Aaij DutchDerived from the given name
Aaij, a short form of
Adriaan and other names.
Aaldenberg DutchOriginally denoted a person who came from an uncertain place called
Aaldenberg, meaning "old mountain".
Aalto FinnishFrom Finnish
aalto meaning
"wave". A famous bearer was Finnish architect Alvar Aalto (1898-1976).
Aarden DutchFrom Dutch
aarden meaning
"earthen, clay". It denoted a person who worked with clay.
Aarle DutchDenoted a person who hailed from a place of this name in the Netherlands, or from Arlon in Belgium (which is
Aarlen in Dutch).
Abano ItalianOriginally denoted a person from the town of Abano, Latin
Aponus, which was derived from the old Celtic root
ab meaning "water".
Abarca SpanishFrom the name of a type of leather-soled shoe or sandal made on the Balearic Islands. It originally indicated a person who made or sold this item.
Abascal SpanishMeans
"priest's street" from Basque
abas "priest" and
kale "street".
Abasolo BasqueMeans
"priest's meadow" from Basque
abas "priest" and
solo "meadow".
Abate ItalianFrom Italian
abate meaning
"abbot, priest", derived via Latin and Greek from an Aramaic word meaning "father". This was used either as a nickname or an occupational name for a worker in a priest's house.
Abbadelli ItalianMeans
"little abbot" from Italian
abate and the diminutive suffix
-elli.
Abbaticchio ItalianMeans
"little abbot" from Italian
abate and the diminutive suffix
-icchio, from Latin
-iculus.
Abbey EnglishIndicated a person who lived near an abbey or worked in an abbey, from Middle English
abbeye.
Abbiati ItalianOriginally a name for a person from the city of Abbiategrasso, near Milan in Italy, called
Abiatum in Latin.
Abe 1 JapaneseFrom Japanese
安 (a) meaning "peace" and
倍 (be) meaning "multiple times".
Abe 2 JapaneseFrom Japanese
安 (a) meaning "peace" and
部 (be) meaning "part, section".
Abélard HistoryAdopted by the 12th-century French philosopher Pierre le Pallet, thereafter known as Pierre Abélard (or Peter Abelard in English). It is not certain how he contrived it. Possibly he was inspired by the given name
Abel.
Abelló CatalanFrom the Latin given name
Abellio, which may have been derived from the name of a Pyrenean god.
Åberg SwedishFrom Swedish
å meaning "river, stream" and
berg meaning "mountain".
Abney EnglishFrom the name of a town in Derbyshire, derived from Old English meaning "Abba's island".
Abspoel DutchFrom
Abtspoel, the name of an estate near Oegstgeest in South Holland, meaning
"abbot's pool".
Acciai ItalianDerived from medieval Italian
accia meaning
"axe", ultimately from Latin
ascia.
Acconcio ItalianFrom the medieval Italian given names
Accuntius or
Acconcius, of uncertain meaning.
Acerbi ItalianFrom Italian
acerbo meaning
"bitter, harsh, severe".
Achterberg Dutch, GermanFrom the name of various places in the Netherlands and Germany, for example the village of
achterberg in Utrecht. The place names are derived from Low German
achter "behind" and
berg "mountain, hill".
Achterkamp DutchFrom the name of various places in the Netherlands, derived from Low German
achter "behind" and
kamp "field".
Achthoven DutchDenoted a person from various towns in the Netherlands called Achthoven, which is derived from Dutch
acht "eight" and
hoven "farmsteads".
Acker German, EnglishDenoted a person who lived near a field, derived from Middle English
aker or Middle High German
acker meaning "field".
Ackerman EnglishMeans
"ploughman", derived from Middle English
aker "field" and
man.
Ackermann GermanDenoted a person who lived near a field, from Middle High German
acker "field" and
man "man".
Acone ItalianPossibly from the name of a harbour in Bithynia (in modern Turkey).
Acqua ItalianMeans
"water" in Italian, indicating one who dwelt by or transported water.
Acquafredda ItalianDenoted a person who came from one of the various places in Italy with this name, derived from Italian meaning "cold water".
Acquarone ItalianMeaning uncertain, possibly from a place name or an occupation derived from Italian
acqua "water".
Acquati ItalianFrom the name of a village, part of the city of Lecco in Lombardy. Its name is presumably derived from Italian
acqua "water".
Addario ItalianDerived from the given name
Addarius, of unknown meaning.
Adenauer GermanDenoted a person from the town of Adenau in Germany. The name of the town is of uncertain etymology.
Adesso ItalianPerhaps a nickname for a punctual or fast person, from Italian
adesso meaning
"now, at this moment".
Adrichem DutchFrom the name of an estate and castle (demolished in 1812) that was formerly in North Holland, the Netherlands. It means "Adrik's home".
Affini ItalianFrom Latin
affinis meaning
"neighbouring, kindred".
Afolayan YorubaMeans
"walks like a wealthy person, walks with confidence" in Yoruba.
Agani ItalianMeans
"son of Agano", a given name of unknown meaning.
Aggio ItalianPossibly from the name
Aggius, probably related to the Germanic name
Agi.
Agli ItalianFrom place names like
Agliè,
Aglietti,
Agliana and
Agliate, all originating from the Latin name
Allius or
Alleius.
Agnelli ItalianFrom Italian
agnello meaning
"lamb" (ultimately from Latin
agnus), denoting a pious or timid person.
Agnusdei ItalianFrom Latin
Agnus Dei meaning
"lamb of God". This was a nickname for someone who was particularly religious or someone who wore this symbol.
Agramunt CatalanOriginally denoted a person from the town of Agramunt, Spain. It means "field hill" in Catalan.
Agua SpanishMeans
"water" in Spanish, indicating a person who lived near water or worked with water.
Aguado SpanishDerived from Spanish
agua "water", indicating a person who lived near water or worked with water.
Aguilar SpanishFrom a place name that was derived from Spanish
águila meaning
"eagle", ultimately from Latin
aquila.
Aguilera SpanishFrom a place name that was derived from Spanish
aguilera meaning
"eagle's nest". A famous bearer is American singer Christina Aguilera (1980-).
Aguirre SpanishFrom Basque
ageri meaning
"open, cleared, prominent", originally given to a peron who lived in an open area.
Ahlberg SwedishOrnamental name derived from Swedish
al (Old Norse
ǫlr) meaning "alder" and
berg meaning "mountain".
Ahlgren SwedishOrnamental name derived from Swedish
al (Old Norse
ǫlr) meaning "alder" and
gren (Old Norse
grein) meaning "branch".
Ahlström SwedishOrnamental name derived from Swedish
al (Old Norse
ǫlr) meaning "alder" and
ström (Old Norse
straumr) meaning "stream".
Aiello ItalianFrom various place names in Italy, such as Aiello del Friuli, Aiello del Sabato and others. They are derived from Latin
agellus meaning "little field".
Aikawa JapaneseFrom Japanese
相 (ai) meaning "mutually, together",
愛 (ai) meaning "love, affection" or
哀 (ai) meaning "grief, sorrow" combined with
川 (kawa) or
河 (kawa) both meaning "river, stream".
Ainsley ScottishFrom a place name: either Annesley in Nottinghamshire or Ansley in Warwickshire. The place names themselves derive from Old English
anne "alone, solitary" or
ansetl "hermitage" and
leah "woodland, clearing".
Ainsworth EnglishHabitational name for a person from the village of Ainsworth near Manchester, itself from the Old English given name
Ægen and
worþ meaning "enclosure".
Aita ItalianOriginally denoted a person from Aieta, Italy, a place name derived from Greek
ἀετός (aetos) meaning "eagle".
Akai JapaneseFrom Japanese
赤 (aka) meaning "red" and
井 (i) meaning "well, mine shaft, pit".
Akkersdijk DutchOriginally denoted a person from the town of Akkersdijk, near Delft in the Netherlands. It means "field by the dyke" in Dutch.
Aksoy TurkishFrom Turkish
ak "white" and
soy "lineage, ancestry".
Alagona ItalianFrom the name of the Spanish region of Aragon, which was a medieval kingdom. The region was named for a river, which was itself derived from an Indo-European root meaning "water".
Albero ItalianFrom Italian
albero meaning
"tree", ultimately from Latin
arbor, referring to someone who lived in the woods or worked as a woodcutter.
Albronda DutchFrom the name of various streets in the Netherlands.
Albuquerque PortugueseFrom the name of the Spanish town of Alburquerque, near the Portuguese border in the province of Badajoz. It is probably derived from Latin
alba quercus meaning "white oak".
Aldana BasqueFrom the name of a Basque town, derived from
aldats meaning
"slope".
Aldenkamp DutchPossibly from an unknown place name meaning "old field" in Dutch.
Alderisi ItalianMeans
"son of Alderissius", a Latinized form of a Germanic name of unknown meaning.
Alderliesten DutchFrom Dutch
allerliefste meaning
"most dearest". This name could have referred to the nature of the person or perhaps a phrase the person commonly used.
Aleppo ItalianFrom the name of the Syrian city of Aleppo, which is from Arabic
خالاب (Khālāb), of uncertain meaning.
Alfaro SpanishOriginally denoted someone who was from the city of Alfaro in La Rioja, Spain. It is possibly derived from Arabic meaning "the watchtower".
Alfarsi ArabicMeans
"the Persian" in Arabic, derived from Arabic
فارس (Fāris) meaning "Persia".
Allaway ScottishFrom a Scottish place name, itself derived from
alla "wild" and
mhagh "field".
Allegri ItalianFrom an Italian nickname derived from
allegro meaning
"quick, lively".