Marchesi ItalianFrom the Italian title
marchese meaning
"marquis". It was probably a nickname for a person who behaved like a marquis or worked in the household of a marquis.
Fuhrmann GermanDerived from Middle High German
vuorman meaning
"cartwright".
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).
Bunker EnglishDerived from Old French
bon cuer meaning
"good heart".
Quinn IrishAnglicized form of Irish
Ó Cuinn meaning
"descendant of Conn".
Pace ItalianDerived from the Italian given name
Pace meaning
"peace".
Payne EnglishFrom a medieval given name or nickname derived from Latin
paganus meaning
"heathen, pagan" (from an earlier sense "rural, rustic"), which was given to children whose baptism had been postponed or adults who were not overly religious.
Esparza SpanishDerived from the Basque place name
Espartza, a town in the province of Navarre.
Hickey IrishAnglicized form of Irish
Ó hÍcidhe meaning
"descendant of the healer".
Jerome EnglishDerived from the given name
Jerome. A famous bearer of this surname was the American-born Jennie Jerome (1854-1921), Lady Randolph Churchill, mother of Winston Churchill.
Dallas 2 ScottishFrom the name of a place in Moray, Scotland possibly meaning
"meadow dwelling" in Gaelic.
Donnelly IrishFrom Irish
Ó Donnghaile meaning
"descendant of Donnghal". The given name
Donnghal means "brown valour", from
donn "brown" and
gal "valour". This surname is associated with the descendants of Niall of the Nine Hostages.
Royce EnglishOriginally derived from the medieval given name
Royse, a variant of
Rose.
Moschella ItalianFrom a diminutive of Italian
mosca meaning
"housefly", perhaps originally a nickname for an annoying person.
Sands EnglishFrom Old English, indicated the original nearer lived on sandy ground.
Dykstra FrisianFrom Frisian
dyk meaning
"dike, ditch". The name was given to a person living near a dyke or embankment.
Raines EnglishOriginally denoted a person from Rayne, Essex, England (possibly from an Old English word meaning "shelter") or from Rennes, Brittany, France (from the name of the Gaulish tribe of the Redones).
Amantea ItalianFrom the name of a town in Calabria, Italy. It is possibly derived from Arabic (dating from the Arab raids of the 9th century) meaning "the fortress".
Hooper EnglishOccupational name for someone who put the metal hoops around wooden barrels.
Saller 2 GermanDenoted a person who lived by a prominent sallow tree, from Middle High German
salhe "sallow tree".
Tuft EnglishDenoted one who lived near a clump of trees or bushes, from Middle English
tufte "tuft, clump", from Old French.
Aaldenberg DutchOriginally denoted a person who came from an uncertain place called
Aaldenberg, meaning "old mountain".
Furlan Italian, SloveneFrom the name of the Italian region of
Friuli, in the northeast of Italy, which is derived from the name of the Roman town of Forum Iulii meaning "forum of Julius".
Kjær DanishTopographic name for someone living near a wetland, from Danish
kær "marsh", from Old Norse
kjarr "thicket".
Moffett ScottishFrom the town of Moffat in Scotland, meaning "long field" in Gaelic.
Armati ItalianFrom Italian
armato meaning
"armed, armoured, equipped".
Al-Mufti ArabicRefers to a
mufti, a Muslim legal advisor consulted in applying a religious law.
Afolayan YorubaMeans
"walks like a wealthy person, walks with confidence" in Yoruba.
Boyd ScottishFrom the name of the Scottish island of Bute (
Bód in Gaelic), which is of unknown meaning.
Van Rompaey Flemish, DutchMeans
"from the wide path", derived from Middle Dutch
ruum "roomy, spacious" combined with
pat "path".
Burgstaller GermanFrom German
Burg "fortress, castle" and
Stelle "place, position". This was a name given to a person dwelling at or near such a site.
Fleming EnglishGiven to a person who was a Fleming, that is a person who was from
Flanders in the Netherlands.
Bellomo ItalianFrom a nickname derived from Italian
bello "beautiful, fair" and
uomo "man".
Dickinson EnglishMeans
"son of Dicun",
Dicun being a medieval diminutive of
Dick 1. American poet Emily Dickinson (1830-1886) was a famous bearer.
Ionesco RomanianVariant of
Ionescu. French-Romanian playwright Eugène Ionesco (1909-1994), born
Ionescu, is a famous bearer of this surname.
Favager FrenchPossibly indicated a person from the town of Faverges in eastern France, derived from Old French
faverge meaning "forge".
Salamanca SpanishOriginally indicated a person from Salamanca, a city in western Spain that is of unknown meaning.
Freund GermanFrom Middle High German
vriunt, modern German
Freund meaning
"friend".
Ó Meadhra IrishMeans
"descendant of Meadhra". The given name
Meadhra is derived from the Gaelic
meadhar meaning "merry, happy".
Higgins IrishFrom Irish
Ó hUiginn meaning
"descendant of Uiginn".
Uiginn is a byname meaning "Viking".
Hayward EnglishOccupational name for a person who protected an enclosed forest, from Old English
hæg "enclosure, fence" and
weard "guard".
Žitnik SloveneFrom the Slavic root
žito meaning
"rye, grain". This was an occupational name for a dealer in rye or a baker.
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.
Ono JapaneseFrom Japanese
小 (o) meaning "small" and
野 (no) meaning "field, wilderness".
Grünewald GermanMeans
"green forest" from German
grün "green" and
Wald "forest".
Langley 1 EnglishFrom any of the various places with this name, all derived from Old English
lang "long" and
leah "woodland, clearing".
Ryskamp DutchMeaning unknown, probably ending with Dutch
kamp meaning "camp".
Kecskeméti HungarianOriginally indicated a person who came from the Hungarian city of Kecskemét, derived from
kecske meaning "goat".
Piątek PolishMeans
"Friday" in Polish, derived from the word
piąty meaning "fifth".
Ó Duibh IrishMeans
"descendant of Dubh",
Dubh being a byname meaning "dark".
Sonnen GermanMeans
"sun" from Middle High German
sunne. It probably denoted someone of cheerful temperament or a person who lived in a sunny area.
Prieto SpanishFrom a nickname meaning
"dark" in Spanish, referring to a person with dark hair or skin.
Holguín SpanishPossibly from Spanish
holgar "to rest, to enjoy oneself".
Gujić BosnianMeans
"son of a snake" from the Bosnian word
guja meaning "snake".
Arzt DutchMeans
"doctor, physician" in German, ultimately from Latin
archiater.
Brahms GermanDerived from the given name
Abraham. A famous bearer of this surname was the German composer Johannes Brahms (1833-1897).
De Jong DutchMeans
"young" in Dutch, from Middle Dutch
jonc. This is the most common surname in the Netherlands.
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).
Millhouse EnglishName for someone whose house was in a mill or who worked in a mill.
Stark English, GermanFrom a nickname meaning
"strong, rigid", from Old English
stearc or Old High German
stark.
Head EnglishFrom Middle English
hed meaning
"head", from Old English
heafod. It may have referred to a person who had a peculiar head, who lived near the head of a river or valley, or who served as the village headman.
Shaw 1 EnglishOriginally given to a person who lived near a prominent thicket, from Old English
sceaga meaning
"thicket, copse".
Park 2 EnglishFrom Middle English
park, from Latin
parricus, of Frankish origin. This was a name for someone who worked in or lived in a park.
Dempsey IrishAnglicized form of Irish
Ó Díomasaigh meaning
"descendant of Díomasach", a given name meaning "proud".
Zubizarreta BasqueMeans
"old bridge", from Basque
zubia "bridge" and
zahar "old". A famous bearer is the Spanish soccer player Andoni Zubizarreta (1961-).
Castro Spanish, PortugueseMeans
"castle" in Spanish and Portuguese, referring to one who lived near a castle. A famous bearer was Fidel Castro (1926-2016), revolutionary and president of Cuba.
Mittelman JewishNickname for a man of moderate means, from Yiddish, ultimately from Old High German
mittil "means, resources".
Nash EnglishDerived from the Middle English phrase
atten ash "at the ash tree". A famous bearer was the mathematician John Nash (1928-2015).
Power 2 EnglishFrom Middle English
povre meaning
"poor", via Old French from Latin
pauper. It could have been a nickname for someone who had no money or a miser.
Jo KoreanAlternate transcription of Korean Hangul
조 (see
Cho).
Hase GermanFrom Middle High German and Middle Low German
hase meaning
"hare, rabbit". This was a nickname for a person who was quick or timid.
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-).
Boon 2 EnglishOriginally indicated a person from the town of Bohon, in Manche in France. The town's name is of unknown origin.
Sheridan IrishFrom the Irish name
Ó Sirideáin meaning
"descendant of Sirideán". The given name
Sirideán possibly means "searcher".
Sternberg JewishOrnamental name derived from old German
stern "star" and
berg "mountain".
Montgomery English, ScottishFrom a place name in Calvados, France meaning "
Gumarich's mountain". A notable bearer was Bernard Montgomery (1887-1976), a British army commander during World War II.
Brasher EnglishMeans
"brass worker", derived from Old English
bræs "brass".
Aoki JapaneseFrom Japanese
青 (ao) meaning "green, blue" and
木 (ki) meaning "tree, wood".
Voltolini ItalianFrom the name of the alpine valley of Valtellina in Lombardy, northern Italy.
Soldati ItalianFrom Italian
soldato meaning
"soldier", ultimately from Latin
solidus, a type of Roman coin.
Pemberton EnglishFrom the name of a town near Manchester, derived from Celtic
penn meaning "hill" combined with Old English
bere meaning "barley" and
tun meaning "enclosure, yard, town".
Żukowski PolishFrom various Polish towns named
Żukowo or
Żuków, which are derived from
żuk meaning "beetle".
Arnoni ItalianMeans
"son of Arnone" from the medieval name
Arnone, of uncertain origin.
Lemaire FrenchMeans
"the mayor" in French. It was a title given to a town official, or else a nickname for someone who was pompous and officious.
Profeta ItalianFrom 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.
Beaufort FrenchFrom various French place names derived from
beau "beautiful" and
fort "strong place, fortress".
Fields EnglishName for a person who lived on or near a field or pasture, from Old English
feld.
Hobbes EnglishDerived from the medieval given name
Hob. A famous bearer of this name was British political philosopher Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679), the author of
Leviathan.
Namgung KoreanFrom Sino-Korean
南 (nam) meaning "south" combined with
宮 (gung) meaning "palace, house". This is the most common Korean compound surname.
Peel EnglishNickname for a thin person, derived from Old French
pel, Latin
palus meaning
"stake, post" (related to English
pole).
Somma ItalianFrom the names of Italian places like Somma Lombardo or Somma Vesuviana, derived from Latin
summa meaning "summit".
Franklin EnglishDerived from Middle English
frankelin meaning
"freeman". It denoted a landowner of free but not noble birth, from Old French
franc meaning "free". Famous bearers include American statesman Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) and American singer Aretha Franklin (1942-2018).
Haugen NorwegianMeans
"hill" in Norwegian, referring to a person who lived on a hilltop.
Einstein JewishOrnamental name derived from German
ein "one" and
stein "stone". A famous bearer was the German physicist Albert Einstein (1879-1955).
Daalmans DutchOriginally indicated a person who lived in a valley, from Dutch
dal meaning "dale, valley" and
man meaning "man".
Baldinotti ItalianDerived from the given name
Baldinotto, from the Latin name
Baldinoctus, a diminutive of
Baldo.
Quigg IrishAnglicized form of Irish
Ó Cuaig meaning
"descendant of Cuaig", a given name of unknown meaning.
Harding EnglishDerived from the given name
Heard. A famous bearer was American president Warren G. Harding (1865-1923).
Grover EnglishFrom Old English
graf meaning
"grove of trees". A famous bearer was the American president Grover Cleveland (1837-1908).
Tosi ItalianMeans
"clean-shaven", usually denoting a younger man, from Latin
tonsus "shaved".
Dalgaard DanishFrom Old Norse
dalr meaning "valley" and
garðr meaning "yard, farmstead".
Chambers EnglishFrom Old French
chambre meaning
"chamber, room", an occupational name for a person who worked in the inner rooms of a mansion.
Abasolo BasqueMeans
"priest's meadow" from Basque
abas "priest" and
solo "meadow".
Denman EnglishFrom Middle English
dene "valley" combined with
man.
Swallow EnglishFrom the name of the bird, from Old English
swealwe, a nickname for someone who resembled or acted like a swallow.
Mazza ItalianFrom a nickname (perhaps occupational) meaning
"maul, mallet" in Italian.
Treloar EnglishOriginally denoted a person from a place of this name in Cornwall, England.
Botello GalicianOccupational name for a maker of bottles, from Galician
bottela meaning
"bottle".
Burton EnglishFrom a common English place name, derived from Old English meaning "fortified town".
Yu 4 ChineseFrom Chinese
虞 (yú) meaning
"concerned, anxious" and also referring to the ancient state of Yu, which was situated in what is now Shanxi province.
Haywood EnglishFrom various place names meaning "fenced wood" in Old English.
Burns 1 English, ScottishDerived from Old English
burna "stream, spring". A famous bearer was the Scottish poet Robert Burns (1759-1796).