Browse Surnames

Nyman Swedish
From Swedish ny (Old Norse nýr) meaning "new" and man (Old Norse maðr) meaning "person, man".

Braune German
Variant of Braun.

House English
Referred to a person who lived or worked in a house, as opposed to a smaller hut.

Gouveia Portuguese
From the name of the city of Gouveia in Portugal, of unknown meaning.

Linville English
From an unknown place name.

Harper English
Originally belonged to a person who played the harp or who made harps.

Ruan Chinese
From Chinese 阮 (ruǎn), which refers to a type of musical instrument, similar to a lute.

Rudenko Ukrainian
Derived from Ukrainian рудий (rudy) meaning "red".

Spitznogle German (Anglicized)
Americanized form of Spitznagel.

Lyon 2 English, French
From a nickname derived from Old French and Middle English lion meaning "lion".

Ahmed Arabic, Urdu, Bengali, Indian (Muslim)
Derived from the given name Ahmad.

Steinsson Icelandic
Means "son of Steinn".

Geels Dutch
Variant of Geelen.

Ó Buachalla Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Buckley 2.

Duffy 1 Irish
Derived from Irish Ó Dubhthaigh meaning "descendant of Dubthach". Their original homeland was Monaghan where the surname is still the most common; they are also from Donegal and Roscommon.

Antonsen Norwegian, Danish
Means "son of Anton".

Belrose French
Variant of Bellerose.

Arthur English, French
From the given name Arthur.

Fuhrmann German
Derived from Middle High German vuorman meaning "cartwright".

Attar Persian
From Persian عطر (ʿaṭr) meaning "fragrance, perfume", ultimately from Arabic. It probably denoted a seller of perfume.

Sasaki Japanese
From Japanese 佐 (sa) meaning "help, aid" (repeated, indicated by the iteration mark 々) and 木 (ki) meaning "tree, wood".

Puig Catalan
Catalan cognate of Poggio.

Uesugi Japanese
From Japanese 上 (ue) meaning "above, top, upper" and 杉 (sugi) meaning "cedar".

Sienkiewicz Polish
Patronymic from the given name Sienko, an old diminutive of Szymon. This was the surname of the Polish writer Henryk Sienkiewicz (1846-1916).

Marchi Italian
Derived from the given name Marco.

Van der Zee Dutch
Means "from the sea" in Dutch. The original bearer may have been someone who lived on the coast.

Gregersen Danish, Norwegian
Means "son of Gregers".

Dick English
From the given name Dick 1.

Quixano Spanish (Archaic)
Old spelling of Quijano.

MacCoughlan Irish
Means "son of Cochlán". The given name Cochlán is derived from Irish cochal meaning "cape" or "hood".

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

Nazaretian Armenian
Alternate transcription of Armenian Նազարեթյան (see Nazaretyan).

Rivers English
Denoted a person who lived near a river, from Middle English, from Old French riviere meaning "river", from Latin riparius meaning "riverbank".

Bellandi Italian
Means "son of Bellando", from a medieval given name derived from Latin bellandus meaning "which is to be fought".

Mullen Irish
From the Irish Ó Maoláin meaning "descendant of Maolán". The given name Maolán meant "devotee, servant, tonsured one".

Lombardi Italian
Originally indicated someone who came from the Lombardy region of northern Italy, which was named for the Lombards, a Germanic tribe who invaded in the 6th century. Their name is derived from the Old German roots lang "long" and bart "beard".

Tracy English, Irish
Variant of Tracey 1 or Tracey 2.

Ziętek Polish
Possibly from a diminutive of Polish zięć meaning "son-in-law".

Thompkins English
From a diminutive of the given name Thomas.

Sobel Jewish
Variant of Sobol.

Chester English
From the name of a city in England, derived from Latin castrum "camp, fortress".

Ozolinsh Latvian (Anglicized)
Anglicized form of Ozoliņš.

Merrill 1 English
Derived from the given name Muriel.

Hanigan Irish
Variant of O'Hannagain.

Buchanan Scottish
From the name of a region in Stirlingshire, Scotland, which means "house of the canon" in Gaelic.

Fortunato Italian
From the given name Fortunato.

Harvey English
From the Breton given name Haerviu (see Harvey).

Ibáñez Spanish
Means "son of Ibán".

Allsopp English
From the name of the village of Alsop en la Dale in Derbyshire, England. It means "Ælli's valley" in Old English.

Van Hout Dutch
Variant of Van Houten.

Mayer 4 English
Variant of Myer.

Lu 1 Chinese
From Chinese 吕 (lǚ) meaning "musical note" and also referring to the former state of Lu, which was situated in what is now Henan province.

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

Steffensen Danish
Means "son of Steffen".

Vieth German
From the given name Veit.

Mag Uidhir Irish
Irish Gaelic form of McGuire.

Hutchinson English
Means "son of Huchin", a medieval diminutive of Hugh.

Dickman English
From Old English dic "ditch" combined with man "person, man". It was originally a name for a ditch digger or someone who lived near a ditch.

Hashimoto Japanese
From Japanese 橋 (hashi) meaning "bridge" and 本 (moto) meaning "base, root, origin".

Maas Dutch, Low German
From the given name Maas.

Curtis English
Nickname for a courteous person, derived from Old French curteis meaning "refined, courtly".

Mohamed Arabic
Derived from the given name Muhammad.

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

Fürst German
From a nickname meaning "(sovereign) prince" in German. The word fürst itself is derived from Old High German furisto "first".

Goldschmidt German
Occupational name meaning "goldsmith" in German.

Glöckner German
Derived from Middle High German glocke "bell". It may have referred to a person who worked at or lived close to a bell tower.

Desroches French
Means "from the rocks", from French roche "rock".

Carboni Italian
Variant of Carbone.

Hoedemaekers Dutch
Variant of Hoedemaker.

Ceelen Dutch
Derived from the given name Ceel.

Stoke English
From the name of numerous places in England, derived from Old English stoc meaning "place, dwelling".

Ó Cruadhlaoich Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Crowley 1.

Morgenstern German, Jewish
Ornamental name meaning "morning star" in German.

Bates English
Means "son of Bate".

Forest English, French
Originally belonged to a person who lived near or in a forest. It was probably originally derived, via Old French forest, from Latin forestam (silva) meaning "outer (wood)".

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

Madison English
Means "son of Matthew" or "son of Maud". A famous bearer of this surname was the fourth American president James Madison (1751-1836).

Argall Cornish
From a place name meaning "shelter, quiet place" in Cornish.

Siegel 3 Jewish
Variant of Segal 1.

Mac Giolla Phádraig Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Kilpatrick.

Van Arendonk Dutch
Variant of Arendonk.

Grimaldi Italian
From the given name Grimaldo. It is the surname of the royal family of Monaco, which came from Genoa.

Cardozo Spanish
Variant of Cardoso.

Söderberg Swedish
From Swedish söder (Old Norse suðr) meaning "south" and berg meaning "mountain".

Bennet English
Derived from the medieval English given name Bennett.

Rake English
Originally a name for a dweller on a narrow pass or hillside, from Old English hrace meaning "throat, gorge".

Coppola Italian
From 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.

Mac Mathghamhna Irish
Irish Gaelic form of McMahon.

Norton English
From the name of various towns in England meaning "north town" in Old English.

Paszek Polish
Derived from a diminutive of Paweł.

Kaube German
From the name of the town of Kaub in Germany.

MacQueen Scottish
Anglicized form of Mac Shuibhne.

Schipper Dutch
Occupational name meaning "skipper, ship captain" in Dutch.

Vitali Italian
From the given name Vitale.

Inada Japanese
From Japanese 稲 (ina) meaning "rice plant" and 田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".

Abbatangelo Italian
Variant of Abatangelo.

Byrd English
Variant of Bird.

White English
Originally a nickname for a person who had white hair or a pale complexion, from Old English hwit "white".

Mohren German
Derived from the given name Maurus.

Carran Irish
Variant of Curran.

Ó Maoil Eoin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Malone.

Ó Maoláin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Mullen.

Dabney English
Variant of Daubney.

Dirks Dutch, German
Means "son of Dirk".

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

Cremona Italian
From the Italian city of Cremona, south of Milan, in Lombardy.

Sargsyan Armenian
Means "son of Sargis" in Armenian.

Kishimoto Japanese
From Japanese 岸 (kishi) meaning "beach, shore, bank" and 本 (moto) meaning "base, root, origin".

Sárközy Hungarian
Variant of Sárközi.

Edwards English
Means "son of Edward".

Csintalan Hungarian
Means "mischievous, naughty" in Hungarian.

Assendorp Dutch
From the name of a place called Assendorp, composed of Dutch essen and dorp, meaning "ash tree village".

Johnson English
Means "son of John". Famous bearers include American presidents Andrew Johnson (1808-1875) and Lyndon B. Johnson (1908-1973).

Kästner German
Means "cabinet maker", derived from Middle High German kaste "box".

Trujillo Spanish
Originally denoted a person from Trujillo, Spain, originally called Turgalium in Latin.

Vanhanen Finnish
From Finnish vanha meaning "old".

Meyer 3 English
Variant of Mayer 3.

Fabre Occitan, French
Occitan form of Fèvre.

Lane 3 Irish
From Irish Ó Luain meaning "descendant of Luan", a given name meaning "warrior".

Carlsen Danish, Norwegian
Means "son of Carl".

Ó Fearghail Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Farrell.

Jokela Finnish
Derived from Finnish joki "river".

Wiater Polish
Derived from Polish wiatr "wind", a nickname for a quick person.

Bondar Ukrainian
Means "cooper, barrel maker" in Ukrainian.

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).

Panossian Armenian
Alternate transcription of Armenian Փանոսյան (see Panosyan).

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

Yancy Dutch (Anglicized)
Americanized form of Jansen.

Rinne 2 Finnish
Means "hillside" in Finnish.

Moto Japanese
From Japanese 本 (moto) meaning "base, root, origin". More commonly it is the final character in Japanese surnames.

Heidrich German
From the Old German given name Heidrich.

Ferreira Portuguese, Galician
Denoted a person from a town named because it was near an iron mine, from Latin ferrum meaning "iron".

Manfredi Italian
Derived from the given name Manfredo.

Eichel German
Means "acorn" in German, indicating a person who lived near an oak tree.

Riley 1 English
From the name of the town of Ryley in Lancashire, derived from Old English ryge "rye" and leah "woodland, clearing".

Avraham Jewish
From the given name Abraham.

Molloy Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Maolmhuaidh or Ó Maol Aodha.

Siegel 2 German
Derived from the diminutive of Old German given names beginning with the element sigu meaning "victory".

Aaltonen Finnish
From Finnish aalto meaning "wave".

Danell English
Derived from the given name Daniel.

Hudson English
Means "son of Hudde".

Tehrani Persian
Indicated a person from the Iranian city of Tehran, of unknown meaning.

Emmet English
Variant of Emmett. This name was borne by the Irish nationalist Robert Emmet (1778-1803).

Nespola Italian
Variant of Nespoli.

Hoch German
Means "tall" in German.

Ōshiro Japanese
From Japanese 大 (ō) meaning "big, great" and 城 (shiro) meaning "castle". It is especially common on Okinawa.

Ó Coigligh Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Quigley.

Mazza Italian
From a nickname (perhaps occupational) meaning "maul, mallet" in Italian.

Castellano Spanish
Variant of Castilla.

Lopes Portuguese
Means "son of Lopo" in Portuguese.

Reagan Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Riagáin meaning "descendant of Riagán". A famous bearer was the American president Ronald Reagan (1911-2004).

Steuben German
Name for a dweller by a stump of a large tree, from Middle Low German stubbe "stub".

Kask Estonian
Means "birch" in Estonian.

Mikołajczak Polish
Derived from a diminutive of the given name Mikołaj.

Zentai Hungarian
Originally indicated a person from the city of Senta in Serbia (formerly a part of Hungary and called Zenta).

Van Oorschot Dutch
Variant of Van Oirschot.

Marino Italian, Spanish
Derived from the given name Marino.

Ó Rabhartaigh Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Rafferty.

Radić Serbian, Croatian
Patronymic derived from the given name Rade.

Askes Dutch
Means "son of Aske", a diminutive of Asse.

Meeuwissen Dutch
Variant of Meeuwsen.

Hahn German
From a nickname for a proud or pugnacious person, from Old High German hano meaning "rooster, cock".

De Groot Dutch
From Dutch groot meaning "big, great".

De Santis Italian
Italian form of Santos.

Svensen Norwegian
Means "son of Sven".

Fortier French
Derived from Old French fort "stronghold", indicating a person who lived near or worked at such a place.

Soler Occitan, Catalan
Denoted a person from any of the numerous places in the area whose names derive from Occitan or Catalan soler meaning "ground, floor".

Ellis English, Welsh
Derived from the given name Elijah, or sometimes Elisedd.

Thorne English
Variant of Thorn.

Tse Chinese (Cantonese)
Cantonese romanization of Xie.

Santos Portuguese, Spanish
From Portuguese and Spanish santo meaning "saint", ultimately from Latin sanctus. This was a nickname for a pious person.

McCallum Scottish
Variant form of MacCallum.

Kasprzak Polish
Means "son of Kacper".

Hildebrand German
From the given name Hildebrand.

Wendel German
Derived from the given name Wendel.

Madden Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Madaidhín.

Bambach German
Variant of Baumbach.

Caro Spanish, Italian
From Spanish and Italian caro meaning "beloved".

Jeffries English
Patronymic from the given name Jeffrey.

Van Wijk Dutch
Means "from the settlement", from Dutch wijk meaning "neighbourhood, district, settlement".

Jepson English
Means "son of Jep".

Valentini Italian
Means "son of Valentino".

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

Napoleoni Italian
From the medieval given name Napoleone.

Van Houten Dutch
Means "from forests", derived from Dutch hout "forest".

De Cock Flemish
Flemish cognate of Cook.

Ahmad Arabic, Urdu, Bengali, Indian (Muslim)
Derived from the given name Ahmad.

McKinley Scottish
Anglicized form of MacFhionnlaigh. This name was borne by the American president William McKinley (1843-1901), who was assassinated.

Bianco Italian
Variant of Bianchi.

Glen Scottish
Variant of Glenn.

Aerssens Dutch
Means "son of Arend".

Drechsler German
Variant of Dressler.

Sheach Scottish
Variant of Shaw 2.

Romano 1 Italian
Derived from the given name Romano.

Khatib Arabic
Means "speaker, orator" in Arabic, referring person who delivers sermons.

Traviss English
English variant of Travers.

Couture French
Means "tailor" in Old French.

Desrosiers French
Means "from the rose bushes", from French rosier "rose bush". It probably referred to a person who lived close to, or cared for a rose garden.

Van der Wal Dutch
Means "from the wall" in Dutch.

Kamiya Japanese
From Japanese 神 (kami) meaning "god" and 谷 (ya) meaning "valley".

Stück German, Jewish
From Old High German stucki meaning "piece, part".

Évrard French
From the given name Évrard.

Van Peij Dutch (Rare)
Variant of Van Pey.

Echevarría Spanish
Variant of Echeverría.

Klerk Dutch
Variant of De Klerk.

Blom Swedish
Means "bloom, flower" in Swedish.

Lu 2 Chinese
From Chinese 卢 (lú) meaning "rice bowl, black", also referring to an ancient minor territory in what is now Shandong province.

Farmer English
Occupational name for a tax collector, from Middle English ferme "rent, revenue, provision", from medieval Latin firma, ultimately from Old English feorm. This word did not acquire its modern meaning until the 17th century.

Homewood English
From various place names derived from Old English ham meaning "home" and wudu meaning "wood".

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

Poletti Italian
From a diminutive of the given name Paolo. This name is typical of northern and central Italy.

Blackman English
From a nickname, a variant of Black.

Kolijn Dutch
From the given name Nicolaas.

Ziemniak Polish
Means "potato" in Polish.

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

Kuhn German
Derived from a diminutive of the German given name Konrad.

Wiegand German
From the given name Wiegand.

Dwight English
From the medieval feminine name Diot, a diminutive of Dionysia, the feminine form of Dionysius.

Palmer English
Means "pilgrim", ultimately from Latin palma "palm tree", since pilgrims to the Holy Land often brought back palm fronds as proof of their journey.

Ward 1 English
Derived from Old English weard meaning "guard, guardian".

Domínguez Spanish
Means "son of Domingo".

Walton English
From the name of any of several villages in England, derived from Old English wealh "foreigner, Celt", weald "forest", weall "wall", or wille "well, spring, water hole" combined with tun "enclosure, yard, town".

Capela Portuguese
Portuguese form of Kappel.

Dziedzic Polish
Derived from Polish dziedzic "landowner".

Eads English
Means "son of Eda 2" or "son of Adam".

Booker English
Occupational name meaning "book maker", derived from Old English boc "book".

Christian English, French, German
Derived from the given name Christian.

Jacobson English
Means "son of Jacob".

Beaulieu French
From various French place names derived from beau "beautiful" and lieu "place".

Rogers English
Derived from the given name Roger.

De Luca Italian
Means "son of Luca 1".

Moore 1 English
Originally indicated a person who lived on a moor, from Middle English mor meaning "open land, bog".

Maekawa Japanese
From Japanese 前 (mae) meaning "front, forward" and 川 (kawa) meaning "river, stream".

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

Donohue Irish
Variant of Donoghue.

Yap English
From a nickname for a clever or cunning person, from Middle English yap meaning "devious, deceitful, shrewd".

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

De Witt Dutch
Variant of De Witte.

Hughes 1 English
Patronymic of the given name Hugh.

Sanz Spanish
From the given name Sancho.

Bardolph Literature
The name of a drunken thief and frequent companion of John Falstaff in four of William Shakespeare's plays. Shakespeare probably adapted it from the aristocratic English surname Bardolf, now rare, which was itself derived from the Germanic given name Bardulf.

Van Leeuwenhoek Dutch
Variant of Leeuwenhoek. A famous bearer of this surname is Antonie van Leeuwenhoek (1632-1723), a pioneer in the field of microscopy.

Wirnhier German
From the given name Werner.

Masterson English
Patronymic derived from Middle English maister meaning "master", via Old French from Latin magister.

Golob Slovene
Means "pigeon" in Slovene.

Schweitzer German
Indicated a person from Switzerland (see Schweiz).

Hölzer German
German cognate of Holt.

Klausen Danish
Means "son of Klaus".

Blair Scottish
From any one of several places of this name in Scotland, which derive from Gaelic blàr meaning "plain, field, battlefield".

Kroon Dutch, Estonian
Means "crown" in Dutch and Estonian (from Latin corona).

Portelli Italian
Diminutive form of Porto.

Trevis English
English variant of Travers.

Leon English
Variant of Lyon 1, Lyon 2 or Lyon 3.

Rovigatti Italian
From the name of the city of Rovigo in northeastern Italy near Venice. It was called Rodigium in Latin, and is of unknown meaning.

Falkenrath German
Derived from Middle High German falke "falcon" and rat "counsel, advice".

Acone Italian
Possibly from the name of a harbour in Bithynia (in modern Turkey).

Antonis mu Greek, Dutch
Derived from the given name Antonis or Antonius.

De la Fuente Spanish
Means "of the fountain" in Spanish.

Reece Welsh
Derived from the given name Rhys.

Everest English
Originally denoted a person from Évreux in Normandy, itself named after the Gaulish tribe of the Eburovices. Mount Everest in the Himalayas was named for the British surveyor George Everest (1790-1866).

Szwedko Polish
Variant of Szweda.

Kolbe German
From Middle High German kolbe meaning "club".

Nosek mu Czech, Polish
Means "small nose" in Czech and Polish.

Çelik Turkish
Occupational name for a metalworker, meaning "steel" in Turkish.

Sexton English
Occupational name for a sexton (Middle English sexteyn), a caretaker for a church or graveyard.

Grünewald German
Means "green forest" from German grün "green" and Wald "forest".

Garbutt English
From the given name Gerbold.

Lengyel Hungarian
Means "Polish" in Hungarian.

Van Aarle Dutch
Variant of Aarle.

Vandale Dutch
Variant of Van Dalen.

Kazama Japanese
From Japanese 風 (kaza) meaning "wind, style" and 間 (ma) meaning "among, between".

Espinoza Spanish
Variant of Espinosa.

Outterridge English
Derived from the Old English given name Uhtric.

Accorsi Italian
From the given name Bonaccorso.

Lorenzo Spanish
From the given name Lorenzo.

Huddleson English
Means "son of Hudel", a diminutive of Hudde.

Mostafa Arabic
From the given name Mustafa.

D'Antonio Italian
Means "son of Antonio".

Jurković Croatian
Patronymic derived from a diminutive of Jure.

Csorba Hungarian
From a nickname meaning "chipped, jagged" in Hungarian.

Arnolfi Italian
Means "son of Arnolfo".

Kralj Slovene, Croatian, Serbian
Slovene, Croatian and Serbian form of Król.

Lager Swedish
Means "laurel" in Swedish.

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

Hackett English
From a diminutive of the medieval byname Hake, which was of Old Norse origin and meant "hook".

Reiher German
Means "heron" in German, a nickname for a person with long legs.

Berge Norwegian, German, Swedish
Variant of Berg.

Holst Danish, Low German, Dutch
Originally referred to a person from the region of Holstein between Germany and Denmark. A famous bearer of this name was the English composer Gustav Holst (1874-1934).

Jaeger German
Variant of Jäger.

Al-Ghazzawi Arabic
Originally indicated a person who came from Gaza in Palestine.

Ó Riagáin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Reagan.

Alvarsson Swedish
Means "son of Alvar".

Ratti Italian
From Italian ratto meaning "rat", originally denoting a sly individual.

Lundgren Swedish
Derived from Swedish lund (Old Norse lundr) meaning "grove" and gren (Old Norse grein) meaning "branch".

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

Lam Chinese (Cantonese)
Cantonese romanization of Lin.

Suess German
Variant of Süß. A famous bearer was the American children's author Dr. Seuss (1904-1991), who was born Theodor Seuss Geisel.

Levi Jewish
From the given name Levi.

Collado Spanish
Means "hill" in Spanish.

Laporte French
Means "the door, the gateway" in French, from Latin porta. This was a name for someone who lived near the town gates or who operated them.