire Sancho Panza. Not a common Spanish surname, Cervantes may have based it directly on the Spanish word panza (a cognate of the Italian word).

Panzavecchia Maltese
From a nickname meaning "old stomach" in Italian.

Parma Italian
From the city of Parma in northern Italy, the name of which is probably of Etruscan origin.

Parra Spanish
Means "vine, trellis" in Spanish.

Pavía Spanish
Spanish form of Pavia.

Pavia Italian
From the name of the city of Pavia in Lombardy, Italy. It is of unknown meaning.

Pecora Italian
Means "sheep" in Italian, an occupational name for a shepherd.

Peltola Finnish
From Finnish pelto meaning "field" with the suffix -la indicating a place.

Peña Spanish
Originally denoted a person who lived near a jutting rock, from Spanish peña meaning "rock, cliff".

Pereira Portuguese, Galician
From Portuguese and Galician pereira meaning "pear tree", ultimately from Latin pirum meaning "pear".

Pereyra Portuguese, Galician
Variant of Pereira.

Perugia Italian
From the name of the city of Perugia in Umbria, Italy. It was known as Perusia in the classical period, and it is of Etruscan origin.

Peura Finnish
Means "deer" in Finnish.

Piazza Italian
Means "plaza" in Italian, indicating that the residence of the original bearer was near the town square. It is derived from Latin platea.

Pineda Spanish, Catalan
Means "pine forest" in Spanish and Catalan.

Pittaluga Italian
Originally a nickname for somebody who steals grapes from vineyards. In the Genoese dialect pittà means "to pick" and uga means "grapes" (uva in Italian).

Plaza Spanish
Spanish cognate of Piazza.

Popa Romanian
From Romanian popă "priest", from Old Church Slavic popŭ. This is the most common surname in Romania.

Porra Catalan
Variant of Porras.

Potenza Italian
From the name of the southern Italian city of Potenza, called Potentia in Latin, meaning "power, force".

Profeta Italian
From Italian profeta meaning "prophet". It probably came from a nickname indicating a person who wanted to predict the future. It is typical of southern Italy.

Prohászka Hungarian
Hungarian form of Procházka.

Provenza Italian
From the name of the Provence region of southern France (in Italian Provenza). It is derived from Latin provincia "province", a territorial division.

Puerta Spanish
Means "door, gate", a topographic name for a person who lived near the gates of the town.

Puga Galician
Means "thorn, prickle" in Galician.

Quaranta Italian
Means "forty" in Italian.

Quesada Spanish
Habitational name from Quesada, a place in Jaén in southern Spain. The place name is of uncertain derivation; it could be connected to Old Spanish requexada meaning "corner, tight spot".

Quijada Spanish
Means "jaw" in Spanish, a nickname for someone with a large jaw.

Quintana Spanish, Catalan
Originally indicated someone who lived on a piece of land where the rent was a fifth of its produce, from Spanish and Catalan quintana "fifth", from Latin quintus.

Quiroga Galician
Originally denoted a person from the town of Quiroga in Galicia, Spain.

Quixada Spanish (Archaic)
Old spelling of Quijada.

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

Ranta Finnish
Originally indicated a person who lived near the shore, from Finnish ranta meaning "shore, beach".

Rantala Finnish
From Finnish ranta meaning "shore, beach" with the suffix -la indicating a place.

Ravenna Italian
From the name of the city of Ravenna in northern Italy, which is of uncertain origin, possibly Etruscan.

Riva Italian
Means "bank, shore" in Italian, from Latin ripa, denoting one who lived by a river or a lake.

Rivera Spanish
From Spanish ribera meaning "bank, shore", from Latin riparius.

Roca Spanish, Catalan, Occitan
Spanish, Catalan and Occitan cognate of Roach.

Rocca Italian
Italian cognate of Roach.

Rocha Portuguese, Galician
Portuguese and Galician cognate of Roach.

Roma Italian
Variant of Romano 2.

Romà Catalan
Catalan form of Romano 1 or Romano 2.

Romagna Italian
From the region of Romagna, on the Adriatic coast of Italy. It is derived from Latin Romania meaning "land of the Romans".

Rompa Dutch
Variant of Van Rompa.

Roosa Dutch
From Dutch roos meaning "rose".

Rosa Italian, Catalan
Italian and Catalan form of Rose 1.

Rózsa Hungarian
From the feminine given name Rózsa.

Rueda Spanish
Spanish cognate of Royer.

Ruzsa Hungarian
Dialectical variant of Rózsa.

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

Sakurada Japanese
From Japanese 桜 (sakura) meaning "cherry blossom" and 田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".

Sala Italian, Spanish, Catalan, Portuguese, Romanian
Occupational name for a worker at a manor house, from the Romance word sala meaning "hall, large room", of Germanic origin.

Salamanca Spanish
Originally indicated a person from Salamanca, a city in western Spain that is of unknown meaning.

Samara 1 Arabic
Meaning unknown.

Samsa Hungarian
Derived from a diminutive of the given name Sámuel.

Sanada Japanese
From Japanese 真 (sana) meaning "real, genuine" and 田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".

Sanna Italian
From Italian sanna or zanna meaning "tusk, fang", a nickname for a person with a protruding tooth. It is especially common on Sardinia.

Santana Spanish, Portuguese
From any of the numerous places named after Saint Anna. A famous bearer is the Mexican-American musician Carlos Santana (1947-).

Sarka Hungarian (Anglicized)
Americanized form of Szarka.

Savona Italian
From the name of the city of Savona in northern Italy, called Savo by the Romans, of uncertain meaning.

Scarpa Italian
Means "shoemaker" from Italian scarpa meaning "shoe".

Sciacca Italian
Originally denoted someone from Sciacca, Sicily, Italy, which is of uncertain origin.

Sciarra Italian
From Sicilian sciarra meaning "quarrel, dispute", originally a nickname for a quarrelsome person.

Scola Italian
From Italian scuola meaning "school".

Segura Spanish, Catalan
From places with names derived from Spanish or Catalan segura meaning "safe, secure".

Seppä Finnish
Means "smith" in Finnish.

Sepúlveda Spanish
Derived from the name of the Sepúlveda Valley in the mountains of Segovia, and was originally used to denote people from that region. It is possibly derived from Spanish sepultar "to bury".

Serizawa Japanese
From Japanese 芹 (seri) meaning "celery" and 沢 or 澤 (sawa) meaning "marsh".

Serra Italian, Portuguese, Catalan
Italian, Portuguese and Catalan cognate of Sierra.

Sessa Italian
Originally indicated a person from from Sessa or Sessa Cilento, Italy (from Latin Suessa, of uncertain meaning).

Sharma Hindi, Marathi, Bengali, Assamese, Gujarati, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Tamil, Nepali
Means "joy, shelter, comfort" in Sanskrit.

Shea Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Séaghdha.

Shibuya Japanese
From Japanese 渋 (shibu) meaning "astringent, rough" and 谷 (ya) meaning "valley".

Shimada Japanese
From Japanese 島 (shima) meaning "island" and 田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".

Shimamura Japanese
From Japanese 島 (shima) meaning "island" and 村 (mura) meaning "town, village".

Shinkawa Japanese
From Japanese 新 (shin) meaning "fresh, new" and 川 (kawa) meaning "river, stream".

Shinoda Japanese
From Japanese 篠 (shino) meaning "dwarf bamboo" and 田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".

Shinohara Japanese
From Japanese 篠 (shino) meaning "dwarf bamboo" and 原 (hara) meaning "field, plain".

Shirakawa Japanese
From Japanese 白 (shira) meaning "white" and 川 (kawa) meaning "river, stream".

Siena Italian
Indicated a person from Siena in Italy, which was named after the Gaulish tribe of the Senones.

Sierra Spanish
Originally indicated a dweller on a hill range or ridge, from Spanish sierra "mountain range", derived from Latin serra "saw".

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

Silva Portuguese, Spanish
From Spanish or Portuguese silva meaning "forest". This is the most common surname in Portugal and Brazil.

Silveira Portuguese
Means "forests" in Portuguese.

Sinagra 1 Italian
Originally denoted a person from Sinagra on Sicily, possibly derived from Latin sinus "inlet" and ager "field".

Sinagra 2 Italian
Derived from the given name Senagora, an Italian form of Xenagoras.

Skała Polish
Polish cognate of Skála.

Somma Italian
From the names of Italian places like Somma Lombardo or Somma Vesuviana, derived from Latin summa meaning "summit".

Sosa Spanish
Spanish form of Sousa.

Sousa Portuguese
Originally indicated someone who lived near the River Sousa in Portugal, possibly derived from Latin salsus "salty" or saxa "rocks".

Souza Portuguese
Variant of Sousa.

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

Spada Italian
Occupational name for an armourer or swordsman, from Italian spada "sword", Latin spatha.

Starosta Polish
Means "mayor, leader, elder" in Polish.

Stoica Romanian
From Romanian stoic meaning "stoic, impassive".

Struna Slovene
From Slovene struna meaning "string, cord", possibly denoting a maker of rope.

Sugimura Japanese
From Japanese 杉 (sugi) meaning "cedar" and 村 (mura) meaning "town, village".

Sugita Japanese
From Japanese 杉 (sugi) meaning "cedar" and 田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".

Sugiura Japanese
From Japanese 杉 (sugi) meaning "cedar" and 浦 (ura) meaning "bay, inlet".

Sugiyama Japanese
From Japanese 杉 (sugi) meaning "cedar" and 山 (yama) meaning "mountain, hill".

Sultana Bengali, Urdu, Maltese
Bengali, Urdu and Maltese form of Sultan.

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

Szweda Polish
Derived from Polish Szwed meaning "Swede, person from Sweden".

Tachibana Japanese
From Japanese 橘 (tachibana) meaning "orange, tangerine".

Takala Finnish
Means "(dweller in the) back", probably denoting someone who lived in a remote area, from Finnish taka.

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

Takenaka Japanese
Means "dweller amongst bamboo", from Japanese 竹 (take) meaning "bamboo" and 中 (naka) meaning "middle".

Tamboia Italian
Possibly means "drummer", from Italian tamburo meaning "drum".

Tamura Japanese
From Japanese 田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy" and 村 (mura) meaning "town, village".

Tanaka Japanese
Means "dweller in the rice fields", from Japanese 田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy" and 中 (naka) meaning "middle".

Tapia Spanish
Means "mud wall" in Spanish.

Taverna Italian
From the place name Taverna, common in different parts of Italy. It means "inn, tavern" in Italian.

Teixeira Portuguese
From Portuguese teixo meaning "yew tree".

Terranova Italian
Means "new land" in Italian.

Tesla Serbian
Occupational name for a carpenter, derived from Serbian tesla meaning "adze". This name was notably borne by the Serbian-American inventor Nikola Tesla (1856-1943).

Testa Italian
From an Italian nickname meaning "head".

Tisza Hungarian
From the river name Tisza, Hungary's second largest river.

Toma Romanian
From the given name Toma 2.

Tomioka Japanese
From Japanese 富 (tomi) meaning "wealth, abundance" and 岡 (oka) meaning "hill, ridge".

Tornincasa Italian
From a medieval Italian name given to a boy born after the death of a previous one, derived from Italian ritorna in casa "come back home".

Toyoda Japanese
From Japanese 豊 (toyo) meaning "bountiful, luxuriant" and 田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy". A famous bearer was Kiichiro Toyoda (1894-1952), founder of Toyota Motor Corporation.

Traversa Italian
Italian form of Travers.

Tschida German
Possibly derived from a Slavic given name of unknown meaning.

Tsukuda Japanese
From Japanese 佃 (tsukuda) meaning "cultivated rice field".

Tsunoda Japanese
From Japanese 角 (tsuno) meaning "point, corner" and 田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".

Ubiña Basque
Possibly a variant of Urbina.

Uchimura Japanese
From Japanese 内 (uchi) meaning "inside" and 村 (mura) meaning "town, village".

Uchiyama Japanese
From Japanese 内 (uchi) meaning "inside" and 山 (yama) meaning "mountain, hill".

Ueda Japanese
From Japanese 上 (ue) meaning "above, top, upper" and 田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".

Uehara Japanese
From Japanese 上 (ue) meaning "above, top, upper" and 原 (hara) meaning "field, plain".

Urbina Basque
Derived from Basque ur "water" and bi "two", indicating a place where two waterways met.

Ureña Spanish
Probably derived from the name of Urueña, a town in the province of Valladolid, Spain, which is of unknown meaning.

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

Văduva Romanian
From Romanian văduvă meaning "widow".

Valencia Spanish
From the name of the Spanish city of Valencia.

Van Altena Dutch
Variant of Altena.

Van Breda Dutch
Means "from Breda", a city in the province of Noord-Brabant in the Netherlands. It is derived from Dutch breed meaning "wide" and Aa, the name of a river.

Van Rompa Flemish (Rare)
Variant of Van Rompaey.

Varela Spanish
Derived from Spanish vara "stick". It may have originally been given to one who used a stick in his line of work, for example an animal herder.

Varga um Hungarian, Slovak
Occupational name meaning "cobbler" in Hungarian.

Vargha Hungarian
Variant of Varga.

Veenstra Dutch
Derived from Dutch veen meaning "fen, swamp, peat".

Vega Spanish
From Spanish vega meaning "meadow, plain", of Basque origin.

Vela Spanish
Occupational name for a guard, from Spanish vela meaning "watch, vigil".

Vemulakonda Telugu
Indicated a person from the city of Vemula in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India.

Ventimiglia Italian
From the name of the historical Italian city Ventimiglia, now near the French border, ultimately from Latin Albintimilium.

Ventura Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan
From the given name Bonaventura.

Vera Spanish
Means "shore, bank" in Spanish. This was a name for a person who lived near such a feature, or who came from any of the various locations in Spain named Vera or La Vera.

Verona Italian
From the name of the city of Verona, one of the most important historical cities of northern Italy. The meaning of the city's name is uncertain.

Vespa Italian
From an Italian nickname meaning "wasp".

Vida Hungarian
From the given name Vid.

Vieira Portuguese
Denoted a person who came from a Portuguese town by this name, derived from vieria meaning "scallop". The scallop was a symbol of Saint James, and was traditionally worn by pilgrims to the shrine of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia.

Vila Catalan
Catalan form of Villa.

Villa Italian, Spanish
Means "town" in Italian and Spanish, from Latin. It was originally given to a person who came from a town, as opposed to the countryside.

Villalba Spanish
Denoted a person from one of the various Spanish places by this name. It is derived from Spanish villa "town" and alba "white".

Villanueva Spanish
Originally denoted someone who came from one of the various Spanish towns by this name, derived from villa "town" and nueva "new".

Viola Italian
From the given name Viola.

Vukoja Croatian
Derived from the given name Vuk.

Wada Japanese
From Japanese 和 (wa) meaning "harmony, peace" and 田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".

Wattana Thai
From Thai วัฒน (wathan) meaning "culture".

Wojda Polish
Variant of Wojewoda.

Wojewoda Polish
From the Polish title wojewoda meaning "governor, voivode" (originally meaning "warlord").

Wojewódka Polish
Variant of Wojewoda.

Wrona Polish
Derived from Polish wrona meaning "crow".

Yamada Japanese
From Japanese 山 (yama) meaning "mountain" and 田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".

Yamashita Japanese
From Japanese 山 (yama) meaning "mountain" and 下 (shita) meaning "under, below".

Yasuda Japanese
From Japanese 安 (yasu) meaning "peace, quiet" or 保 (yasu) meaning "protect, maintain" and 田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".

Ybarra Spanish, Basque
Variant of Ibarra.

Yokota Japanese
From Japanese 横 (yoko) meaning "beside, next to" and 田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".

Yoshida Japanese
From Japanese 吉 (yoshi) meaning "good luck" and 田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".

Yoshinaga Japanese
From Japanese 吉 (yoshi) meaning "good luck" and 永 (naga) meaning "perpetual, eternal".

Yoshioka Japanese
From Japanese 吉 (yoshi) meaning "good luck" and 岡 (oka) meaning "hill, ridge".

Yukimura Japanese
From Japanese 雪 (yuki) meaning "snow" and 村 (mura) meaning "town, village".

Zabala Basque
Originally denoted someone who lived in a place of this name in Biscay. It is derived from Basque zabal meaning "large, wide".

Zappa Italian
From Italian zappa meaning "hoe, mattock", probably denoting a farmer. Two musicians of Italian origin have bore this name: Francesco Zappa (1717-1803) and Frank Zappa (1940-1993).

Zavala Spanish
Variant of Zabala.

Zawisza Polish
Derived from the Old Polish given name Zawisza.

Zima mu Czech, Slovak, Polish, Russian
From an Old Slavic word meaning "winter". This may have been a nickname for a person with a chilly personality.

Zubizarreta Basque
Means "old bridge", from Basque zubia "bridge" and zahar "old". A famous bearer is the Spanish soccer player Andoni Zubizarreta (1961-).

Zuñiga Basque
From the name of a Spanish town, formerly named Estuniga in Basque, possibly derived from Basque istuin "channel, strait".

Zyma Ukrainian
Ukrainian form of Zima.