Browse Surnames

Morison English
Variant of Morrison.

Kalbfleisch German
Occupational name for a butcher who dealt in veal, from German kalb meaning "calf" and fleisch meaning "meat".

Salih Arabic
From the given name Salih.

Costantini Italian
From the given name Costantino.

Gardner English
Variant of Gardener.

Nasato Italian
Nickname for someone with a prominent nose, from Italian naso "nose".

McFee Scottish, Irish
Anglicized form of MacDhubhshìth.

Alvin English
Variant of Elwyn.

Kubo Japanese
From Japanese 久 (ku) meaning "long time ago" and 保 (ho) meaning "protect".

Yamauchi Japanese
From Japanese 山 (yama) meaning "mountain" and 内 (uchi) meaning "inside".

Ilić Serbian, Croatian
Means "son of Ilija".

Ó Dubhshláin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Dolan.

Rowntree English
Originally given to a person who lived near a rowan tree or mountain ash.

Ibsen Danish
Means "son of Ib". A famous bearer was the Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen (1828-1906).

Martinelli Italian
From a diminutive of the given name Martino.

Ó Marcaigh Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Markey.

Knochenmus German
From German Knochen "bone" and Mus "sauce". It probably referred to someone who worked in the butcher trade.

Aerts Dutch, Flemish
From a diminutive of the given name Arnout.

Mollown Irish
Variant of Malone.

Constantin Romanian, French
From the given name Constantin.

Ardovini Italian
Means "son of Arduino".

Holub mu Czech, Slovak, Ukrainian
Means "dove, pigeon" in Czech, Slovak and Ukrainian.

Pellé French
From French pelé meaning "bald".

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

Stetson English
Possibly from the name of the village of Stidston in Devon, meaning "Stithweard's town".

Raskob German
Variant of Raskopf.

Woolf English
Variant of Wolf.

Connell Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Conaill meaning "descendant of Conall".

Al-Hashim Arabic
From the given name Hashim.

Alexandersen Danish, Norwegian
Means "son of Alexander".

Short English
From a nickname for a short person, from Middle English schort.

Dickerson English
Means "son of Dick 1".

Thorsen Danish, Norwegian
Means "son of Thor".

Gál Hungarian
Derived from the given name Gál.

Meunier French
Means "miller" in French.

Kennard English
Derived from the given names Cyneweard or Cyneheard.

Silveira Portuguese
Means "forests" in Portuguese.

Polzin German
From the name of a town in Pomerania, Poland (formerly part of Germany). In Polish it is called Połczyn.

Alvey English
Derived from the given name Ælfwig.

Patil Marathi
Means "village chief" in Marathi.

Haden English
From a place name derived from Old English hæþ "heath" and dun "hill".

Marchetti Italian
From a diminutive of the given name Marco.

Dahlmans Dutch
Variant of Daalmans.

Brodeur French
Means "embroiderer" in French.

Drees Dutch
Variant of Dries.

Knef German
Occupational name for a shoemaker, derived from Low German knif meaning "shoemaker's knife".

Saitou Japanese
Alternate transcription of Japanese Kanji 斎藤 (see Saitō).

Ó Caoimháin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Cavan.

Bishop English
Means simply "bishop", ultimately from Greek ἐπίσκοπος (episkopos) meaning "overseer". It probably originally referred to a person who served a bishop.

Raimondi Italian
Derived from the given name Raimondo.

Dane 2 English
Originally denoted a Dane, that is a person from Denmark.

Bravo Spanish, Portuguese
From a nickname meaning "angry, bold, brave" in Spanish and Portuguese.

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

Salmon English, French
Derived from the given name Solomon.

Mullins 2 Irish
Variant of Mullen.

Morin French
Derived from a diminutive of the given name Maurus.

Illés Hungarian
Derived from the given name Illés.

Garnett 2 English
From a diminutive of the given name Guarin.

Mohren German
Derived from the given name Maurus.

Breen Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Braoin meaning "descendant of Braon", a byname meaning "rain, moisture, drop".

Spearing English
Patronymic form of Spear.

Miyata Japanese
From Japanese 宮 (miya) meaning "temple, shrine, palace" and 田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".

Ó Ruaidh Irish
Means "descendant of Ruadh" in Irish.

Parrino Sicilian
From a Sicilian variant of Italian padrino meaning "godfather".

Bolkvadze Georgian
From Georgian ბოლქვი (bolkvi) meaning "tuber, bulb".

Nicholls English
Derived from the given name Nichol.

Vasylyshyn Ukrainian
Means "son of Vasyl".

Vilhjálmsson Icelandic
Means "son of Vilhjálmur".

Fujiwara Japanese
From Japanese 藤 (fuji) meaning "wisteria" and 原 (wara) meaning "field, plain".

Seabrook English
Denoted a person from a town by this name in Buckinghamshire, England. It is derived from that of a river combined with Old English broc "stream".

Lupu Romanian
From Romanian lup meaning "wolf".

Voll 2 German
Variant of Volk.

Fermi Italian
Originally indicated a person from the town of Fermo in the Marche region of Italy, originally called Firmum in Latin meaning "strong, steady, firm".

Rizzo Italian
Variant of Ricci.

McGowan Irish, Scottish
Anglicized form of Mac Ghabhann.

Luzzatto Italian
From an Italian form of Lusatia, a region of eastern Germany.

Mac Naoimhín Irish
Means "son of Naomhán" in Irish.

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

Blomqvist Swedish
From Swedish blomma (Old Norse blóm) meaning "flower" and qvist (Old Norse kvistr) meaning "twig, branch".

Liepa Latvian
Means "linden tree" in Latvian.

Blakely English
Variant of Blakeley.

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

Vinter Danish, Norwegian, Swedish
Scandinavian variant of Winter.

MacGilleChrìosd Scottish Gaelic
Scottish Gaelic form of Gilchrist.

Flynn Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Floinn meaning "descendant of Flann".

Meyer 1 German
From Middle High German meier meaning "bailiff, administrator", derived from Latin maior meaning "greater". Later it also denoted a tenant farmer. The spellings Meier and Meyer are more common in northern Germany while Maier and Mayer are more common in southern Germany.

Ó Dubhghaill Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Doyle.

Fujimoto Japanese
From Japanese 藤 (fuji) meaning "wisteria" and 本 (moto) meaning "base, root, origin".

Tawfeek Arabic
Alternate transcription of Arabic توفيق (see Tawfiq).

Löwe German, Jewish
Means "lion" in German.

Lunde Norwegian
Variant of Lund.

Østergaard Danish
Variant of Østergård.

Braddock English
From various locations derived from Old English meaning "broad oak".

Aalfs Dutch
Means "son of Aalf", a short form of Adolf.

Sidney English
Originally derived from various place names in England meaning "wide island", from Old English sid "wide" and eg "island". Another theory holds that it comes from the name of a town in Normandy called "Saint Denis", though evidence for this is lacking.

Gerhardsson Swedish
Means "son of Gerhard".

Smolak Polish
Occupational name for a distiller of pitch, derived from the Old Slavic word smola meaning "pitch, resin".

De Vroome Dutch
Variant of Vroom.

Rye English
Topographic name. It could be a misdivision of the Middle English phrases atter ye meaning "at the island" or atter eye meaning "at the river". In some cases it merely indicated a person who lived where rye was grown or worked with rye (from Old English ryge).

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

Chia Chinese (Hokkien)
Hokkien romanization of Xie.

Thomas English, Welsh, French, German
Derived from the given name Thomas.

Kozel um Belarusian, Czech
Belarusian and Czech cognate of Kozioł.

Dürr German
Means "thin" in German.

Pittaluga Italian
Originally a nickname for somebody who steals grapes from vineyards. In the Genoese dialect pittà means "to pick" and uga means "grapes" (uva in Italian).

Crawford English
From a place name derived from Old English crawe "crow" and ford "river crossing". A notable bearer was the American actress Joan Crawford (1904-1977), born Lucille Fay LeSueur.

Clancy Irish
From Irish Mac Fhlannchaidh meaning "descendant of Flannchadh". The given name Flannchadh means "red warrior".

Nascimbeni Italian
From the medieval given name Nascimbene, typical of the Venetian region.

Mattsson Swedish
Means "son of Matts".

Hayden 1 English
From place names meaning either "hay valley" or "hay hill", derived from Old English heg "hay" and denu "valley" or dun "hill".

Marić Croatian, Serbian
Means "son of Marija".

Rey 2 English
Means "female roe deer" from Old English ræge, probably denoting someone of a nervous temperament.

Shirley English
From an English place name, derived from Old English scir "bright" and leah "woodland, clearing".

Vidal Spanish, Catalan, French
From the given name Vidal.

Righi Italian
From the given name Arrigo.

Teague 2 Cornish
From Cornish tek meaning "fair, beautiful".

Keys 2 Irish
Anglicized form of Mac Aodha.

Claesson Swedish
Means "son of Claes".

Niles English
Means "son of Neil".

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

Grigorescu Romanian
Means "son of Grigore" in Romanian.

Martin English, French, German, Swedish
Derived from the given name Martin. This is the most common surname in France.

Cipriani Italian
From the given name Cipriano.

Dickens English
From the medieval given name Dicun, a medieval diminutive of Dick 1. A famous bearer of this surname was the British author Charles Dickens (1812-1870).

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

Bezuidenhout Dutch
From Dutch zuid "south" and hout "forest". It refers to the south of the forest in The Hague.

Nyquist Swedish
Variant of Nyqvist.

Egger German
South German occupational name meaning "plowman" or "farmer", derived from German eggen "to harrow, to plow".

Loewe German
Variant of Löwe.

Doctor English
Originally denoted someone who was a doctor, ultimately from Latin doctor meaning "teacher".

Aloi Italian
From a dialectal form of the name Aloisio.

Aliprandi Italian
Means "son of Alibrand".

Mack 2 Scottish, English
From the given name Mack 2.

Zhang Chinese
From Chinese 张 (zhāng) meaning "stretch, extend". It may have denoted a bow maker whose job it was to stretch bow wood.

Milojević Serbian
Means "son of Miloje".

Großer German
Variant of Groß.

Estrada Spanish
Spanish form of Street.

Braxton English
From an English place name place name meaning "Bracca's town" in Old English.

Hatheway English
Variant of Hathaway.

Richardson English
Means "son of Richard".

Axelsen Danish, Norwegian
Means "son of Axel".

McCrae Scottish
Variant of McRae.

Bul Dutch
Dutch cognate of Bull.

Boatwright English
Occupational name meaning "maker of boats".

Ulfsson Swedish
Means "son of Ulf".

Snaijer Dutch (Rare)
Variant of Snijder.

Alesci Italian
Means "son of Alessio".

MacWilliam Scottish
Means "son of William" in Gaelic.

Van Hautum Dutch
Variant of Van Houten.

Michael English, German
From the given name Michael.

Horton English
From the names of various places in England, which are derived from Old English horh "dirt, mud" and tun "enclosure, yard, town".

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

Curie French
Occupational name for a farm hand, from Old French éscuerie "stable". Famous bearers were the married scientists Marie (1867-1934) and Pierre Curie (1859-1906), who studied radioactivity.

Hintzen German
Means "son of Hintz", a diminutive of Heinrich.

Carbone Italian
From a nickname for a person with dark features, from Italian carbone meaning "coal".

Reynders Dutch, Frisian
Variant of Reinders.

Zimman Jewish
Possibly a variant of Zimmermann.

Quintana Spanish, Catalan
Originally indicated someone who lived on a piece of land where the rent was a fifth of its produce, from Spanish and Catalan quintana "fifth", from Latin quintus.

Ó Flannagáin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Flanagan.

Palazzo Italian
Means "palace" in Italian, from Latin palatium. It was originally used by someone who lived near a palace or mansion, or who worked there.

Papp 1 Hungarian
From a nickname meaning "priest, cleric" in Hungarian.

Mac Cnáimhín Irish
Means "son of Cnámh". The Irish given name Cnámh means "bone".

Matei Romanian
Derived from the given name Matei.

Nuremberg German
Derived from the name of a city in Bavaria, Germany.

Kramer Low German, Jewish
Low German and Jewish form of Krämer.

Purcell English
From Old French pourcel "piglet", from Latin porcellus, a derivative of porcus "pig". This was a nickname or an occupational name for a swineherd.

MacTàmhais Scottish Gaelic
Scottish Gaelic form of McTavish.

Grec Catalan
Catalan cognate of Greco.

Sander German, Danish
Derived from the given name Alexander.

Matevosyan Armenian
Means "son of Matevos".

Courtney English
Variant of Courtenay 1 or Courtenay 2.

Germain French
From the French given name Germain.

Orosz Hungarian
Means "Russian" in Hungarian.

Patrickson English
Means "son of Patrick".

Schultes German
Variant of Schulz.

Inaba Japanese
From Japanese 稲 (ina) meaning "rice plant" and 葉 (ha) meaning "leaf".

Poulin French
Derived from Old French poule meaning "chicken". It was most likely used to denote a person who raised or sold poultry.

Ashley English
Denoted a person hailing from one of the many places in England that bear this name. The place name itself is derived from Old English æsc "ash tree" and leah "woodland, clearing".

Guidi Italian
From the given name Guido.

Pethes Hungarian
Derived from Pete, a diminutive of Péter.

Van Assen Dutch
Means "from Assen", a city in the Netherlands, which is possibly from essen meaning "ash trees".

Morrish English
Variant of Morriss.

Szwed Polish
Variant of Szweda.

Eldred English
From the given name Ealdræd.

Callahan Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Ceallacháin meaning "descendant of Cellachán".

Goode English
Variant of Good.

Haanraats Dutch
Variant of Haanraads.

Claasen Dutch
Means "son of Klaas".

Coleman Irish, English
From the given name Colmán.

Kanzaki Japanese
From Japanese 神 (kan) meaning "god" and 崎 (saki) meaning "cape, peninsula".

Harlow English
Habitational name derived from a number of locations named Harlow, from Old English hær "rock, heap of stones" or here "army", combined with hlaw "hill".

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

Aukema Frisian
Means "son of Auke".

Kundert German
Derived from the given name Konrad.

Farnham English
Indicated a person from any of the various towns named Farnham in England, notably in Surrey. Their names are from Old English fearn "fern" and ham "home, settlement" or ham "water meadow, enclosure".

Roldán Spanish
Derived from the given name Roldán.

DeGarmo French (Anglicized)
Americanized form of French de Garmeaux, which may derive from a place called Garmeaux in Normandy.

Fausti Italian
From the given name Fausto.

Nakano Japanese
From Japanese 中 (naka) meaning "middle" and 野 (no) meaning "field, wilderness".

Haase German
Variant of Hase.

Tritten German
Originally denoted someone who lived by a set of steps, from Middle High German trit "step".

Jorge Spanish, Portuguese
From the given name Jorge.

Grant English, Scottish
Derived from Norman French meaning "grand, tall, large, great". A famous bearer was the American general and president Ulysses S. Grant (1822-1885).

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

Regenbogen German, Jewish
From a German nickname meaning "rainbow", probably a habitational name for someone who lived in a house with the sign of a rainbow. As a Jewish surname it is ornamental.

Schindler German
Occupational name for a roof tiler, from Middle High German schindel "shingle". A famous bearer was Oskar Schindler (1908-1974), who saved over a thousand Polish Jews during World War II.

Kappel German, Dutch
Name for a person who lived near or worked at a chapel, ultimately from Late Latin cappella, a diminutive of cappa "cape", arising from the holy relic of the torn cape of Saint Martin, which was kept in small churches.

Milano Italian
Originally indicated someone who came from Milan.

Semenyuk Ukrainian
From the given name Semen.

Prescott English
From the name of various English places meaning "priest's cottage" in Old English.

Raskopf German
Possibly from German rasch "quick" and Kopf "head".

Brankovič Slovene
Slovene form of Branković.

Zeelen Dutch
Derived from the given name Ceel.

Derrick English
Derived from the given name Derrick (see Derek). A famous bearer of this surname is the character Stephan Derrick from the German television series Derrick (1974-1998).

Csizmadia Hungarian
Means "bootmaker" in Hungarian.

Carey Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Ciardha meaning "descendant of Ciardha".

Hancock English
From a diminutive of the medieval name Hann.

Watts English
Patronymic derived from the Middle English given name Wat or Watt, a diminutive of the name Walter.

Couture French
Means "tailor" in Old French.

Lehtinen Finnish
Derived from Finnish lehti meaning "leaf".

Guldbrandsen Norwegian, Danish
Means "son of Gulbrand" in Norwegian and Danish.

Kosmatka Polish
Derived from Polish kosmaty meaning "shaggy, hairy".

Alduino Italian
Derived from the Italian given name Alduino, derived from the Germanic name Aldwin.

Klerkx Dutch
Variant of De Klerk.

Vincze Hungarian
From the given name Vince.

Zellweger German (Swiss)
Originally denoted a person from the Appenzell region of Switzerland. The place name is derived from Latin abbatis cella meaning "estate of the abbot". A famous bearer is actress Renée Zellweger (1969-).

Shakespeare English
From a nickname for a warlike person, from Old English scacan "to shake" and spere "spear". A famous bearer was the English dramatist and poet William Shakespeare (1564-1616).

Ludvigsen Danish
Means "son of Ludvig".

Almássy Hungarian
Means "from the apple orchard", derived from Hungarian alma meaning "apple".

Sultan Arabic
From a nickname meaning "sultan, ruler" in Arabic.

Arntzen Dutch
Means "son of Arend".

Horvatinčić Croatian
Patronymic derived from Horvat.

Potočnik Slovene
From Slovene potok meaning "stream, brook".

Johnston Scottish
From the name of a Scottish town, which meant "John's town".

Ibrahim Arabic, Urdu, Hausa
From the given name Ibrahim.

MacCallion Scottish
Anglicized form of MacCailein.

Levine Jewish
Patronymic from the given name Levi.

Vass Hungarian
Derived from Hungarian vas meaning "iron", referring to a worker in iron, a miner of iron ore or a vendor of iron goods. Alternatively, from the same root word, it may have been a nickname referring to one with a distinctively strong constitution.

Campbell Scottish
From a Gaelic nickname cam beul meaning "wry or crooked mouth". The surname was later represented in Latin documents as de bello campo meaning "of the fair field".

Hakala Finnish
From Finnish haka meaning "pasture" with the suffix -la indicating a place.

Küchler German
Occupational surname for a baker who made small cakes or cookies, derived from Middle High German kuoche "cake, pastry".

Andres German
Derived from the given name Andreas.

McNiel Scottish
Variant of McNeil.

Hayashi Japanese
From Japanese 林 (hayashi) meaning "forest".

Sanderson English
Means "son of Alexander".

Merrill 1 English
Derived from the given name Muriel.

Garrison English
Means "son of Gerard" or "son of Gerald".

Eason English
Variant of Eads.

Salazar Basque, Spanish
From Spanish sala meaning "hall" and Basque zahar meaning "old". It can also refer to the town of Salazar in Burgos, Spain, which is of the same origin.

Constable English
From Old French conestable, ultimately from Latin comes stabuli meaning "officer of the stable".

McRae Scottish
From Gaelic Mag Raith meaning "son of Rath", a given name meaning "prosperity" or "grace".

Reilly Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Raghailligh.

Sepúlveda Spanish
Derived from the name of the Sepúlveda Valley in the mountains of Segovia, and was originally used to denote people from that region. It is possibly derived from Spanish sepultar "to bury".

Kok Dutch
Dutch cognate of Cook.

Luna Spanish
From various places in Spain meaning "moon".

Otis English
Means "son of Ode".

Szabolcsi Hungarian
From the name of the Szabolcs region in Hungary, derived from the given name Szabolcs.

Muhlfeld German
Means "mill field" in German.

Cobb English
From a medieval English byname meaning "lump".

Sorrentino Italian
Derived from the town of Sorrento near Naples, called Surrentum in Latin, of unknown meaning.

Aldenkamp Dutch
Possibly from an unknown place name meaning "old field" in Dutch.

Brunetti Italian
Diminutive of Bruno.

Karjalainen Finnish
Derived from Finnish Karjala meaning "Karelia". Karelia is an area on the border between Finland and Russia.

Maisuradze Georgian
From Georgian მაისურა (maisura) meaning "shirt", an occupational name for one who made or sold them.

Agua Spanish
Means "water" in Spanish, indicating a person who lived near water or worked with water.

Mohammad Persian, Urdu, Bengali
Derived from the given name Mohammad.

Monette French
Variant of Monet.

Andriessen Dutch
Means "son of Andries".

Isaksson Swedish
Means "son of Isak".

Queen English
From a given name that was derived from Old English cwen meaning "queen, woman". In some occurrences it may have been a nickname.

Hagihara Japanese
From Japanese 萩 (hagi) meaning "bush clover" and 原 (hara) meaning "field, plain".

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

Ó Laoghaire Irish
Irish Gaelic form of O'Leary.

Allegri Italian
From an Italian nickname derived from allegro meaning "quick, lively".

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

McConnell Scottish, Irish
Derived from Gaelic MacDhòmhnaill (see MacDonald).

Athanasiou Greek
Means "son of Athanasios".

Mack 1 Scottish, Irish
Shortened form of various Irish and Scottish surnames beginning with Mac or Mc (from Irish mac meaning "son").

Stroman German
Means "straw man" in German, an occupational name for a seller of straw.

Østergård Danish
From Danish øst meaning "east" and gård meaning "enclosure, farm".

Fishman English
Occupational name for a fisherman.

Montoya Spanish
From the name of a village in the province of Álava in Spain. It is possibly of Basque origin, or possibly from Latin mons "mountain, hill".

Hardy English, French
From Old French and Middle English hardi meaning "bold, daring, hardy", from the Germanic root *harduz.

Mac Diarmada Irish
Irish Gaelic form of McDermott.

Kermit Manx
Anglicized form of Mac Diarmada (see McDermott).

Ó Móráin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Moran.

Arends Dutch
Means "son of Arend".

Benoit French
From the given name Benoît.

MacCionaodha Scottish Gaelic
Scottish Gaelic form of McKenna.

Danell English
Derived from the given name Daniel.

Pryor English
Originally belonged to one who was a prior (a religious official), or one who worked for a prior.

Sugita Japanese
From Japanese 杉 (sugi) meaning "cedar" and 田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".

Yong English
Variant of Young.

Böhmer German, Jewish
Variant of Böhm.

Ó Cuidighthigh Irish
Means "descendant of Cuidightheach" in Irish.

Muratović Bosnian
Means "son of Murat".

Statham English
From the name of a village in the English county of Cheshire, derived from Old English stæð meaning "wharf, landing place" and ham "home, settlement".

Ernst German, Dutch, Danish
From the given name Ernst.

Di Antonio Italian
Variant of D'Antonio.

Košar Croatian
From Croatian koš meaning "basket", originally indicating a person who made or sold baskets.