Surnames on the List of Fictional Characters from Books

Abbott English
English cognate of Abate.

Abrams Jewish, English
Means "son of Abraham".

Adams English, Jewish
Derived from the given name Adam.

Adler German, Jewish
Means "eagle" in German.

Amundsen Norwegian
Means "son of Amund". This name was borne by the Norwegian polar explorer Roald Amundsen (1872-1928).

Andrews English
Means "son of Andrew".

Austin English
Derived from the given name Austin.

Baggins Literature
Created by J. R. R. Tolkien for the hobbit Bilbo Baggins, the hero of The Hobbit (1937), and also for his cousin Frodo Baggins, the hero of The Lord of the Rings (1954). He probably derived it from the English word bag. The Baggins family home was called Bag End, and Tolkien himself had an aunt who owned a farm by this name, so that may have been his inspiration. Tolkien used English-like translations of many hobbit names; according to his notes the real hobbit-language form of the surname was Labingi.

Baker English
Occupational name meaning "baker", derived from Middle English bakere.

Balfour Scottish
From various place names that were derived from Gaelic baile "village" and pòr "pasture, crop, cropland".

Banks English
Originally indicated someone who lived near a hillside or a bank of land.

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

Barton English
From a place name meaning "barley town" in Old English.

Bass English
English cognate of Basso.

Baumer German
Variant of Baum.

Baxter English
Variant (in origin a feminine form) of Baker.

Bennet English
Derived from the medieval English given name Bennett.

Black English
Means either "black" (from Old English blæc) or "pale" (from Old English blac). It could refer to a person with a pale or a dark complexion, or a person who worked with black dye.

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

Blythe English
From Old English meaning "happy, joyous, blithe".

Bond English
Occupational name for a peasant farmer, from Middle English bonde. A famous bearer is the fictional spy James Bond, created by Ian Flemming in 1953.

Bone 1 English
Derived from Old French bon meaning "good".

Bone 2 English
Variant of Baines 2.

Boone English
Variant of Boon 1 or Boon 2.

Bourne English
Derived from Old English burna "stream, spring".

Brandon English
From the name of various places in England meaning "hill covered with broom" in Old English.

Bray English
From a place name derived from Cornish bre "hill".

Brodie Scottish
Originally derived from a place in Moray, Scotland. It is probably from Gaelic broth meaning "ditch, mire".

Brooke English
Variant of Brook.

Brown English
Originally a nickname for a person who had brown hair or skin. A notable bearer is Charlie Brown from the Peanuts comic strip by Charles Schulz.

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

Butler English, Irish
Occupational name derived from Norman French butiller "wine steward", ultimately from Late Latin butticula "bottle". A famous bearer of this surname is the fictional character Rhett Butler, created by Margaret Mitchell for her novel Gone with the Wind (1936).

Byrnes Irish
Variant of O'Byrne.

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".

Carr 1 Scottish, English
Variant of Kerr.

Carr 2 Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Carra.

Caulfield English
From a place name meaning "cold field", from Old English ceald "cold" and feld "pasture, field".

Chase English
Occupational name for a hunter, from Middle English chase "hunt".

Churchill English
From an English place name meaning "church hill". A famous bearer was Winston Churchill (1874-1965), the British prime minister during World War II.

Cleary Irish
From Irish cléireach meaning "clerk" (see Clark).

Cooper English
Means "barrel maker", from Middle English couper.

Copperfield Literature
Created from the English words copper and field by the author Charles Dickens, who used it for the title character in his novel David Copperfield (1850).

Corleone Sicilian, Literature
From the name of the town of Corleone in Sicily, which is of uncertain meaning. This surname is well known from the novel The Godfather (1969) by Mario Puzo, as well as the films based on his characters. The story tells how Vito Andolini comes to America from Sicily, receiving the new surname Corleone at Ellis Island, and starts a criminal empire based in New York.

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.

Crawley English
From various place names derived from Old English crawe "crow" and leah "woodland, clearing".

Croft English
From Old English croft meaning "enclosed field".

Cullen 1 English
From the name of the German city of Cologne, which was derived from Latin colonia "colony".

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

Dallas 1 English
From Old English dæl meaning "valley" and hus meaning "house".

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

Darcy English
From Norman French d'Arcy, originally denoting someone who came from the town of Arcy in La Manche, France. A notable fictional bearer is Fitzwilliam Darcy from Jane Austen's novel Pride and Prejudice (1813).

Darling English
From a nickname or byname derived from Middle English dereling, Old English deorling, meaning "darling, beloved one".

Darwin English
From the given name Deorwine. A famous bearer was the British naturalist Charles Darwin (1809-1882).

Davis English, Scottish
Means "son of David". This was the surname of the revolutionary jazz trumpet player Miles Davis (1926-1991).

De Luca Italian
Means "son of Luca 1".

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

Dixon English
Means "son of Dick 1".

Dobbs English
Derived from the medieval given name Dobbe, a diminutive of Robert.

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

Douglas Scottish
From the name of a town in Lanarkshire, itself named after a tributary of the River Clyde called the Douglas Water, derived from Gaelic dubh "dark" and glais "water, river" (an archaic word related to glas "grey, green"). This was a Scottish Lowland clan, the leaders of which were powerful earls in the medieval period.

Doyle Irish
From the Irish Ó Dubhghaill, which means "descendant of Dubhghall". A famous bearer was Arthur Conan Doyle (1859-1930), the author of the Sherlock Holmes mystery stories.

Dumbledore Literature
From the dialectal English word dumbledore meaning "bumblebee". It was used by J. K. Rowling for the headmaster of Hogwarts in her Harry Potter series of books, first released in 1997.

Elliot English
Variant of Elliott.

Elton English
From an English place name meaning "Ella's town".

Evans Welsh, English
Means "son of Evan".

Finch English, Literature
From the name of the bird, from Old English finc. It was used by Harper Lee for the surname of lawyer Atticus Finch and his children in her novel To Kill a Mockingbird (1960).

Finn Irish
Derived from the given name Fionn.

Firmin English, French
From the given name Firmin.

Fisher English, Jewish
Cognate of Fischer.

Foley Irish
From Irish Ó Foghladha meaning "descendant of Foghlaidh". The byname Foghlaidh meant "pirate, marauder, plunderer".

Fowler English
Occupational name for a fowler or birdcatcher, ultimately derived from Old English fugol meaning "bird".

Frankenstein German, Literature
From any of the various minor places by this name in Germany, meaning "stone of the Franks" in German. It was used by the author Mary Shelley in her novel Frankenstein (1818) for the character of Victor Frankenstein, a scientist who creates a monster and brings it to life. The monster, nameless in the novel, is sometimes informally or erroneously called Frankenstein in modern speech.

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).

Frost English, German
From Old English and Old High German meaning "frost", a nickname for a person who had a cold personality or a white beard.

Fry English
From Old English frig (a variant of freo) meaning "free".

Gale English
Derived from Middle English gaile meaning "jovial".

Garza Spanish
Derived from Spanish garza meaning "heron".

Gatsby English (Rare), Literature
Rare variant of Gadsby. This name was used by the American author F. Scott Fitzgerald for the central character in his novel The Great Gatsby (1925). In the book, James Gatz renames himself as Jay Gatsby at age 17 because he believes it sounds more sophisticated.

Gibson English, Scottish
Means "son of Gib".

Gilbert English, French
Derived from the given name Gilbert.

Granger English, French
Means "farm bailiff" from Old French grangier, ultimately from Latin granum meaning "grain". It is borne in the Harry Potter novels by Harry's friend Hermione Granger.

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).

Gray English
From a nickname for a person who had grey hair or grey clothes.

Grayson English
Means "son of the steward", derived from Middle English greyve "steward".

Grey English
Variant of Gray.

Guérin French
From the Old German given name Warin.

Gump German (Rare), Popular Culture
Possibly from a nickname derived from Middle High German gumpen meaning "to hop, to jump". This surname was used by author Winston Groom for the hero of his novel Forrest Gump (1986), better known from the 1994 movie adaptation.

Hall English, German, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish
Means simply "hall", given to one who either lived in or worked in a hall (the house of a medieval noble).

Hamilton English, Scottish
From an English place name, derived from Old English hamel "crooked, mutilated" and dun "hill". This was the name of a town in Leicestershire, England (which no longer exists).

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

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

Harris English
Means "son of Harry".

Hawk English
Originally a nickname for a person who had a hawk-like appearance or who acted in a fierce manner, derived from Old English hafoc "hawk".

Hawkins English
From a diminutive of Hawk.

Hawthorne English
Denoted a person who lived near a hawthorn bush, a word derived from Old English hagaþorn, from haga meaning "enclosure, yard" and þorn meaning "thorn bush". A famous bearer was the American writer Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864), author of The Scarlet Letter.

Henderson Scottish, English
Means "son of Hendry".

Hill English
Originally given to a person who lived on or near a hill, derived from Old English hyll.

Holmes English, Scottish
Variant of Holme. A famous fictional bearer was Sherlock Holmes, a detective in Arthur Conan Doyle's mystery stories beginning in 1887.

Holmwood English
Variant of Homewood.

Horn English, German, Norwegian, Danish
From the Old English, Old High German and Old Norse word horn meaning "horn". This was an occupational name for one who carved objects out of horn or who played a horn, or a person who lived near a horn-shaped geographical feature, such as a mountain or a bend in a river.

Howland English
Variant of Holland 1.

Huddleston English
From the name of a town in the Yorkshire region of England, which means "Hudel's town" in Old English.

Humbert French
From the given name Humbert.

Humphrey English
Derived from the given name Humphrey.

Hyde English
From Middle English hide, a unit of land, approximately the size necessary to support a household.

Jackson English
Means "son of Jack". Famous bearers of this name include the American president Andrew Jackson (1767-1845) and the singer Michael Jackson (1958-2009).

Jekyll English
Derived from the Breton given name Judicaël. This name was used by Robert Louis Stevenson for the character of Dr Henry Jekyll in the book Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde (1886).

Jensen Danish, Norwegian
Means "son of Jens". This is the most common surname in Denmark.

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

Jones English, Welsh
Derived from the given name Jon, a medieval variant of John.

Karamazov Literature
Created by Russian author Fyodor Dostoyevsky for his novel The Brothers Karamazov (1879), about three brothers and their murdered father. Dostoyevsky may have based it on Tartar/Turkic кара (kara) meaning "black" and Russian мазать (mazat) meaning "stain". The connection to black is implied in the novel when one of the brothers is accidentally addressed as Mr. Черномазов (Chernomazov), as if based on Russian чёрный meaning "black".

Kelly 1 Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Ceallaigh meaning "descendant of Ceallach". Famous bearers include actor and dancer Gene Kelly (1912-1996) and actress and princess Grace Kelly (1929-1982).

Kelly 2 Scottish
From a Scottish place name derived from coille meaning "grove".

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).

King English
From Old English cyning "king", originally a nickname for someone who either acted in a kingly manner or who worked for or was otherwise associated with a king. A famous bearer was the American civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. (1929-1968).

Landau German, Jewish
Derived from the town of Landau in the Palatinate region of Germany, of Old High German origin meaning "land valley".

Lane 1 English
Originally designated one who lived by a lane, a narrow way between fences or hedges, later used of any narrow pathway, including one between houses in a town.

Lane 2 French
Derived from a French word meaning "wool", designating one who worked in the wool trade.

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

Lång Swedish
Swedish cognate of Long.

Lang German, Danish, Norwegian
German, Danish and Norwegian cognate of Long.

Langdon English
Derived from the name of various places, of Old English origin meaning "long hill" (effectively "ridge").

Lennox Scottish
From the name of a district in Scotland, called Leamhnachd in Gaelic, possibly meaning "place of elms".

Léon French
Variant of Lyon 1, Lyon 2 or Lyon 3.

León 1 Spanish
Referred to a person from the city of León in northern Spain, derived from Latin legio (genitive legionis) meaning "legion", so named because the Roman 7th Legion Gemina was stationed there.

León 2 Spanish
From the given name León.

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

Lestrange French
From Old French estrange, a cognate of Strange.

Lewis 1 English
Derived from the given name Lewis. The author C. S. Lewis (1898-1963) was a bearer of this surname.

Lewis 2 Welsh
Anglicized form of Llywelyn.

Linton English
Originally from place names meaning either "flax town" or "linden tree town" in Old English.

Little English
Meaning simply "little", it was originally a nickname given to a short person.

Long English
Originally a nickname for a person who had long limbs or who was tall.

Lucas English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, Dutch
Derived from the given name Lucas. A famous bearer of this surname is George Lucas (1944-), the creator of the Star Wars movies.

MacGregor Scottish
Anglicized form of Gaelic MacGriogair meaning "son of Gregor". It originates from the Highland clan Gregor. A famous bearer was the Scottish folk hero Rob Roy MacGregor (1671-1734).

MacKenzie Scottish
Anglicized form of Gaelic MacCoinnich meaning "son of Coinneach". It originates from the Kintail area of Scotland on the northwest coast.

Mac Néill Irish
Irish form of McNeil.

MacNèill Scottish Gaelic
Scottish Gaelic form of McNeil.

Marley English
Originally denoted a person who hailed from one of the various places in Britain called Marley, ultimately meaning either "pleasant wood", "boundary wood" or "marten wood" in Old English. One of the main characters in Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol (1843) bears this surname. It was also borne by the Jamaican reggae musician Bob Marley (1945-1981).

Marlowe English
Variant of Marlow.

Marvin English
Derived from the Welsh given name Merfyn or the Old English name Mærwine.

Mason English
Occupational name for a stoneworker or layer of bricks, from Old French masson, of Frankish origin (akin to Old English macian "to make").

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

McMillan Scottish
Anglicized form of Gaelic MacMhaoilein meaning "son of Maolan", itself meaning "devotee, servant, tonsured one".

Meier 1 German
Variant of Meyer 1.

Meier 2 Jewish
Variant of Meyer 2.

Melville Scottish
From the place name Malleville meaning "bad town" in Norman French.

Mendoza Spanish, Basque
From a Basque place name derived from mendi "mountain" and hotz "cold".

Miller English
Occupational surname meaning "miller", referring to a person who owned or worked in a grain mill, derived from Middle English mille "mill".

Milton English
Derived from an English place name meaning "mill town" in Old English. A famous bearer was John Milton (1608-1674), the poet who wrote "Paradise Lost".

Moon 1 Korean
Korean form of Wen, from Sino-Korean 文 (mun).

Moon 2 English
Originally indicated a person from the town of Moyon in Normandy.

Moon 3 Irish
Variant of Mohan.

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

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

Morgan Welsh
Derived from the given name Morgan 1.

Moriarty Irish
From Irish Ó Muircheartach meaning "descendant of Muirchertach". This was the surname given by Arthur Conan Doyle to a master criminal in the Sherlock Holmes series.

Morris English, Irish, Scottish, Welsh
Derived from the given name Maurice.

Morrison English
Means "son of Morris".

Morse English
Variant of Morriss.

Morton English
Derived from a place name meaning "moor town" in Old English.

Moser German
Name for someone who lived near a peat bog, from Middle High German mos.

Moss 1 English
From Middle English mos meaning "bog, moss".

Moss 2 English
From the given name Moses.

Müller German
German equivalent of Miller, derived from Middle High German mülnære or müller.

Muller German
Variant of Müller.

Murray 1 Scottish
Derived from the region in Scotland called Moray (Gaelic Moireabh), possibly of Pictish origin, meaning "seashore, coast". A notable bearer of this surname was General James Murray (1721-1794), who was the first British Governor-General of Canada.

Murray 2 Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Muireadhaigh meaning "descendant of Muireadhach".

Nickleby Literature
Created by Charles Dickens for the title character in his novel Nicholas Nickleby (1839). He probably based it on Nicol, a medieval vernacular form of Nicholas, with the common English place name suffix -by, which is derived from Old Norse býr meaning "farm, settlement".

Norris 1 English, Scottish
Means "from the north" from Old French norreis. It either denoted someone who originated in the north or someone who lived in the northern part of a settlement.

Norris 2 English
Means "wet nurse, foster mother" from Old French norrice, from Latin nutricius.

Oakley English
From a place name meaning "oak clearing" in Old English. It was borne by American sharpshooter Annie Oakley (1860-1926).

O'Hara Irish
From the Irish Ó hEaghra, which means "descendant of Eaghra", Eaghra being a given name of uncertain origin. Supposedly, the founder of the clan was Eaghra, a 10th-century lord of Luighne. A famous fictional bearer of this surname is Scarlett O'Hara, a character in Margaret Mitchell's Gone With The Wind (1936).

O'Leary Irish
From Irish Ó Laoghaire meaning "descendant of Laoghaire".

Olsen Norwegian, Danish
Means "son of Ole".

Ortega Spanish
From a Spanish place name (belonging to various villages) derived from ortiga "nettle".

Osborne English
Derived from the given name Osborn.

Pan 1 Provençal
Means "baker", from Latin panis meaning "bread".

Pan 2 Chinese
From Chinese 潘 (pān) meaning "water in which rice has been rinsed", and also referring to a river that flows into the Han River.

Panza Italian, Literature
From a variant of the Italian word pancia meaning "stomach, paunch", originally a nickname for a chubby person. The Spanish author Miguel de Cervantes used it in his novel Don Quixote (1605), where it is the surname of Don Quixote's squire Sancho Panza. Not a common Spanish surname, Cervantes may have based it directly on the Spanish word panza (a cognate of the Italian word).

Parker English
Means "keeper of the park" in Middle English. It is an occupational name for a person who was a gamekeeper at a medieval park.

Patel Gujarati
Means "landowner" in Gujarati.

Peacock English
From Middle English pecok meaning "peacock". It was originally a nickname for a proud or haughty person.

Phillips English
Means "son of Philip".

Pierce English
From the given name Piers.

Pilgrim English, German
Nickname for a person who was a pilgrim, ultimately from Latin peregrinus.

Poirot French, Literature
From a diminutive of French poire "pear", originally referring to a pear merchant or someone who lived near a pear tree. Starting in 1920 this name was used by the mystery writer Agatha Christie for her Belgian detective Hercule Poirot. Christie based the name on that of Jules Poiret, a contemporary fictional detective.

Poppins Literature
Used by P. L. Travers for the magical nanny in her Mary Poppins series of books, first published in 1934. It is not known how Travers devised the name. She may have had the English words pop or poppet (meaning "young woman") in mind.

Porter English
Occupational name meaning "doorkeeper", ultimately from Old French porte "door", from Latin porta.

Post Dutch, German, English
Indicated a person who lived near a post, ultimately from Latin postis.

Potter English
Occupational name for a potter, one who makes earthen vessels. This surname was used by J. K. Rowling for the hero in her Harry Potter series of books, first released in 1997.

Price Welsh
Derived from Welsh ap Rhys, which means "son of Rhys".

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

Quijote Literature
Spanish form of Quixote.

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.

Quixano Spanish (Archaic)
Old spelling of Quijano.

Quixote Literature
Created by the Spanish author Miguel de Cervantes for the main character in his novel Don Quixote (1605), about a nobleman who goes mad after reading too many heroic romances and decides to become a wandering knight under the name Don Quixote. His real name in part one of the book is conjectured to be Quixada or Quesada, though in part two (published 10 years after part one) it is revealed as Alonso Quixano. The Spanish suffix -ote means "large".

Randall English
Derived from the given name Randel.

Ray English
Variant of Rey 1, Rey 2, Rye or Wray.

Reilly Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Raghailligh.

Reynaud French
From the given name Reynaud.

Reynolds English
Derived from the given name Reynold.

Ripley English
From the name of various English towns, from Old English rippel "grove, thicket" and leah "woodland, clearing". A notable fictional bearer is the character Ellen Ripley from the movie Alien (1979) and its sequels.

Robin French
From the given name Robin.

Rogers English
Derived from the given name Roger.

Romanova f Russian
Feminine form of Romanov.

Ryan Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Riain, or else a simplified form of Mulryan.

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

Sawyer English
Occupational name meaning "sawer of wood, woodcutter" in Middle English, ultimately from Old English sagu meaning "saw". Mark Twain used it for the main character in his novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876).

Scrooge Literature
Created by Charles Dickens for the central character in his short novel A Christmas Carol (1843). He probably based it on the rare English word scrouge meaning "to squeeze". In the book Ebenezer Scrooge is a miserly old man who is visited by three spirits who show him visions of his past, present and future. Since the book's publication, scrooge has been used as a word to mean "miser, misanthrope".

Seward 1 English
Derived from the given name Sigeweard.

Seward 2 English
Means "swineherd" from Old English su "sow, female pig" and hierde "herdsman, guardian".

Seward 3 Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Suaird.

Seymour 1 English
From Saint Maur, a French place name, which commemorates Saint Maurus.

Seymour 2 English
From an English place name, derived from Old English sæ "sea" and mere "lake".

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

Silver English
From a nickname for a person with grey hair, from Old English seolfor "silver".

Šimon m Slovak, Czech
Derived from the given name Šimon.

Simón Spanish
From the given name Simón.

Simon English, French, German, Dutch, Hungarian, Jewish
Derived from the given name Simon 1.

Small English
From a nickname for a small person, from Middle English smal.

Smith English
Means "metalworker, blacksmith" from Old English smiþ, related to smitan "to smite, to hit". It is the most common surname in most of the English-speaking world. A famous bearer was the Scottish economist Adam Smith (1723-1790).

Spencer English
Occupational name for a person who dispensed provisions to those who worked at a manor, derived from Middle English spense "larder, pantry".

Stacy English
Derived from Stace, a medieval form of Eustace.

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

Starr English
From Middle English sterre meaning "star". This was usually a nickname, but it could also occasionally be a sign name from the name of an inn called the Star.

Steele English
Occupational name for a steelworker, from Old English stele meaning "steel".

Stone English
Name for a person who lived near a prominent stone or worked with stone, derived from Old English stan.

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

Sullivan Irish
Anglicized form of the Irish name Ó Súileabháin meaning "descendant of Súileabhán". The name Súileabhán means "dark eye".

Sun Chinese
From Chinese 孙 (sūn) meaning "grandchild, descendant". A famous bearer of the surname was Sun Tzu, the 6th-century BC author of The Art of War.

Targaryen Literature
Created by author George R. R. Martin for his series A Song of Ice and Fire, published beginning 1996, and the television adaptation Game of Thrones (2011-2019). The Targaryens were the rulers of Westeros for almost 300 years until shortly before the beginning of the first novel. The name is presumably from the Valyrian language, though Martin provides no explanation of the meaning.

Thatcher English
Referred to a person who thatched roofs by attaching straw to them, derived from Old English þæc meaning "thatch, roof". A famous bearer was the British prime minister Margaret Thatcher (1925-2013).

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

Thompson English
Means "son of Thomas".

Thornton English
From any of the various places in England by this name, meaning "thorn town" in Old English.

Thorpe English
From Old Norse þorp meaning "village".

Trask English
Originally indicated a person from Thirsk, North Yorkshire, derived from Old Norse þresk meaning "fen, marsh".

Troy English
Originally denoted a person from the city of Troyes in France.

Twist English, Literature
Probably from the name of towns in England and Wales called Twist or Twiss. This surname was used by Charles Dickens for the hero of his novel Oliver Twist (1838), about an orphan surviving the streets of London. Dickens probably had the vocabulary word twist in mind when naming the character.

Tyree Scottish
Variant of McIntyre.

Valenti Italian
Patronymic from the given name Valente, an Italian form of Valens. A famous bearer of the surname was Jack Valenti (1921-2007), advisor to American president Lyndon Johnson.

Valjean Literature
Created by Victor Hugo for Jean Valjean, the hero of his novel Les Misérables (1862). The novel explains that his father, also named Jean, received the nickname Valjean or Vlajean from a contraction of French voilá Jean meaning "here's Jean".

Verhoeven Dutch
Means "from the farm" in Dutch, derived from hoeve "farm", and so indicated a person who lived on a farm.

Vernon English
Locational name in the Eure region of Normandy, from the Gaulish element vern "alder (tree)" with the genitive case maker onis.

Wakefield English
Originally indicated a person who came from the English city of Wakefield, derived from Old English wacu "wake, vigil" and feld "field".

Walker English
Occupational name for a person who walked on damp raw cloth in order to thicken it. It is derived from Middle English walkere, Old English wealcan meaning "to move".

Wallace Scottish, English, Irish
Means "foreigner, stranger, Celt" from Norman French waleis (of Germanic origin). It was often used to denote native Welsh and Bretons. A famous bearer was the 13th-century Scottish hero William Wallace.

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

Wayne English
Occupational name meaning "wagon maker, cartwright", derived from Old English wægn "wagon". A famous bearer was the American actor John Wayne (1907-1979).

Weasley Literature
Used by J. K. Rowling for the character of Ron Weasley (and other members of his family) in her Harry Potter series of books, first released in 1997. Rowling presumably derived it from the English word weasel, perhaps in combination with the common place name/surname suffix -ley, which is derived from Old English leah meaning "woodland, clearing".

Wells English
Derived from Middle English wille meaning "well, spring, water hole".

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

Wickham English
From any of various towns by this name in England, notably in Hampshire. They are derived from Old English wic "village, town" (of Latin origin) and ham "home, settlement".

Willoughby English
From the name of various English towns, derived from Old English welig "willow" and Old Norse býr "farm, settlement".

Wong 1 Chinese (Cantonese)
Cantonese romanization of Wang 1.

Wong 2 Chinese (Cantonese)
Cantonese romanization of Huang.

Woods English, Scottish
Variant of Wood.