Browse Surnames

Swango German (Anglicized)
Americanized form of Schwangau.

MacKay Scottish
Anglicized form of MacAoidh.

Wieczorek Polish
From a nickname meaning "bat" in Polish, ultimately from wieczór meaning "evening".

Negrini Italian
Variant of Negri.

Stendahl Swedish
Ornamental name derived from Swedish sten (Old Norse steinn) meaning "stone" and dal (Old Norse dalr) meaning "valley".

Holgersen Danish, Norwegian
Means "son of Holger".

Kamal Arabic, Urdu, Bengali
From the given name Kamal 1.

Blanchette French (Quebec)
Variant of Blanchet.

Barone Italian
Italian cognate of Baron.

Wyrzyk Polish
Variant of Wyrzykowski.

Claesson Swedish
Means "son of Claes".

Bernardi Italian
From the given name Bernardo.

Avraham Jewish
From the given name Abraham.

Hayter English
Name for a person who lived on a hill, from Middle English heyt meaning "height".

Acerbi Italian
From Italian acerbo meaning "bitter, harsh, severe".

Antunović Croatian
Means "son of Antun".

McFee Scottish, Irish
Anglicized form of MacDhubhshìth.

Szilágyi Hungarian
Denoted one from the region of Szilágy in Hungary, derived from Hungarian szil meaning "elm" and ágy meaning "bed".

Pozzi Italian
From Italian pozzo meaning "well, pit", derived from Latin puteus.

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

Killam English
Denoted one who hailed from the English town of Kilham, meaning "kiln homestead".

Jung 1 German
Means "young" in German, from Middle High German junc.

Randal English
Derived from the given name Randel.

Molina Spanish
Means "mill" in Spanish.

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).

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

Tremble French
Variant of Tremblay.

Breiner German, Swedish
Occupational name derived from Middle High German brie "porridge".

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

Mac Fhlannchaidh Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Clancy.

Lamberti Italian
Derived from the given name Lamberto.

Kennedy Irish
From the Irish name Ó Cinnéidigh meaning "descendant of Cennétig". This surname was borne by assassinated American president John F. Kennedy (1917-1963).

Dobson English
Means "son of Dobbe", a medieval diminutive of Robert.

Kristoffersen Danish, Norwegian
Means "son of Kristoffer".

Giunta Italian
From the old Italian given name Bonagiunta or Bonaggiunta (derived from bono "good" and aggiunto "assistant").

Lee 2 Korean, Chinese
Korean form of Li 1, from Sino-Korean 李 (i). This is the second most common surname in South Korea. It is also a variant Chinese romanization of Li 1.

Allan English, Scottish
Derived from the given name Alan.

Cai Chinese
From Chinese 蔡 (cài) referring to the ancient state of Cai that existed during the Zhou dynasty in what is now Henan province.

Laird Scottish
Means "landowner" in Scots, derived from northern Middle English laverd "lord", from Old English hlafweard.

Ware 1 English
From Old English wer meaning "dam, weir", indicating someone who lived near such a structure.

Márquez Spanish
Means "son of Marcos".

Fischer German
Occupational name meaning "fisherman" in German.

Nicosia Italian
From the name of the town of Nicosia on Sicily.

Strange English
Derived from Middle English strange meaning "foreign", ultimately from Latin extraneus.

Zelenko Ukrainian
Ukrainian cognate of Zieliński.

Kárpáthy Hungarian
Variant of Kárpáti.

Humphrey English
Derived from the given name Humphrey.

Haanraads Dutch
Originally indicated a person from Haanrade, a small village in the south of the province of Limburg in the Netherlands.

Parris English, French
Variant of Parish 1.

Stilo Italian
Derived from the name of the town of Stilo in southern Italy. It is possibly derived from Greek στῦλος (stylos) meaning "column, pillar".

Schuchard German
Variant of Schuchardt.

Kraemer German
Variant of Krämer.

St John English
From a place named for Saint John.

Cocks English
Patronymic form of Cock.

Donovan Irish
Anglicized form of the Irish name Ó Donndubháin meaning "descendant of Donndubán".

Tailler French
Means "tailor" from Old French tailleur.

Priede Latvian
Means "pine tree" in Latvian.

Hoedemaker Dutch
Occupational name for a hat maker, from Dutch hoed "hat" and maker "maker".

Wexler Jewish
Variant of Wechsler.

Holmgren Swedish
Ornamental name derived from Swedish holme (Old Norse holmr) meaning "small island" and gren (Old Norse grein) meaning "branch".

Sugiura Japanese
From Japanese 杉 (sugi) meaning "cedar" and 浦 (ura) meaning "bay, inlet".

Lusk Scottish
Possibly from the place name Leask in Aberdeenshire, of unknown meaning.

Atsma Frisian
Means "son of Atse".

Robertsson Swedish
Means "son of Robert".

Wyman English
From the Old English given name Wigmund.

Buhr Low German
Low German form of Bauer.

Sharpe English
Variant of Sharp.

Cheng 2 Chinese (Cantonese)
Cantonese romanization of Zheng.

Goodman English
Variant of Good.

Palomo Spanish
Means "pigeon, dove", from Latin palumbes.

Pauwels Dutch, Flemish
Means "son of Paul".

Perkins English
Means "son of Perkin", a medieval diminutive of Peter.

Rustici Italian
From Italian rustico meaning "rustic, rural".

Sadeghi Persian
From the given name Sadegh.

Pahlke German
Low German cognate of Peel.

Pavičić Croatian
Means "son of Pavao".

Ó Fionnagáin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Finnegan.

Ó Bradáin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Braden.

McKay Scottish
Anglicized form of MacAoidh.

Salvage English
Variant of Savage.

Khan Urdu, Pashto, Bengali
From a title meaning "king, ruler", probably of Mongolian origin but used in many languages.

Snell English
From Old English snel meaning "fast, quick, nimble".

Beckert German
Variant of Becker.

Walkenhorst German
Possibly derived from a German place name Falkenhorst, from Falken meaning "falcons" and Horst meaning "thicket".

Casey Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Cathasaigh meaning "descendant of Cathassach".

Dinu Romanian
From the given name Dinu.

Bradshaw English
From any of the places by this name in England, derived from Old English brad "broad" and sceaga "thicket".

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

Ó Ceallacháin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Callahan.

Ó Fearghail Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Farrell.

Quixada Spanish (Archaic)
Old spelling of Quijada.

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

Ioannou Greek
Means "son of Ioannis".

Conti Italian
From the Italian noble title conte meaning "count", derived from Latin comes (genitive comitis) meaning "companion, attendant". It denoted a person who worked for a count or behaved like one.

Ott English, German
From the given name Otto.

Whittaker English
Variant of Whitaker.

Accorsi Italian
From the given name Bonaccorso.

Matsubara Japanese
From Japanese 松 (matsu) meaning "pine tree, fir tree" and 原 (hara) meaning "field, plain".

Felipe Spanish, Portuguese (Brazilian)
From the given name Felipe.

Andrei Romanian
From the given name Andrei.

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

Yasuda Japanese
From Japanese 安 (yasu) meaning "peace, quiet" or 保 (yasu) meaning "protect, maintain" and 田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".

Mercado Spanish
Means "market" in Spanish, originally given to a person who lived near a market or worked in one.

Genovese Italian
Denoted a person from the Italian city of Genoa (Genova in Italian).

Sung Chinese
Alternate transcription of Chinese 宋 (see Song).

McCormick Irish, Scottish
From Gaelic Mac Cormaic meaning "son of Cormac".

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

Broadbent English
From a place name derived from Old English brad "broad" and beonet "bent grass".

Tveit Norwegian
Habitational name derived from Old Norse þveit meaning "clearing".

Schwinghammer German
Occupational name for a blacksmith, literally meaning "swing hammer" in German.

Cowden English
From various English place names, which meaning either "coal valley", "coal hill" or "cow pasture" in Old English.

Stavrou Greek
From the given name Stavros.

Rothbauer German
From Old High German riuten "to clear land" and bur "peasant, farmer".

Róg Polish
Means "animal horn" in Polish.

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

Meyer 3 English
Variant of Mayer 3.

Alberici Italian
Means "son of Alberico".

Meadows English
Referred to one who lived in a meadow, from Old English mædwe.

Ackermann German
Denoted a person who lived near a field, from Middle High German acker "field" and man "man".

Marszałek Polish
Polish cognate of Marshall.

Guan Chinese
From Chinese 关 (guān) meaning "frontier pass".

Headley English
From place names meaning "heather clearing" in Old English.

Danielson English
Means "son of Daniel".

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

Kwan Chinese (Cantonese)
Cantonese romanization of Guan.

Brannon Irish
Variant of Brennan.

De León Spanish
Referred to someone from the Leon region of Spain.

Ibbott English
Matronymic surname derived from the medieval name Ibota, a diminutive of Isabel.

Häusler German
Name for someone who lived in a house with no land, derived rom Old High German word hus meaning "house".

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.

Marie French
From the given name Marie.

Sugimoto Japanese
From Japanese 杉 (sugi) meaning "cedar" and 本 (moto) meaning "base, root, origin".

Hermansson Swedish
Means "son of Herman".

Blackburn English
From the name of a city in Lancashire, meaning "black stream" in Old English.

Payton English
From the name of the town of Peyton in Sussex. It means "Pæga's town".

Erkens Dutch
Derived from the given name Erk, a variant of Erik.

Furukawa Japanese
From Japanese 古 (furu) meaning "old" and 川 (kawa) or 河 (kawa) both meaning "river, stream".

Wyrick Polish (Anglicized)
Americanized form of Wyrzyk.

Moen Norwegian
Means "the sandy ground" in Norwegian.

Rocca Italian
Italian cognate of Roach.

Flanagan Irish
From Irish Ó Flannagáin meaning "descendant of Flannagán". Flannagán is a given name meaning "blood red". From County Roscommon in Ireland, it has many other spellings.

Waldroup English
Variant of Wardrobe.

Stauss German
Means "buttocks" from Middle High German stuz.

Rooijakkers Dutch
Means "red field", from Dutch rood "red" and akker "field".

Li 2 Chinese
From Chinese 黎 (lí) meaning "black".

Peeters Dutch, Flemish
Dutch and Flemish variant of Peters.

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

Samuel English, Welsh, French, Jewish
Derived from the given name Samuel.

McGinnis Irish
Variant of McGuinness.

Carlevaro Italian
Northern Italian variant of Carnevale.

Davison English
Means "son of David".

Oliynyk Ukrainian
Derived from Ukrainian олія (oliya) meaning "oil, fat".

Warszawski mu Polish, Jewish
Place name for someone from the Polish city of Warsaw, itself derived from the given name Warsz, a short form of Warcisław.

Hargrave English
Derived from Old English har meaning "grey" and graf "grove".

MacNiven Scottish
Anglicized form of Mac Naoimhín.

Vik Norwegian
Means "cove, inlet" in Norwegian.

Atteberry English
Means "dweller at the fortified town" from Middle English at and burh "fortified place".

Tamura Japanese
From Japanese 田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy" and 村 (mura) meaning "town, village".

Garey English
Variant of Geary.

Monday 3 Irish
Anglicized form of Mac Giolla Eoin. The last part of the surname was mistakenly taken as the Gaelic word for "Monday", Luain.

Losa Spanish
From Spanish losa meaning "tile, slab".

Samsa Hungarian
Derived from a diminutive of the given name Sámuel.

Young English
Derived from Old English geong meaning "young". This was a descriptive name to distinguish father from son.

Wilkie English
Double diminutive of the given name William.

Eldred English
From the given name Ealdræd.

Bonomo Italian
Italian cognate of Bonhomme.

Everly English
From place names meaning derived from Old English eofor "boar" and leah "woodland, clearing".

Hussein Arabic
From the given name Husayn. A famous bearer was the Iraqi president Saddam Hussein (1937-2006).

Giuliani Italian
From the given name Giuliano.

Woodhams English
Variant of Woodham.

Borja Spanish
Originally indicated a person from the Spanish town of Borja in Aragon, derived from Arabic برْج (burj) meaning "tower".

Havrylyuk Ukrainian
From a diminutive of the given name Havryil.

Tindall English
From Tindale, the name of a town in Cumbria, derived from the name of the river Tyne combined with Old English dæl "dale, valley".

Quijano Spanish
From the name of a village in northern Spain.

Breda Italian
From the name of a town near Venice, possibly derived from a Lombardic word meaning "field".

Chaudhary Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati, Nepali
From a title meaning "holder of four", from Sanskrit चतुर् (catur) meaning "four" and धुरीय (dhurīya) meaning "bearing a burden".

Strøm Norwegian, Danish
Means "stream" in Norwegian and Danish.

Van Akkeren Dutch
Variant of Van den Akker.

Reuter 2 German
From Middle High German riutœre meaning "highwayman, thief".

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

Van Tonder Dutch
Means "from Tønder", a town in Denmark near the German border.

Marić Croatian, Serbian
Means "son of Marija".

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.

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

Kato Japanese
Alternate transcription of Japanese Kanji 加藤 (see Katō).

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

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

Banner English
Occupational name for a flag carrier, derived from Old French baniere meaning "banner", ultimately of Germanic origin.

Mendes Portuguese
Portuguese form of Menéndez.

Zaman Arabic, Urdu
Derived from the given name Zaman.

Bootsma Frisian
Occupational name meaning "boatman", derived from Dutch boot "boat".

Lindon English
Variant of Lyndon.

Garnet English
Variant of Garnett 1 or Garnett 2.

Unterbrink Low German
Means "dweller under the slope" from Old Saxon undar "under" and brink "edge, slope".

Aarens Dutch
Means "son of Arend".

Ibáñez Spanish
Means "son of Ibán".

Nespola Italian
Variant of Nespoli.

Bowie Scottish
Anglicized form of Scottish Gaelic Buidheach, derived from buidhe meaning "yellow". A famous bearer was the American pioneer James Bowie (1796-1836), for whom the bowie knife is named. The British musician David Bowie (1947-2016), born David Robert Jones, took his stage name from the American pioneer (and the knife).

Ristić Serbian
Means "son of Risto".

Peynirci Turkish
From Turkish peynir meaning "cheese".

Spijker 2 Dutch
Occupational name for a nailsmith, from Dutch spijker "nail".

Reier German
Variant of Reiher.

De Ven Dutch
Variant of Van der Veen.

Abaroa Basque
Possibly from Basque abaro meaning "refuge".

Borde French
From Old French bord meaning "board, plank", derived from Frankish *bord. This name belonged to a person who lived in a house made of planks.

Vasile Romanian
Derived from the given name Vasile.

Dubois French
Means "from the forest", from French bois "forest".

Weekes English
Variant of Weeks.

Rinne 1 Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Rinn.

Matić Croatian
Means "son of Matija".

McGee Irish, Scottish
Anglicized form of Mac Aodha.

Burrows English
Topographic name derived from Old English beorg meaning "hill, mountain" or burg meaning "fort". Alternatively, it could come from a compound of bur "room, cottage, dwelling" and hus "house".

Hashemi Persian
From the given name Hashem.

Gros French
Means "thick, fat, big" in French, from Late Latin grossus, possibly of Germanic origin.

Valencia Spanish
From the name of the Spanish city of Valencia.

Knowles English
From Middle English knoll, Old English cnoll meaning "small hill, knoll". A famous bearer is American singer Beyoncé Knowles (1981-).

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

Carboni Italian
Variant of Carbone.

Jansson Swedish
Means "son of Jan 1".

Terry English
Derived from the medieval name Thierry, a Norman French form of Theodoric.

Nikolić Serbian, Croatian
Means "son of Nikola 1".

Ó Seanáin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Shannon.

Pajari Finnish
Means "boyar", the Finnish form of the Russian noble title боярин (boyarin).

Sordi Italian
From Italian sordo meaning "deaf", from Latin surdus.

Von Ingersleben German
Means "from Ingersleben", a town in Germany, which means "Inge's village".

Ó Tadhgáin Irish (Rare)
Irish Gaelic form of Teagan.

Savchenko Ukrainian
From the given name Sava.

Abatangelo Italian
From Italian abate meaning "abbot, priest" combined with the given name Angelo.

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

Bakó Hungarian
Means "axeman" in Hungarian.

Harmaajärvi Finnish
Means "grey lake" in Finnish.

Monday 2 English
Denoted a person for whom this was a significant day, often the day they would pay their feudal fees.

Klimek um Polish, Czech
Derived from a diminutive of Klemens.

Howland English
Variant of Holland 1.

Schenk German, Dutch
From Middle High German, Middle Dutch schenke meaning "wine server" (from Old High German scenken "to pour out").

Calligaris Italian
From Late Latin caligarius meaning "shoemaker".

Alger English
From the given name Algar.

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.

Andresen Norwegian, Danish
Means "son of Andreas".

Porras Spanish, Catalan
From a nickname meaning "club" in Spanish and Catalan, ultimately from Latin porrum meaning "leek".

Tos Spanish
Spanish form of Tosi.

Wägner German
Variant of Wagner.

Hersch German, Jewish
Variant of Hirsch 1 or Hirsch 2.

Mohammed Arabic, Urdu, Bengali
Derived from the given name Muhammad.

MacRuaraidh Scottish Gaelic
Scottish Gaelic form of McCrory.

O'Brien Irish
From the Irish Ó Briain meaning "descendant of Brian".

Kobayashi Japanese
From Japanese 小 (ko) meaning "small" and 林 (hayashi) meaning "forest".

Berkowitz Jewish
Variant of Berkovich.

Aldenberg Dutch
Variant of Aaldenberg.

Bálint Hungarian
Derived from the given name Bálint.

Devos Flemish
Flemish variant of Vos.

Accardo Italian
Variant of Acardi.

Moon 3 Irish
Variant of Mohan.

Mencher Polish
Possibly an occupational name derived from Polish maczarz meaning "miller".

Capello 2 Italian
Nickname for a thin person, from Italian capello meaning "a hair", ultimately derived from Latin capillus.

Costantini Italian
From the given name Costantino.

Zhou Chinese
From Chinese 周 (zhōu) referring to the Zhou dynasty, which held power from 1046 to 771 BC, continuing for a few more centuries as figureheads.

Romilly English, French
Originally denoted a person who came from any of the various places in northern France called Romilly or from Romiley in England.

O'Callaghan Irish
Variant of Callahan.

Bárány Hungarian
Means "lamb" in Hungarian.

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

Jinks English
Means "son of Jenk", a short form of Jenkin, a diminutive of Jen, itself a Middle English form of John.

Dabney English
Variant of Daubney.

Amador Spanish
Derived from the given name Amador.

Van den Broek Dutch
Means "from the marsh" in Dutch.

Cary Irish
Variant of Carey.

Keith Scottish
From a place name that is probably derived from the Brythonic element cet meaning "wood". This was the surname of a long line of Scottish nobles.

Ruggeri Italian
Derived from the given name Ruggero.

Van Laar Dutch
Derived from Dutch laar (plural laren), which means "open spot in the forest". These areas were used to graze cattle for example.

Buday Hungarian
Variant of Budai.

Matthiasen Danish
Means "son of Matthias".

Sanderson English
Means "son of Alexander".

Sessa Italian
Originally indicated a person from from Sessa or Sessa Cilento, Italy (from Latin Suessa, of uncertain meaning).

Cucinotta Italian
Derived from a diminutive of Italian cucina meaning "kitchen".

Newton English
From the name of one of many English towns meaning "new town". A famous bearer was the English physicist Isaac Newton (1643-1727).

Underhill English
Means "dweller at the foot of a hill", from Old English under and hyll.

Graves English
Occupational name for a steward, derived from Middle English greyve, related to the German title Graf.

Ionescu Romanian
Means "son of Ion 1" in Romanian.

Baglio Italian
Italian cognate of Bailey.

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

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.

Samuels English
Derived from the given name Samuel.

Björnsson Swedish, Icelandic
Means "son of Björn".

Brownlow English
From Old English brun meaning "brown" and hlaw meaning "mound, small hill". The name was probably given to a family living on a small hill covered with bracken.

Smets Dutch
Variant of Smit.

Ashworth English
From an English place name meaning "ash enclosure" in Old English.

Mateu Catalan
Derived from the given name Mateu.

Madden Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Madaidhín.

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

Stirling Scottish
Variant of Sterling.

Paisley Scottish
From the name of a town near Glasgow, which may ultimately be derived from Latin basilica "church".

Cody Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Cuidighthigh or Mac Óda. A famous bearer was the American frontiersman and showman Buffalo Bill Cody (1846-1917).

Van Dijk Dutch
Means "from the dike" in Dutch.

Ayers 1 English
From Middle English eir meaning "heir".

Voclain French
From the Old French given name Vauquelin.

Freud German, Jewish
Means "joy" in German, a nickname for a cheerful person. A famous bearer was the psychologist Sigmund Freud (1856-1939).

Guinness Irish
Variant of McGuinness. The name is well known because of the Guinness brand of ale, established in 1759 by Arthur Guinness.

Varano Italian
Derived from one of the many towns of this name in Italy.

Terrazas Spanish
Originally a name for a person from Terrazas in the Spanish city of Burgos, a place name meaning "terraces".

Bennett English
Derived from the medieval English given name Bennett.