Browse Surnames

Albring Dutch
Variant of Alberink.

Snyder English, Dutch (Anglicized), German (Anglicized)
Means "tailor", derived from Middle English snithen "to cut". In many cases this is an Anglicized form of Snijder or Schneider.

Downer English
Name for someone who lived on or near a down, which is an English word meaning "hill".

Wegner Low German
Low German variant of Wagner.

Brogan Irish
Occupational name derived from Irish bróg meaning "shoe".

Bieber German, Jewish
From Middle High German biber meaning "beaver", possibly a nickname for a hard worker.

Kyler Dutch (Anglicized)
Anglicized form of Cuyler.

Albertson English
Means "son of Albert".

Artz Dutch
Means "son of Aart".

Lawson English
Means "son of Laurence 1".

Reenberg Danish
Meaning unknown. The second element is probably from Old Norse berg "mountain" (modern Danish bjerg).

Gebara Basque
Habitational name for someone who lived in Gebara, a village in the province of Álava in Spain.

Wörnhör German
From the given name Werner.

Mendelssohn Jewish
Means "son of Mendel".

Keys 2 Irish
Anglicized form of Mac Aodha.

Bueno Spanish
From a nickname meaning "good" in Spanish.

Murdock Irish
Derived from the given name Murchadh.

Forester English
Denoted a keeper or one in charge of a forest, or one who has charge of growing timber in a forest (see Forest).

Himura Japanese
From Japanese 緋 (hi) meaning "scarlet, dark red" and 村 (mura) meaning "town, village".

Okabe Japanese
From Japanese 岡 (oka) meaning "hill, ridge" and 部 (be) meaning "part, section".

Alden English
Derived from the Old English given name Ealdwine.

MacGuire Irish
Variant of McGuire.

Kinley Scottish
Anglicized form of MacFhionnlaigh.

Aikema Frisian
Means "son of Aike".

Kohl German
Derived from Middle High German kol "cabbage".

Abbatelli Italian
Variant of Abbadelli.

Blau German
Means "blue" in German, most likely used to refer to a person who wore blue clothes.

Hidaka Japanese
From Japanese 日 (hi) meaning "sun, day" and 高 (taka) meaning "tall, high".

Driessen Dutch
Means "son of Dries".

Van der Venne Dutch
Variant of Van der Veen.

Bull English
From a nickname for a person who acted like a bull.

Orlando Italian
Derived from the given name Orlando.

Pearson English
Variant of Pierson.

Yuen Chinese (Cantonese)
Cantonese romanization of Ruan.

Aarle Dutch
Denoted a person who hailed from a place of this name in the Netherlands, or from Arlon in Belgium (which is Aarlen in Dutch).

Harmon English
From the given name Herman.

Schenck German
Variant of Schenk.

French English
Originally denoted a French person, from Middle English Frensch, Old English Frencisc.

Ellery English
From the medieval masculine name Hilary.

Mizuno Japanese
From Japanese 水 (mizu) meaning "water" and 野 (no) meaning "field, wilderness".

Romero Spanish
Derived from Spanish romero meaning "pilgrim to Rome".

Abbate Italian
Variant of Abate.

Rollins English
From a diminutive of the given name Roland.

Bunschoten Dutch
Originally indicated a person from the Dutch town of Bunschoten, which might mean "raised, enclosed land".

Jansen Dutch, Norwegian
Means "son of Jan 1". This is the second most common Dutch surname.

Salas Spanish
Variant of Sala.

Beckert German
Variant of Becker.

Jäger German
Means "hunter" in German, from Old High German jagon meaning "to hunt".

Tamboli Marathi
From the Sanskrit word ताम्बूल (tāmbūla) meaning "betel leaves". These leaves are used in rituals and worship, and the name was originally given to a person who grew or sold them.

Bell 2 English
Derived from the given name Bel, a medieval short form of Isabel.

Seghers Dutch
Means "son of Sieger".

Espinoza Spanish
Variant of Espinosa.

Sowards English, Irish
Possibly a variant of Seward 1 or Seward 3.

Fujimura Japanese
From Japanese 藤 (fuji) meaning "wisteria" and 村 (mura) meaning "town, village".

Baardwijk Dutch
From the name of a town in the Netherlands, possibly from Baard, a variant of Bert, and wijk meaning "neighbourhood, district".

Sipos Hungarian
Occupational name for a fife player or piper, from Hungarian síp "whistle, pipe".

Austin English
Derived from the given name Austin.

Capella Catalan
Catalan form of Kappel.

Jakeman English
Means "servant of Jack".

Brunet French
From a diminutive of French brun meaning "brown".

Mousavi Persian
From the given name Mousa.

Martins English, Portuguese
Derived from the given name Martin.

Johannessen Norwegian, Danish
Means "son of Johannes".

Ambrosi Italian
Means "son of Ambrogio".

O'Shaughnessy Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Seachnasaigh.

Mondadori Italian
From Italian mondatore meaning "weeder". This was an occupational name for someone who kept fields clear of weeds.

Antonelli Italian
Means "son of Antonello".

Maddox Welsh
Derived from the given name Madoc.

Langdon English
Derived from the name of various places, of Old English origin meaning "long hill" (effectively "ridge").

Schirmer German
Means "fencer, fencing master", from Old High German skirmen meaning "to defend".

Török Hungarian
Means "Turkish" in Hungarian.

Waller 3 English
From Old English wille meaning "well, spring, water hole".

Olander Swedish
Denoted someone from the islands of Öland (eastern Sweden) or Åland (western Finland).

Nguyễn Vietnamese
Vietnamese form of Ruan, from Sino-Vietnamese 阮 (nguyễn). This is the most common Vietnamese surname, accounting for over a third of the population.

Beckett English
Originally a diminutive of Beck 1 or Beck 3.

Urano Japanese
From Japanese 浦 (ura) meaning "bay, inlet" and 野 (no) meaning "field, wilderness".

Okazaki Japanese
From Japanese 岡 (oka) meaning "hill, ridge" and 崎 (saki) meaning "cape, peninsula".

Adriaansen Dutch
Means "son of Adriaan".

Sierżant Polish
Polish cognate of Sergeant.

Stalin History
Surname adopted by the Russian leader Joseph Stalin (1878-1953) during his revolutionary years. He was an ethnic Georgian, born as Ioseb Jughashvili. He derived it from Russian сталь (stal) meaning "steel".

Kedves Hungarian
Means "nice, kind" in Hungarian.

Barišić Croatian
Patronymic derived from a diminutive of Bartol.

Anthonsen Danish, Norwegian
Variant of Antonsen.

Aquila Italian
From a nickname meaning "eagle" in Italian.

Kaur Indian (Sikh)
Means "princess", ultimately from Sanskrit कुमारी (kumārī) meaning "girl". In 1699 Guru Gobind Singh gave all his Sikh female followers the surname Kaur and all males Singh. In many instances, it is also used as a middle name with the family name serving as the surname.

Yates English
From Old English geat meaning "gate", a name for a gatekeeper or someone who lived near a gate.

Stacy English
Derived from Stace, a medieval form of Eustace.

Micheli Italian
From the given name Michele 1.

Herczeg Hungarian
Hungarian form of Herzog.

Mann German, English
From a nickname meaning "man". This may have originally been given in order to distinguish the bearer from a younger person with the same name.

Harrelson English
Means "son of Harold". A famous bearer of this surname is the American actor Woody Harrelson (1961-).

Nishitani Japanese
From Japanese 西 (nishi) meaning "west" and 谷 (tani) meaning "valley".

Ó Cinnéidigh Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Kennedy.

Käufer German
Variant of Kaufer.

Brisbois French
Referred to a person who cleared land, from Old French briser "to cut" and bois "forest".

Imai Japanese
From Japanese 今 (ima) meaning "now, present" and 井 (i) meaning "well, mine shaft, pit".

Papakonstantinou Greek
Means "son of Konstantinos the priest", from Greek πάπας (papas) combined with the given name Konstantinos.

Malone Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Maoil Eoin meaning "descendant of a disciple of Saint John".

Todorović Serbian
Means "son of Todor".

Nyqvist Swedish
From Swedish ny (Old Norse nýr) meaning "new" and qvist (Old Norse kvistr) meaning "twig, branch".

Mac Uileagóid Irish
Irish Gaelic form of McElligott.

Ardiccioni Italian
Means "son of Ardiccione", a derivative of Ardito.

Ruud Norwegian
Derived from Old Norse ruð meaning "cleared land".

Lamarre French
Variant of Lamar.

Cojocaru Romanian
From Romanian cojoc meaning "sheepskin coat". This was an occupational name for a maker of these coats.

Ikin English
Derived from a diminutive of the medieval given name Ida.

Romijnsen Dutch
Means "son of Romein" in Dutch.

Jacobs English, Dutch
Derived from the given name Jacob.

Rounds English
Patronymic derived from Middle English rond meaning "round, plump", ultimately from Latin rotundus.

Kotnik Slovene
From Slovene kot meaning "corner". The name referred to someone who was from a remote area.

Kovách Hungarian
Variant of Kovács.

Berggren Swedish
From Swedish berg meaning "mountain" and gren (Old Norse grein) meaning "branch".

Swindlehurst English
From the place name Swinglehurst in the Forest of Bowland in central Lancashire, derived from Old English swin "swine, pig", hyll "hill" and hyrst "wood, grove".

Belrose French
Variant of Bellerose.

Sault French
French cognate of Soto.

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

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

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

Van Hoorn Dutch
Dutch form of Horn.

Blaine Scottish
From the given name Bláán.

Prichard Welsh
Variant of Pritchard.

Travieso Spanish
Spanish form of Travers.

Braun German
Means "brown" in German.

Iordanou Greek
From the name of the Jordan river, which is from Hebrew יָרַד (yaraḏ) meaning "descend" or "flow down".

Ateljević Serbian
Probably from Hatelji, the name of a town in Serbia, which is of unknown meaning.

Steed English
Occupational name for one who tended horses, derived from Middle English steed, in turn derived from Old English steda meaning "stallion".

Duncan Scottish
From the given name Duncan.

Bone 1 English
Derived from Old French bon meaning "good".

Monet French
Derived from either of the given names Hamon or Edmond. A famous bearer was the French impressionist painter Claude Monet (1840-1926).

Ó Braoin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Breen.

Adamo Italian
Italian form of Adam.

Cullen 2 Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Coileáin or Ó Cuilinn.

Shah Persian, Urdu
Derived from Persian شاه (shāh) meaning "king".

Smythe English
Variant of Smith.

Golob Slovene
Means "pigeon" in Slovene.

Aleshire German (Anglicized)
Anglicized form of Alscher.

Hirsch 1 German
Means "deer, hart" in German. This was a nickname for a person who resembled a deer in some way, or who raised or hunted deer.

Fertig German
Means "ready, prepared" in German.

Smith English
Means "metalworker, blacksmith" from Old English smiþ, related to smitan "to smite, to hit". It is the most common surname in most of the English-speaking world. A famous bearer was the Scottish economist Adam Smith (1723-1790).

Taft English
Variant of Toft.

McMahon Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Mac Mathghamhna meaning "son of Mathgamain".

Geißler German
Variant of Geissler 1 or Geissler 2.

O'Donnell Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Domhnaill meaning "descendant of Domhnall".

Girard French
From the given name Gérard.

Parker English
Means "keeper of the park" in Middle English. It is an occupational name for a person who was a gamekeeper at a medieval park.

Blackwood English, Scottish
From an English place name meaning "black wood".

Cuesta Spanish
Spanish form of Costa.

Kollen Dutch
From the given name Nicolaas.

Gill English
Originally indicated someone who lived near a ravine, from Middle English gil (of Old Norse origin).

Finch English, Literature
From the name of the bird, from Old English finc. It was used by Harper Lee for the surname of lawyer Atticus Finch and his children in her novel To Kill a Mockingbird (1960).

Trask English
Originally indicated a person from Thirsk, North Yorkshire, derived from Old Norse þresk meaning "fen, marsh".

Heikkinen Finnish
From the given name Heikki.

Hill English
Originally given to a person who lived on or near a hill, derived from Old English hyll.

Hovhannisyan Armenian
Means "son of Hovhannes" in Armenian.

Montes Spanish
From Spanish monte "mountain, hill", derived from Latin mons.

De Lange Dutch
Dutch cognate of Long.

Maddison English
Variant of Madison.

Abioye Yoruba
From the given name Abioye.

Vonnegut German
Possibly from the German words von meaning "from, of, by" and gut meaning "good". A famous bearer was the American author Kurt Vonnegut (1922-2007).

McCaig Scottish
Anglicized form of Scottish Gaelic MacThaoig meaning "son of Tadhg".

Michaelson English
Means "son of Michael".

Fava Italian
From Italian fava referring to a type of broad bean.

Quigg Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Cuaig meaning "descendant of Cuaig", a given name of unknown meaning.

O'Berne Irish
Variant of O'Byrne.

Roy 1 French, English
Variant of Rey 1.

Toselli Italian
Diminutive form of Tosi.

Faerber German
Variant of Färber.

Acheson Scottish
Scots form of Atkinson.

Cornett English
Derived from Old French cornet meaning "horn", referring to one who worked as a horn blower.

Wright 2 French (Anglicized)
Americanized form of Droit.

Juárez Spanish
Variant of Suárez.

Ó Deoradháin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Doran.

Stephens English
Derived from the given name Stephen.

Fairchild English
Means "beautiful child" in Middle English.

Zeng Chinese
From Chinese 曾 (zēng) referring to the former state of Zeng, which existed during the Zhou dynasty in what is now Hubei province.

Kerner German
Derived from Old High German kerno "seed", an occupational name for one who sold or planted seeds.

Boehler German
Variant of Böhler.

Albricci Italian
Variant of Alberici.

Matić Croatian
Means "son of Matija".

Morelli Italian
Derived from a diminutive of the given name Mauro.

Baggins Literature
Created by J. R. R. Tolkien for the hobbit Bilbo Baggins, the hero of The Hobbit (1937), and also for his cousin Frodo Baggins, the hero of The Lord of the Rings (1954). He probably derived it from the English word bag. The Baggins family home was called Bag End, and Tolkien himself had an aunt who owned a farm by this name, so that may have been his inspiration. Tolkien used English-like translations of many hobbit names; according to his notes the real hobbit-language form of the surname was Labingi.

Watkins English
Derived from the Middle English given name Wat or Watt, which was a diminutive of the name Walter.

Dexter English
Occupational name meaning "dyer" in Old English (originally this was a feminine word, but it was later applied to men as well).

Braband German
Derived 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.

Stablum Italian
Northern Italian name derived from Latin stabulum meaning "stable".

Schroeter German
Variant of Schröter.

Garza Spanish
Derived from Spanish garza meaning "heron".

Van Veenen Dutch
Variant of Van der Veen.

Mac Aodhagáin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Keegan.

Davidson English
Means "son of David".

Årud Norwegian
From Norwegian å meaning "river, stream" and the archaic word rud meaning "cleared land".

Mills English
Originally given to one who lived near a mill or who worked in a mill, from Middle English mille.

Warren 2 English
Originally denoted a person from the town of La Varenne in Normandy, which may derive from a Gaulish word meaning "sandy soil".

Chase English
Occupational name for a hunter, from Middle English chase "hunt".

Pallesen Danish
Means "son of Palle".

Tuff English
Variant of Tuft.

Meeuwsen Dutch
Derived from the Dutch given name Meeuw, which comes from Bartholomeus (see Bartholomew).

Southers German (Anglicized)
Possibly an Americanized form of Sauter.

Zuiderduin Dutch
Means "southern dune" in Dutch.

Mayer 3 English
Occupational name for a mayor, from Middle English mair, derived via Old French from Latin maior.

Rickard English
From the given name Richard.

Pék Hungarian
Means "baker" in Hungarian.

Reynaud French
From the given name Reynaud.

Owston English
Denoted a person who came from any one of the places in Britain called Ouston or Owston.

Langer German, Jewish
German cognate of Long.

Christinsen English
Means "son of Christian".

Agócs Hungarian
Derived from a diminutive of the given name Ágoston.

Maiella Italian
From the name of the Maiella massif in Abruzzo, Italy.

Teke 1 Turkish
Originally denoted someone from Teke, Turkey.

Vázquez Spanish
Variant of Vásquez.

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.

Foth Low German
From a nickname meaning "foot" in Low German.

Schultheiß German
Variant of Schulz.

Torres Spanish, Portuguese
Name for a person who lived in or near a tower, ultimately from Latin turris.

Rutten Dutch
Derived from the given name Rutger.

Stasyuk Ukrainian
Alternate transcription of Ukrainian Стасюк (see Stasiuk).

Kövér Hungarian
Means "fat" in Hungarian.

Miyake Japanese
From Japanese 三 (mi) meaning "three" and 宅 (yake) meaning "house, home".

Moen Norwegian
Means "the sandy ground" in Norwegian.

Mushyan Armenian
Originally denoted someone who came from the Armenian town of Mushi.

Ripley English
From the name of various English towns, from Old English rippel "grove, thicket" and leah "woodland, clearing". A notable fictional bearer is the character Ellen Ripley from the movie Alien (1979) and its sequels.

Meijer Dutch
Dutch form of Meyer 1.

Corna Italian
Derived from the names of places in northern Italy, especially Lombardy, from a word that means "crag, cliff" in the Lombard dialect.

Brodbeck German
Means "bread baker" from Middle High German brot "bread" and becke "baker".

Ó Treasaigh Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Tracey 2.

Derrickson English
Means "son of Derrick".

Alfredsson Swedish
Means "son of Alfred".

Bondesan Italian
Venetian name derived from the name of the town of Bondeno in northern Italy.

Stavrou Greek
From the given name Stavros.

Heinrich German
Derived from the given name Heinrich.

Siekert German (Rare)
Derived from the given name Sieghard.

Goebel German
Variant of Göbel.

Klerkse Dutch
Variant of De Klerk.

Ardelean Romanian
From the Romanian region of Ardeal, also called Transylvania. It is possibly derived from Hungarian erdő meaning "forest".

Pensak Yiddish
Variant of Penzig.

Langlais French
Means "the Englishman" in French.

MacCrum Scottish
Anglicized form of MacChruim.

Trapani Italian
From the name of the Sicilian city of Trapani, derived from Greek δρεπάνη (drepane) meaning "sickle".

Rasch German
German form of Rask.

Etxebarria Basque
Original Basque form of Echeverría.

Amatore Italian
From the given name Amatore.

Bertrand French
Derived from the given name Bertrand.

Warrick English
Variant of Warwick.

Choe Korean
Alternate transcription of Korean Hangul 최 (see Choi).

Lykke Danish
Means "happiness" in Danish.

Lundin Swedish
Variant of Lund.

Böhm German
Originally indicated a person from the region of Bohemia (Böhmen in German).

Winters English, Dutch
Variant of Winter.

Gheorghe Romanian
Derived from the given name Gheorghe.

Faure Occitan, French
Occitan form of Fèvre.

Farrell Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Fearghail meaning "descendant of Fearghal".

Daniels English
Variant of Daniel.

Rao 2 Italian
Derived from the given name Raul.

Rinaldi Italian
Derived from the given name Rinaldo.

Scavo Italian
Means "serf, slave", from Old Sicilian scavu.

Mateos Spanish
Derived from the given name Mateo.

Barends Dutch
Means "son of Barend".

Poggi Italian
Variant of Poggio.

Ellisson English
Variant of Ellison.

Phillips English
Means "son of Philip".

Winship English
Possibly denoted a person who came from Wincheap Street in Canterbury, England. It is uncertain origin, possibly meaning "wine market" in Old English.

Gosselin French
Derived from a diminutive of the French given name Gosse.

Amsing Dutch
Means "(farm) belonging to Amse" in Dutch.

Freitas Portuguese
Means "broken" in Portuguese, a name for one who lived on broken, stony ground.

Văduva Romanian
From Romanian văduvă meaning "widow".

Courtney English
Variant of Courtenay 1 or Courtenay 2.

Kinsey English
Derived from the given name Cynesige.

Bergamaschi Italian
Originally indicated an inhabitant of the city of Bergamo in Lombardy.

Cremaschi Italian
From the name of the city of Crema in Lombardy, northern Italy.

O'Niall Irish
Variant of O'Neal.

Estévez Spanish
Means "son of Esteban".

Hegedűs Hungarian
Means "fiddler" in Hungarian, from hegedű "violin".

Calvo Spanish, Italian, Portuguese
Means "bald" in Spanish, Italian and Portuguese, from Latin calvus.

Kalmár Hungarian
Occupational name meaning "merchant, shopkeeper" in Hungarian, of German origin.

Gama Portuguese
Probably from a place name derived from Portuguese gama meaning "fallow deer doe", from Latin gammus.

Ó Rodagh Irish
Means "descendant of Rodach" in Irish. The given name Rodach is derived from from Irish rod meaning "spirited, furious".

Andreasen Danish
Means "son of Andreas".

Capela Portuguese
Portuguese form of Kappel.

Zoltánfi Hungarian
Means "son of Zoltán".

Ivarsson Swedish
Means "son of Ivar".

Mohan Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Mocháin meaning "descendant of Mochán".

Borg Swedish
From Swedish borg meaning "fortification, castle".

Nicolosi Italian
From the name of the town Nicolosi on Sicily, itself named for Saint Nicholas.

Làconi Sardinian
From the name of the town of Làconi on Sardinia, Italy.

Buckholtz German (Anglicized)
Anglicized form of Buchholz.

Fèvre French
Occupational name meaning "blacksmith" in Old French, derived from Latin faber.

Darnell 1 English
Derived from Old French darnel, a type of grass.

Szwedko Polish
Variant of Szweda.

Gilroy Irish
Anglicized form of Mac Giolla Ruaidh or Mac Giolla Rí.

Beech 1 English
English cognate of Bach 1.

Rome French, English
English and French form of Romano 2.

Nordin Swedish
Derived from Swedish nord meaning "north" (Old Norse norðr).

Linna Finnish
Means "castle" in Finnish. A famous namesake is Väinö Linna (1920-1992), Finnish author of The Unknown Soldier.

Solberg Norwegian, Swedish
From a place name, derived from Old Norse sól meaning "sun" and berg meaning "mountain". As a Swedish name it may be ornamental.

Pereyra Portuguese, Galician
Variant of Pereira.

Gelashvili Georgian
Means "son of Gela".

Bean English
English cognate of Bohn.

Casas Spanish
From Spanish casa meaning "house", of Latin origin.

Andrés Spanish
Derived from the given name Andrés.

Cruz Spanish, Portuguese
Spanish and Portuguese cognate of Cross.