Browse Surnames

Marchesi Italian
From 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.

Selvaggio Italian
Italian form of Savage.

Rennoll English
Variant of Reynolds.

Elvis English
Variant of Elwes.

Cuyler Dutch
Variant of Kuijlaars or Koole.

Fitzsimmons Irish
Means "son of Simon 1" in Anglo-Norman French.

Theodorou Greek
Means "son of Theodoros".

Csintalan Hungarian
Means "mischievous, naughty" in Hungarian.

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

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

Giordano Italian
Derived from the given name Giordano.

Benedetti Italian
From the given name Benedetto.

Reynaud French
From the given name Reynaud.

Bonnaire French
French form of Bonner.

Deng Chinese
From 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).

Faure Occitan, French
Occitan form of Fèvre.

Bunker English
Derived from Old French bon cuer meaning "good heart".

Mulryan Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Maoil Riain.

Yamagishi Japanese
From Japanese 山 (yama) meaning "mountain" and 岸 (kishi) meaning "beach, shore, bank".

Tolvaj Hungarian
Means "thief" in Hungarian.

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

Quinn Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Cuinn meaning "descendant of Conn".

Sakamoto Japanese
From Japanese 坂 or 阪 (saka) meaning "slope" and 本 (moto) meaning "base, root, origin".

Pace Italian
Derived from the Italian given name Pace meaning "peace".

Payne English
From 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 Spanish
Derived from the Basque place name Espartza, a town in the province of Navarre.

Hickey Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó hÍcidhe meaning "descendant of the healer".

Hayes 2 Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó hAodha meaning "descendant of Aodh".

Kárpáty Hungarian
Variant of Kárpáti.

Perry 2 Welsh
From Welsh ap Herry meaning "son of Herry".

McDowell Scottish
Variant of MacDougall.

Jerome English
Derived 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.

Stefanović Serbian
Means "son of Stefan".

Dallas 2 Scottish
From the name of a place in Moray, Scotland possibly meaning "meadow dwelling" in Gaelic.

Donnelly Irish
From 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.

Mathewson English
Means "son of Matthew".

Royce English
Originally derived from the medieval given name Royse, a variant of Rose.

Hughes 1 English
Patronymic of the given name Hugh.

Moschella Italian
From a diminutive of Italian mosca meaning "housefly", perhaps originally a nickname for an annoying person.

Sands English
From Old English, indicated the original nearer lived on sandy ground.

Dykstra Frisian
From Frisian dyk meaning "dike, ditch". The name was given to a person living near a dyke or embankment.

Raines English
Originally 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).

Giehl German
German form of Giles.

Amantea Italian
From 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".

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

Hooper English
Occupational name for someone who put the metal hoops around wooden barrels.

Nelissen Dutch
Means "son of Cornelis".

Sarkozy Hungarian (Anglicized)
Variant of Sárközy.

Kristoffersen Danish, Norwegian
Means "son of Kristoffer".

Saller 2 German
Denoted a person who lived by a prominent sallow tree, from Middle High German salhe "sallow tree".

Tuft English
Denoted one who lived near a clump of trees or bushes, from Middle English tufte "tuft, clump", from Old French.

Aaldenberg Dutch
Originally denoted a person who came from an uncertain place called Aaldenberg, meaning "old mountain".

Rosenfeld German, Jewish
Means "field of roses" in German. As a Jewish surname it is ornamental.

Amadori Italian
Means "son of Amatore".

Weekes English
Variant of Weeks.

Furlan Italian, Slovene
From 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 Danish
Topographic name for someone living near a wetland, from Danish kær "marsh", from Old Norse kjarr "thicket".

Zyma Ukrainian
Ukrainian form of Zima.

Velásquez Spanish
Derived from the given name Velasco.

Morishita Japanese
From Japanese 森 (mori) meaning "forest" and 下 (shita) meaning "under, below".

Paterson English, Scottish
Means "son of Patrick".

Moffett Scottish
From the town of Moffat in Scotland, meaning "long field" in Gaelic.

Stanković Serbian
Means "son of Stanko".

Cantú Spanish (Mexican)
Variant of Cantù, common in Mexico.

Armati Italian
From Italian armato meaning "armed, armoured, equipped".

Michael English, German
From the given name Michael.

Roijackers Dutch
Variant of Rooijakkers.

Al-Mufti Arabic
Refers to a mufti, a Muslim legal advisor consulted in applying a religious law.

Afolayan Yoruba
Means "walks like a wealthy person, walks with confidence" in Yoruba.

Hamaguchi Japanese
From Japanese 浜 (hama) meaning "beach, seashore" and 口 (kuchi) meaning "mouth, entrance".

Bengtsson Swedish
Means "son of Bengt".

Bonnay French
Variant of Bonnet.

Ajam Arabic
From Arabic عَجَم (ʿajam) meaning "foreigner, non-Arab".

Stacey English
Variant of Stacy.

Dirckx Flemish, Dutch
Means "son of Dirk".

Boyd Scottish
From the name of the Scottish island of Bute (Bód in Gaelic), which is of unknown meaning.

Torosian Armenian
Alternate transcription of Armenian Թորոսյան (see Torosyan).

Van Rompaey Flemish, Dutch
Means "from the wide path", derived from Middle Dutch ruum "roomy, spacious" combined with pat "path".

Burgstaller German
From German Burg "fortress, castle" and Stelle "place, position". This was a name given to a person dwelling at or near such a site.

Agnellini Italian
From a diminutive of Agnelli.

Samuelsson Swedish
Means "son of Samuel".

Adriaansen Dutch
Means "son of Adriaan".

Fleming English
Given to a person who was a Fleming, that is a person who was from Flanders in the Netherlands.

Bellomo Italian
From a nickname derived from Italian bello "beautiful, fair" and uomo "man".

Van Dael Dutch
Variant of Van Dalen.

O'Hanigan Irish
Variant of O'Hannigain.

Dickinson English
Means "son of Dicun", Dicun being a medieval diminutive of Dick 1. American poet Emily Dickinson (1830-1886) was a famous bearer.

Ionesco Romanian
Variant of Ionescu. French-Romanian playwright Eugène Ionesco (1909-1994), born Ionescu, is a famous bearer of this surname.

Weiß German
Variant of Weiss.

Karlsson Swedish
Means "son of Karl".

Ng 1 Chinese (Cantonese)
Cantonese romanization of Wu 1.

Wright 2 French (Anglicized)
Americanized form of Droit.

Favager French
Possibly indicated a person from the town of Faverges in eastern France, derived from Old French faverge meaning "forge".

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

Persson Swedish
Means "son of Per".

Arrigucci Italian
Means "son of Arriguccio", a diminutive of the given name Arrigo.

Sato Japanese
Alternate transcription of Japanese Kanji 佐藤 (see Satō).

Biagi Italian
Means "son of Biagio".

Xun Chinese
From Chinese 荀 (xún) meaning "plant, ancient state".

Diego Spanish
From the given name Diego.

Freund German
From Middle High German vriunt, modern German Freund meaning "friend".

Gabrielson English
Means "son of Gabriel".

Siskin Jewish
Variant of Ziskind.

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

Higgins Irish
From Irish Ó hUiginn meaning "descendant of Uiginn". Uiginn is a byname meaning "Viking".

Hayward English
Occupational name for a person who protected an enclosed forest, from Old English hæg "enclosure, fence" and weard "guard".

Mac Suibhne Irish
Means "son of Suibhne" in Irish.

Benn English
From a short form of Benedict.

Žitnik Slovene
From the Slavic root žito meaning "rye, grain". This was an occupational name for a dealer in rye or a baker.

Melvin Scottish
Variant of Melville.

Dahl Norwegian, Swedish, Danish
From 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.

Colin French
From a diminutive of the given name Nicolas.

Diefenbach German
From a German place name meaning "deep creek".

McCallum Scottish
Variant form of MacCallum.

Ono Japanese
From Japanese 小 (o) meaning "small" and 野 (no) meaning "field, wilderness".

Hagopian Armenian
Alternate transcription of Armenian Հակոբյան (see Hakobyan).

Lenox Scottish
Variant of Lennox.

Franić Croatian
Variant of Franjić.

Faust German
Derived from the given name Faust, a form of Faustus.

Antonsen Norwegian, Danish
Means "son of Anton".

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

Langley 1 English
From any of the various places with this name, all derived from Old English lang "long" and leah "woodland, clearing".

Matthiasen Danish
Means "son of Matthias".

Low English
Variant of Law.

Basile Italian, French
From the given name Basilio or Basile.

Leccese Italian
Variant of Lecce.

Ryskamp Dutch
Meaning unknown, probably ending with Dutch kamp meaning "camp".

Kecskeméti Hungarian
Originally indicated a person who came from the Hungarian city of Kecskemét, derived from kecske meaning "goat".

Ren Chinese
From Chinese 任 (rén), of uncertain meaning.

Joyce English, Irish
From the given name Joyce.

Hoch German
Means "tall" in German.

Piątek Polish
Means "Friday" in Polish, derived from the word piąty meaning "fifth".

Ó Duibh Irish
Means "descendant of Dubh", Dubh being a byname meaning "dark".

Sonnen German
Means "sun" from Middle High German sunne. It probably denoted someone of cheerful temperament or a person who lived in a sunny area.

Heinonen Finnish
From the given name Heino.

Prieto Spanish
From a nickname meaning "dark" in Spanish, referring to a person with dark hair or skin.

Hult Swedish
Swedish form of Holt.

Landvik Norwegian
From the name of a Norwegian town meaning "land inlet".

Ó hEidhin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Hines.

Ferreyra Portuguese, Galician
Variant of Ferreira.

Holguín Spanish
Possibly from Spanish holgar "to rest, to enjoy oneself".

Gujić Bosnian
Means "son of a snake" from the Bosnian word guja meaning "snake".

Van Amersvoort Dutch
Variant of Van Amelsvoort.

Allegro Italian
Variant of Allegri.

Arzt Dutch
Means "doctor, physician" in German, ultimately from Latin archiater.

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

Brahms German
Derived from the given name Abraham. A famous bearer of this surname was the German composer Johannes Brahms (1833-1897).

De Jong Dutch
Means "young" in Dutch, from Middle Dutch jonc. This is the most common surname in the Netherlands.

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).

Millhouse English
Name for someone whose house was in a mill or who worked in a mill.

Amalberti Italian
Means "son of Amalberto", from the Germanic name Amalbert.

Mac Giolla Eoin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of McLean.

Hendriks Dutch
Derived from the given name Hendrik.

Di Antonio Italian
Variant of D'Antonio.

Stanciu Romanian
Derived from Romanian stânci meaning "rocks".

Lesauvage French
French form of Savage.

Key 2 Irish
Anglicized form of Mac Aodha.

Stark English, German
From a nickname meaning "strong, rigid", from Old English stearc or Old High German stark.

Sauber German
Means "clean, tidy" in German.

Head English
From 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.

Van Schoorl Dutch
Variant of Schoorl.

Keys 2 Irish
Anglicized form of Mac Aodha.

Cline German (Anglicized), Jewish
Anglicized spelling of Klein.

Nussenbaum Jewish
Variant of Nussbaum.

Shaw 1 English
Originally given to a person who lived near a prominent thicket, from Old English sceaga meaning "thicket, copse".

Dedrick English
Derived from the given name Dederick, an older form of Derek.

Park 2 English
From Middle English park, from Latin parricus, of Frankish origin. This was a name for someone who worked in or lived in a park.

Krusen Dutch (Anglicized)
Anglicized form of Cruyssen.

Dempsey Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Díomasaigh meaning "descendant of Díomasach", a given name meaning "proud".

Stjepanić Croatian
Means "son of Stjepan".

Macy English
Variant of Massey.

Serafini Italian
Derived from the given name Serafino.

Aakster Dutch
Derived from Old Dutch ekster "magpie".

Salminen Finnish
From Finnish salmi meaning "strait".

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

Castro Spanish, Portuguese
Means "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 Jewish
Nickname for a man of moderate means, from Yiddish, ultimately from Old High German mittil "means, resources".

Nash English
Derived from the Middle English phrase atten ash "at the ash tree". A famous bearer was the mathematician John Nash (1928-2015).

Power 2 English
From 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.

Neal English
Derived from the given name Neil.

Bäcker German
Variant of Becker, mostly found in northern Germany.

Jo Korean
Alternate transcription of Korean Hangul 조 (see Cho).

Hase German
From Middle High German and Middle Low German hase meaning "hare, rabbit". This was a nickname for a person who was quick or timid.

Clinton English
Derived 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-).

El-Mofty Arabic
Alternate transcription of Arabic المفتي (see Al-Mufti).

Yancy Dutch (Anglicized)
Americanized form of Jansen.

Boon 2 English
Originally indicated a person from the town of Bohon, in Manche in France. The town's name is of unknown origin.

Opeyemi Yoruba
From the given name Opeyemi.

Vogts German
Patronymic variant of Vogt.

Abramson English
Means "son of Abraham".

Franco Spanish, Italian, Portuguese
Cognate of Frank 1. This name was borne by the Spanish dictator Francisco Franco (1892-1975).

Connor Irish
Variant of O'Connor.

Sheridan Irish
From the Irish name Ó Sirideáin meaning "descendant of Sirideán". The given name Sirideán possibly means "searcher".

Lind Swedish, Norwegian, Danish
Derived from Old Norse lind meaning "linden tree".

Petersen Danish, Norwegian
Means "son of Peter".

Cummings English
Variant of Cummins.

Ottosen Danish, Norwegian
Means "son of Otto".

Filippi Italian
Derived from the given name Filippo.

Ong Chinese (Hokkien)
Min Nan romanization of Wang 1.

Krakowski mu Polish, Jewish
Habitational name for a person from the city of Kraków in southern Poland.

Romeijnders Dutch
From Dutch Romein meaning "Roman, person from Rome".

Strömberg Swedish
From Swedish ström (Old Norse straumr) meaning "stream" and berg meaning "mountain".

Boone English
Variant of Boon 1 or Boon 2.

Sternberg Jewish
Ornamental name derived from old German stern "star" and berg "mountain".

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

Montgomery English, Scottish
From 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 English
Means "brass worker", derived from Old English bræs "brass".

Ilves Estonian
Means "lynx" in Estonian.

Julien French
From the given name Julien.

Hernandez Spanish
Unaccented variant of Hernández.

Olesen Danish
Means "son of Ole".

Vaccaro Italian
Occupational name meaning "cowherd" in Italian.

Aoki Japanese
From Japanese 青 (ao) meaning "green, blue" and 木 (ki) meaning "tree, wood".

Voltolini Italian
From the name of the alpine valley of Valtellina in Lombardy, northern Italy.

Wiley English
From any of the various English towns named Willey or from the River Wylye.

Soldati Italian
From Italian soldato meaning "soldier", ultimately from Latin solidus, a type of Roman coin.

Gary English
Variant of Geary.

Pemberton English
From 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".

Voll 2 German
Variant of Volk.

Żukowski Polish
From various Polish towns named Żukowo or Żuków, which are derived from żuk meaning "beetle".

Arnoni Italian
Means "son of Arnone" from the medieval name Arnone, of uncertain origin.

Lemaire French
Means "the mayor" in French. It was a title given to a town official, or else a nickname for someone who was pompous and officious.

Loris German
Derived from the given name Lorenz.

Bousaid Arabic
Means "father of Said" in Arabic.

Hightower English
Possibly a variant of Hayter.

Winters English, Dutch
Variant of Winter.

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.

Africani Italian
Means "son of Africano", the Italian form of Africanus.

Beaufort French
From various French place names derived from beau "beautiful" and fort "strong place, fortress".

Andreu Catalan
From the given name Andreu.

Schräder Low German (Rare)
Variant of Schröder 1.

Demetriou Greek
Alternate transcription of Greek Δημητρίου (see Dimitriou).

Alders Dutch
Means "son of Aldert".

Fields English
Name for a person who lived on or near a field or pasture, from Old English feld.

Hobbes English
Derived from the medieval given name Hob. A famous bearer of this name was British political philosopher Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679), the author of Leviathan.

Paulson English
Means "son of Paul".

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

Yurchenko Ukrainian
From the given name Yuriy.

Hodson English
Means "son of Hodge", a medieval diminutive of Roger.

Namgung Korean
From Sino-Korean 南 (nam) meaning "south" combined with 宮 (gung) meaning "palace, house". This is the most common Korean compound surname.

Bowen Welsh
From Welsh ap Owain meaning "son of Owain".

Peel English
Nickname for a thin person, derived from Old French pel, Latin palus meaning "stake, post" (related to English pole).

Cuyper Dutch
Variant of Kuiper.

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

Bartlett English
From a diminutive form of Bartholomew.

Franklin English
Derived 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).

Trevis English
English variant of Travers.

Haugen Norwegian
Means "hill" in Norwegian, referring to a person who lived on a hilltop.

Csonka Hungarian
Means "maimed, mutilated" in Hungarian.

McDevitt Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Mac Daibhéid meaning "son of Dáibhí".

Nascimbene Italian
Variant of Nascimbeni.

Mac Cába Irish
Irish form of McCabe.

Paul English, French, German, Dutch
From the given name Paul.

Golub Croatian
Means "pigeon" in Croatian.

Einstein Jewish
Ornamental name derived from German ein "one" and stein "stone". A famous bearer was the German physicist Albert Einstein (1879-1955).

Daalmans Dutch
Originally indicated a person who lived in a valley, from Dutch dal meaning "dale, valley" and man meaning "man".

Alamanni Italian
From Alemannia, the Latin name for Germany.

Baldinotti Italian
Derived from the given name Baldinotto, from the Latin name Baldinoctus, a diminutive of Baldo.

Feliciano Portuguese, Spanish
From the given name Feliciano.

Ó hEaghra Irish
Irish Gaelic form of O'Hara.

Herceg Croatian
Croatian form of Herzog.

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

Malley Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Máille.

Ó Floinn Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Flynn.

Antonini Italian
Means "son of Antonino".

Harding English
Derived from the given name Heard. A famous bearer was American president Warren G. Harding (1865-1923).

Blum German, Jewish
Means "flower" in German and Yiddish.

Poggi Italian
Variant of Poggio.

Vigo Italian, Spanish
Variant of Vico.

Grover English
From Old English graf meaning "grove of trees". A famous bearer was the American president Grover Cleveland (1837-1908).

McKay Scottish
Anglicized form of MacAoidh.

Tosi Italian
Means "clean-shaven", usually denoting a younger man, from Latin tonsus "shaved".

Fredriksson Swedish
Means "son of Fredrik".

Dalgaard Danish
From Old Norse dalr meaning "valley" and garðr meaning "yard, farmstead".

Salvage English
Variant of Savage.

Chambers English
From Old French chambre meaning "chamber, room", an occupational name for a person who worked in the inner rooms of a mansion.

Abasolo Basque
Means "priest's meadow" from Basque abas "priest" and solo "meadow".

Denman English
From Middle English dene "valley" combined with man.

Faraldo Italian
From a given name, ultimately the Germanic name Faroald.

Swallow English
From the name of the bird, from Old English swealwe, a nickname for someone who resembled or acted like a swallow.

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

Romeijn Dutch
Derived from the given name Romein.

Rueda Spanish
Spanish cognate of Royer.

Koumans Dutch
Variant of Koopman.

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

Treloar English
Originally denoted a person from a place of this name in Cornwall, England.

Vång Swedish
Swedish variant of Wang 3.

Bullens Dutch
Means "son of Boele".

Botello Galician
Occupational name for a maker of bottles, from Galician bottela meaning "bottle".

Gomes Portuguese
From the medieval given name Gomes.

Reese 1 Welsh
Derived from the given name Rhys.

Van Nifterik Dutch
Variant of Van Niftrik.

Burton English
From a common English place name, derived from Old English meaning "fortified town".

Caballero Spanish
From a nickname derived from Spanish caballero meaning "knight", a cognate of Chevalier.

Yu 4 Chinese
From 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 English
From various place names meaning "fenced wood" in Old English.

Nykvist Swedish
Variant of Nyqvist.

Lewis 2 Welsh
Anglicized form of Llywelyn.

Burns 1 English, Scottish
Derived from Old English burna "stream, spring". A famous bearer was the Scottish poet Robert Burns (1759-1796).

Abbas Arabic, Urdu
From the given name Abbas.