Surnames on the List of Notable Scientists and Inventors

Addison English
Means "son of Addy 2".

Álvarez Spanish
Means "son of Álvaro".

Alvarez Spanish
Unaccented variant of Álvarez.

Amano Japanese
From Japanese 天 (ama) meaning "heaven" and 野 (no) meaning "field, wilderness".

Anderson English
Means "son of Andrew".

Appleton English
From the name of several English towns, meaning "orchard" in Old English (a compound of æppel "apple" and tun "enclosure, yard").

Arkwright English
Occupational name meaning "chest maker", from Middle English arc meaning "chest, coffer" and wyrhta meaning "maker, craftsman".

Arnold English, German
Derived from the given name Arnold.

Aston 1 English
From a place name meaning "east town" in Old English.

Aston 2 English
From the Old English given name Æðelstan.

Baird Scottish
Anglicized form of Mac an Baird.

Ball English
From Middle English bal, Old English beall meaning "ball". This was either a nickname for a rotund or bald person, or a topographic name for someone who lived near a ball-shaped feature.

Bárány Hungarian
Means "lamb" in Hungarian.

Barre French
French cognate of Barr.

Bell 1 English
From Middle English belle meaning "bell". It originated as a nickname for a person who lived near the town bell, or who had a job as a bell-ringer.

Bell 2 English
Derived from the given name Bel, a medieval short form of Isabel.

Berg German, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish
From Old High German, Old Dutch and Old Norse berg meaning "mountain".

Bernard um French, English, Dutch, German, Czech, Slovene
From the given name Bernard.

Bíró Hungarian
Derived from bíró meaning "judge" in Hungarian.

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

Blanchard French, English
Derived from the given name Blanchard.

Bösch 1 German
Derived from a diminutive of the given name Sebastian.

Bösch 2 Low German
Variant of Bosch 1.

Bosch 1 Dutch, Low German
Derived from Middle Dutch bosch meaning "wood, forest".

Bosch 2 Catalan
Catalan cognate of Bosco.

Bothe Dutch
Variant of Both.

Boyle Irish
From Irish Ó Baoighill meaning "descendant of Baoigheall". The meaning of the given name Baoigheall is uncertain, but it is thought to be connected to Irish geall meaning "pledge".

Braun German
Means "brown" in German.

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.

Bruno Italian, Portuguese
Means "brown" in Italian and Portuguese, a nickname for a person with brown hair or brown clothes. A famous bearer was the cosmologist Giordano Bruno (1548-1600).

Bush English
Originally a name for a person who lived near a prominent bush or thicket.

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.

Calvin French (Latinized)
Latinized form of Chauvin, used to refer to the French theologian Jean Cauvin (1509-1564).

Cannon English
From the ecclesiastical usage of canon, referring to a church official or servant who worked in a clergy house.

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

Carson Scottish
Meaning uncertain, possibly from the town of Courson in Normandy.

Carter English
Occupational name for a person who operated a cart to transport goods, from Norman French caretier. A famous bearer is the former American president Jimmy Carter (1924-).

Chadwick English
From the name of English towns meaning "settlement belonging to Chad" in Old English.

Chamberlain English
Occupational name for one who looked after the inner rooms of a mansion, from Norman French chambrelain.

Chance English
From a nickname for a lucky person or a gambler.

Charpentier French
French cognate of Carpenter, derived from Old French charpentier.

Chu Chinese
Alternate transcription of Chinese 朱 (see Zhu).

Cohen Jewish
Means "priest" from Hebrew כֹּהֵן (kohen). It originally denoted one of the priestly tribe of Levi.

Colt English
Occupational name for a keeper of horses, derived from Middle English colt.

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

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.

Dalton English
Derived from a place name meaning "valley town" in Old English. A notable bearer of the surname was the English chemist and physicist John Dalton (1766-1844).

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

Das Bengali, Assamese, Odia, Hindi, Marathi
Means "servant, devotee" in Sanskrit.

Da Vinci Italian (Rare)
Means "from Vinci", a town near Florence. A famous bearer was the Italian artist and scientist Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519).

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

Dumont French
Means "from the mountain", from French mont "mountain".

Dyson English
Means "son of Dye".

Edison English
Means "son of Eda 2" or "son of Adam". The surname was borne by American inventor Thomas Alva Edison (1847-1931).

Edwards English
Means "son of Edward".

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

Evans Welsh, English
Means "son of Evan".

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".

Fischer German
Occupational name meaning "fisherman" in German.

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

Ford English
Name given to someone who lived by a ford, possibly the official who maintained it. A famous bearer was the American industrialist Henry Ford (1863-1947).

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

Frank 1 English
Derived from the given name Frank.

Frank 2 English
From Old English franc meaning "free".

Frank 3 German, Dutch, Danish, Norwegian
Name for a person from Franconia in Germany, so called because it was settled by the Frankish people. A notable bearer was the German-Jewish diarist Anne Frank (1929-1945), a victim of the Holocaust.

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).

Fuller English
Occupational name for a fuller, a person who thickened and cleaned coarse cloth by pounding it. It is derived via Middle English from Latin fullo.

Fulton English
From the name of the English town of Foulden, Norfolk, meaning "bird hill" in Old English.

Gábor Hungarian
From the given name Gábor.

Gabor Hungarian
Variant of Gábor.

Galilei Italian (Rare)
From the given name Galileo. A notable bearer was the Italian astronomer and physicist Galileo Galilei (1564-1642). Both his given name and surname were from an earlier 15th-century ancestor (a doctor).

Gibbs English, Scottish
Means "son of Gib".

Gilbert English, French
Derived from the given name Gilbert.

Goddard English
Derived from the Germanic given name Godehard.

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

Gregory English
From the given name Gregory.

Gross German
Variant of Groß.

Groß German
From Old High German groz meaning "tall, big".

Grünberg German, Jewish
From German grün meaning "green" and Berg meaning "mountain". This name indicated a person who lived on or near a forest-covered mountain.

Guillaume French
From the given name Guillaume.

Guliyev m Azerbaijani
Alternate transcription of Azerbaijani Quliyev.

Gutenberg German, Jewish
Variant of Guttenberg. A notable bearer was the inventor of the printing press Johannes Gutenberg (1398-1468), whose family hailed from an estate by this name.

Haber German, Jewish
Occupational name for one who grew or sold oats, derived from Old High German habaro "oat". As a Jewish surname it is ornamental.

Hahn German
From a nickname for a proud or pugnacious person, from Old High German hano meaning "rooster, cock".

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).

Harden English
From a place name meaning "hare valley" in Old English.

Harvey English
From the Breton given name Haerviu (see Harvey).

Hawking English
From a diminutive of Hawk. A famous bearer was the British physicist Stephen Hawking (1942-2018).

Herschel German, Jewish
Diminutive form of Hirsch 1 or Hirsch 2. A famous bearer was the British-German astronomer William Herschel (1738-1822), as well as his sister Caroline Herschel (1750-1848) and son John Herschel (1792-1871), also noted scientists.

Hertz German
Derived from Middle High German herze meaning "heart", a nickname for a big-hearted person.

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

Hofmann German
Variant of Hoffmann.

Hopkins English
Patronymic formed from a diminutive of Hob.

Hopper English
Occupational name for an acrobat or a nickname for someone who was nervous or restless. A famous bearer was the American actor Dennis Hopper (1936-2010).

Huxley English
From the name of a town in Cheshire. The final element is Old English leah "woodland, clearing", while the first element might be hux "insult, scorn". A famous bearer was the British author Aldous Huxley (1894-1963).

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

Josephson English
Means "son of Joseph".

Koch German
German cognate of Cook.

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

Krebs German
Means "crab" in German, perhaps a nickname for a person with a crab-like walk.

Kuiper Dutch
Means "cooper, barrel maker" in Dutch.

Lamb English
From the name of the animal, perhaps a nickname for a shy person.

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

Lawrence English
Derived from the given name Laurence 1. Famous bearers include revolutionary T. E. Lawrence (1888-1935) and author D. H. Lawrence (1885-1930).

Leavitt English
From the name of various places called Livet in Normandy, France. They are possibly of Gaulish origin.

Leclerc French
Means "the clerk" in French.

Lee 1 English
Originally given to a person who lived on or near a leah, Old English meaning "woodland, clearing".

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.

Lehmann German
From Middle High German lehenman meaning "vassal, liege man".

Levi Jewish
From the given name Levi.

Lister Scottish
Anglicized form of the Gaelic Mac an Fleisdeir meaning "son of the arrow maker".

Lorentz German
Derived from the given name Lorenz.

Lorenz German
Derived from the given name Lorenz.

Mach mu Czech, Polish
From a diminutive of the given names Matěj or Maciej.

Malinowski m Polish
From Polish malina meaning "raspberry", originally indicating a person who lived near a raspberry patch.

Mann German, English
From a nickname meaning "man". This may have originally been given in order to distinguish the bearer from a younger person with the same name.

Marconi Italian
Derived from the given name Marco.

Marshall English
Derived from Middle English mareschal "marshal", from Latin mariscalcus, ultimately from Germanic roots akin to Old High German marah "horse" and scalc "servant". It originally referred to someone who took care of horses.

Maxwell Scottish
From a place name meaning "Mack's stream", from the name Mack, a short form of the Scandinavian name Magnus, combined with Old English wille "well, stream". A famous bearer was James Maxwell (1831-1879), a Scottish physicist who studied gases and electromagnetism.

Mayer 1 German
Variant of Meyer 1.

Mayer 2 Jewish
Variant of Meyer 2.

Mayer 3 English
Occupational name for a mayor, from Middle English mair, derived via Old French from Latin maior.

Mayer 4 English
Variant of Myer.

McDonald Scottish
Variant of MacDonald.

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

Mendel 1 Jewish
Derived from the given name Mendel.

Mendel 2 German
Derived from a diminutive of the given name Meino. A famous bearer was Gregor Mendel (1822-1884), a Czech monk and scientist who did experiments in genetics.

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.

Meyer 2 Jewish
From Hebrew מֵאִיר (meir) meaning "enlightened".

Meyer 3 English
Variant of Mayer 3.

Meyer 4 English
Variant of Myer.

Molina Spanish
Means "mill" in Spanish.

Morgan Welsh
Derived from the given name Morgan 1.

Morse English
Variant of Morriss.

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

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

Muller German
Variant of Müller.

Nakamura Japanese
From Japanese 中 (naka) meaning "middle" and 村 (mura) meaning "town, village".

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).

Northrop English
Originally denoted one who came from a town of this name England, meaning "north farm".

Oppenheimer German
Originally indicated a person from Oppenheim, Germany, perhaps meaning "marshy home". A notable bearer was the American physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer (1904-1967).

Otto German
From the given name Otto.

Parkinson English
Means "son of Parkin", a medieval diminutive of Peter.

Patterson English, Scottish
Means "son of Patrick".

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

Pavlov m Russian, Bulgarian
Means "son of Pavel". A famous bearer of this surname was the Russian scientist Ivan Pavlov (1849-1936), known for his discovery of the conditioned reflex.

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.

Perrin French
From a diminutive of the given name Pierre.

Phillips English
Means "son of Philip".

Pickering English
From the name of a town in Yorkshire, derived from Old English Piceringas, the name of a tribe.

Planck German
German variant of Plank.

Porsche German
Possibly derived from German Bursche meaning "boy, servant" or from the given name Boris.

Powell Welsh, English
Derived from Welsh ap Hywel meaning "son of Hywel".

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.

Ramsay Scottish
Variant of Ramsey.

Ramsey English, Scottish
Means "garlic island", derived from Old English hramsa "garlic" and eg "island". The surname was brought to Scotland by the Norman baron Simundus de Ramsay.

Remington English
From the name of the town of Rimington in Lancashire, derived from the name of the stream Riming combined with Old English tun meaning "enclosure, town".

Richards English
Derived from the given name Richard.

Richardson English
Means "son of Richard".

Richter German
Means "judge" in German, from Middle High German rihtære.

Ritchie Scottish
From a Scottish diminutive of the given name Richard.

Ross English, Scottish
From various place names (such as the region of Ross in northern Scotland), which are derived from Scottish Gaelic ros meaning "promontory, headland".

Russell English
From a Norman French nickname that meant "little red one", perhaps originally describing a person with red hair.

Rutherford Scottish
From the name of places in southern Scotland and northern England, derived from Old English hriðer meaning "cattle, ox" and ford meaning "ford, river crossing".

Růžička m Czech
Means "little rose" in Czech.

Santos Portuguese, Spanish
Means "saint" in Portuguese and Spanish, ultimately from Latin sanctus. This was a nickname for a pious person.

Schmidt German
Occupational name derived from Middle High German smit "smith, metalworker", a cognate of Smith.

Schwartz German, Jewish
Variant of Schwarz.

Shannon Irish
From Irish Ó Seanáin meaning "descendant of Seanán".

Sjögren Swedish
From Swedish sjö (Old Norse sær) meaning "lake, sea" and gren (Old Norse grein) meaning "branch".

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).

Stanley English
From various place names meaning "stone clearing" in Old English. A notable bearer was the British-American explorer and journalist Henry Morton Stanley (1841-1904).

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

Steensen Danish
Means "son of Steen".

Stephenson English
Means "son of Stephen".

Stern 1 English
From Old English styrne meaning "stern, severe". This was used as a nickname for someone who was stern, harsh, or severe in manner or character.

Stern 2 German, Jewish
German cognate of Starr.

Strickland English
From the name of a town in Cumbria, derived from Old English stirc "calf, young bullock" and land "cultivated land".

Sumner English
Occupational name for a summoner, an official who was responsible for ensuring the appearance of witnesses in court, from Middle English sumner, ultimately from Latin submonere "to advise".

Talbot English
Of Norman origin, possibly derived from an unattested Germanic given name composed of the elements dala "to destroy" and bod "message".

Tamm Estonian
Means "oak" in Estonian. This is among the most common surnames in Estonia.

Taylor English
Derived from Old French tailleur meaning "tailor", ultimately from Latin taliare "to cut".

Tesla Serbian
Occupational name for a carpenter, derived from Serbian tesla meaning "adze". This name was notably borne by the Serbian-American inventor Nikola Tesla (1856-1943).

Thompson English
Means "son of Thomas".

Thomson English
Variant of Thompson.

Thorne English
Variant of Thorn.

Tyson 1 English
Derived from a nickname for a quarrelsome person, from Old French tison meaning "firebrand".

Tyson 2 English
Variant of Dyson.

Van der Meer Dutch
Means "from the lake" in Dutch.

Van Leeuwenhoek Dutch
Variant of Leeuwenhoek. A famous bearer of this surname is Antonie van Leeuwenhoek (1632-1723), a pioneer in the field of microscopy.

Virtanen Finnish
Derived from Finnish virta meaning "stream". This is the second most common surname in Finland.

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.

Wallach Yiddish
From Middle High German walch meaning "foreigner (from a Romance country)".

Walton English
From the name of any of several villages in England, derived from Old English wealh "foreigner, Celt", weald "forest", weall "wall", or wille "well, spring, water hole" combined with tun "enclosure, yard, town".

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

Watt English
Derived from the Middle English given name Wat or Watt, a diminutive of the name Walter. A noteworthy bearer was the Scottish inventor James Watt (1736-1819).

Weber German
German cognate of Weaver 1.

Wegener Low German
Low German variant of Wagner.

Werner German
From the given name Werner.

Whitney English
Originally from the name of an English town, meaning "white island" in Old English.

Wilkins English
Means "son of Wilkin".

Wilson English
Means "son of Will". A famous bearer was the American president Woodrow Wilson (1856-1924).

Woodward English
Occupational name for a forester, meaning "ward of the wood" in Old English.

Woźniak Polish
From Polish woźny meaning "caretaker, clerk".

Wright 1 English
From Old English wyrhta meaning "wright, maker", an occupational name for someone who was a craftsman. Famous bearers were Orville and Wilbur Wright, the inventors of the first successful airplane.

Wright 2 French (Anglicized)
Americanized form of Droit.

Yang Chinese
From Chinese 杨 (yáng) meaning "willow, poplar, aspen".

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

Ziegler German
Means "bricklayer" or "brickmaker" in German, from Middle High German ziegel "brick, tile".