Ancient Origin Surnames

Napoliello Italian
Originally indicated a person from Naples in Italy.

Nardi Italian
From the given name Nardo, which was originally a short form of names like Bernardo or Leonardo.

Nardo Italian
Variant of Nardi.

Nardovino Italian (Rare)
Either from Nardo, a short form of names like Bernardo or Leonardo, or from Ardovino, a variant of Arduino.

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

Nass Norwegian
Variant of Ness.

Natale Italian
From the given name Natale.

Nathans Jewish
Derived from the given name Nathan.

Nathanson Jewish
Means "son of Nathan".

Naumov m Russian, Bulgarian
Means "son of Naum".

Naumova f Russian, Bulgarian
Feminine form of Naumov.

Navickaitė f Lithuanian
Feminine form of Navickas. This form is used by unmarried women.

Navickas m Lithuanian
Lithuanian form of Nowicki.

Navickienė f Lithuanian
Feminine form of Navickas. This form is used by married women.

Nazarenko Ukrainian
From the given name Nazar.

Nazaretian Armenian
Alternate transcription of Armenian Նազարեթյան (see Nazaretyan).

Nazaretyan Armenian
Means "son of Nazaret".

Nazarian Armenian
Alternate transcription of Armenian Նազարյան (see Nazaryan).

Nazario Italian
From the given name Nazario.

Nazaryan Armenian
Means "son of Nazar".

Neal English
Derived from the given name Neil.

Nedvěd m Czech
Czech cognate of Medved, derived from the dialectal nedvěd.

Nedvědová f Czech
Feminine form of Nedvěd.

Neely Scottish
Variant of McNeilly.

Negrescu Romanian
Patronymic derived from Romanian negru "black".

Negri Italian
Nickname derived from Italian negro "black", used to refer to someone with dark hair or dark skin.

Negrini Italian
Variant of Negri.

Neil Scottish, English, Irish
Derived from the given name Neil.

Nelissen Dutch
Means "son of Cornelis".

Nelli Italian
Derived from the given name Nello.

Nelson 1 English
Means "son of Neil". This name was borne by the British admiral Horatio Nelson (1758-1805).

Nelson 2 Swedish (Anglicized), Norwegian (Anglicized), Danish (Anglicized)
Americanized form of the Scandinavian names Nilsson, Nilsen, or Nielsen.

Němcová f Czech
Feminine form of Němec.

Němec m Czech
Means "German" in Czech.

Němeček m Czech
Diminutive form of Němec.

Němečková f Czech
Feminine form of Němeček.

Német Hungarian
Variant of Németh.

Németh Hungarian
Means "German" in Hungarian.

Nenci Italian
Means "son of Nencio", a Tuscan diminutive of the name Lorenzo.

Neri Italian
From Italian nero "black", indicating a person with a dark complexion or dark hair.

Neroni Italian
Variant of Neri.

Nespola Italian
Variant of Nespoli.

Nespoli Italian
From the name of towns such as Nespoli and Nespoledo, derived from Italian nespola meaning "medlar (tree)".

Ness English, Scottish, Norwegian
From English ness and Norwegian nes meaning "headland, promontory", of Old Norse origin, originally referring to a person who lived there.

Neuman German, Jewish
Variant of Neumann.

Neumann German, Jewish
From Middle High German niuwe and man meaning "new man, newcomer".

Neuville French
From the names of various French towns meaning "new town".

Neville English, Irish
From the names of towns in Normandy, variously Neuville or Néville, meaning "new town" in French.

Nevin 1 Irish
Anglicized form of Mac Naoimhín.

Newell English
Variant of Neville.

Newman English
English cognate of Neumann.

Newport English
Given to one who came from the town of Newport (which means simply "new port"), which was the name of several English towns.

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).

Nicholls English
Derived from the given name Nichol.

Nichols English
Derived from the given name Nichol.

Nicholson English
Means "son of Nicholas". A famous bearer of this surname is the American actor Jack Nicholson (1937-).

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".

Nicodemo Italian
Derived from the given name Nicodemo.

Nicolai Italian
Means "son of Nicola 1".

Nicolaou Greek
Alternate transcription of Greek Νικολάου (see Nikolaou).

Nicolas French
Derived from the given name Nicolas.

Nicolescu Romanian
Means "son of Nicolae".

Nicolson English
Variant of Nicholson.

Nieddu Italian
From Sardinian nieddu meaning "black", derived from Latin niger.

Nielsen Danish
Means "son of Niels 1".

Nielson English
Variant of Nelson 1.

Niemczyk Polish
From Polish Niemiec meaning "German" and the patronymic suffix -czyk.

Niemec Polish
Means "German" in Polish.

Nieri Italian
Either a variant of Neri, or from the Italian name Raniero.

Nieves Spanish
From the given name Nieves.

Nigel English
Derived from the given name Neil.

Nigro Italian
Variant of Negri.

Nikitin m Russian
From the given name Nikita 1.

Nikitina f Russian
Feminine form of Nikitin.

Niklasson Swedish
Means "son of Niklas".

Nikolaev m Russian, Bulgarian
Alternate transcription of Russian Николаев (see Nikolayev), as well as the usual Bulgarian form.

Nikolaeva f Russian, Bulgarian
Alternate transcription of Russian Николаева (see Nikolayeva), as well as the usual Bulgarian form.

Nikolaidis m Greek
Means "son of Nikolaos" in Greek.

Nikolaidou f Greek
Feminine form of Nikolaidis.

Nikolajsen Danish
Means "son of Nikolaj".

Nikolaou Greek
Means "son of Nikolaos".

Nikolayev m Russian
Means "son of Nikolay".

Nikolayeva f Russian
Feminine form of Nikolayev.

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

Nikolov m Bulgarian, Macedonian
Means "son of Nikola 1".

Nikolova f Bulgarian, Macedonian
Feminine form of Nikolov.

Nikolovska f Macedonian
Feminine form of Nikolovski.

Nikolovski m Macedonian
Means "son of Nikola 1".

Nikula Finnish
From the given name Niku, a Finnish form of Nicholas.

Niles English
Means "son of Neil".

Nilsen Norwegian
Means "son of Nils".

Nilsson Swedish
Means "son of Nils".

Nisi Italian
Means "son of Niso", an Italian form of the mythological name Nisus.

Nissen Danish
Means "son of Nis".

Niven Scottish
Anglicized form of Mac Naoimhín.

Nixon English
Means "son of Nick". A famous bearer was the American president Richard Nixon (1913-1994).

Noble English, Scottish
From a nickname meaning "noble, high-born, illustrious", derived via Middle English and Old French from Latin nobilis. In some cases the nickname may have been given ironically to people of the opposite character.

Nogueira Portuguese, Galician
From Portuguese and Galician nogueira meaning "walnut tree", from the Late Latin nucarius, ultimately from Latin nux meaning "nut".

Noguera Spanish, Catalan
Spanish and Catalan form of Nogueira.

Norberg Swedish
Variant of Nordberg.

Nordberg Swedish, Norwegian
From Swedish and Norwegian nord (Old Norse norðr) meaning "north" and berg meaning "mountain". As a Swedish name it is ornamental.

Nordin Swedish
Derived from Swedish nord meaning "north" (Old Norse norðr).

Nordström Swedish
From Swedish nord (Old Norse norðr) meaning "north" and ström (Old Norse straumr) meaning "stream".

Norman English
Referred to a person who was originally from Scandinavia or Normandy. Even before the Norman Conquest, Scandinavians were settling the north and east of England. The Normans who participated in the Conquest were originally from Scandinavia, but had been living in Normandy, France for over a century and spoke French.

Normand French
French form of Norman.

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.

North English
Name for a person who lived to the north.

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

Norton English
From the name of various towns in England meaning "north town" in Old English.

Norwood English
Originally taken from a place name meaning "north wood" in Old English.

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

Nosková f Czech
Czech feminine form of Nosek.

Notaro Italian
Occupational name for a clerk, derived from Latin notarius.

Nováček m Czech
Diminutive of Novak.

Nováčková f Czech
Feminine form of Nováček.

Novák mu Czech, Slovak, Hungarian
Czech, Slovak and Hungarian form of Novak.

Novak Slovene, Croatian, Serbian
Derived from Slavic novŭ "new", originally a name for someone who was new to a village.

Nováková f Czech, Slovak
Czech and Slovak feminine form of Novák.

Novik Belarusian
From Belarusian новы (novy) meaning "new".

Novikov m Russian
Derived from Russian новый (novy) meaning "new".

Novikova f Russian
Feminine form of Novikov.

Novotná f Czech
Feminine form of Novotný.

Novotný m Czech
Czech variant of Novak.

Nowak Polish
Polish cognate of Novak. This is the most common surname in Poland.

Nowakowska f Polish
Feminine form of Nowakowski.

Nowakowski m Polish
Habitational name for a person from various towns called Nowakowo or similar, derived from Polish nowy meaning "new".

Nowicka f Polish
Feminine form of Nowicki.

Nowicki m Polish
Habitational name for a person from any of the towns in Poland called Nowice. The name is derived from Polish nowy meaning "new".

Noyer French
French form of Nogueira.

Nussbaum German, Jewish
Means "nut tree", derived from the German Nuss "nut" and Baum "tree".

Nussenbaum Jewish
Variant of Nussbaum.

Nyberg Swedish
From Swedish ny (Old Norse nýr) meaning "new" and berg meaning "mountain".

Nygård Norwegian
From Norwegian ny (Old Norse nýr) meaning "new" and gård (Old Norse garðr) meaning "farm, estate".

Nykvist Swedish
Variant of Nyqvist.

Nylund Swedish
From Swedish ny (Old Norse nýr) meaning "new" and lund (Old Norse lundr) meaning "grove".

Nyman Swedish
From Swedish ny (Old Norse nýr) meaning "new" and man (Old Norse maðr) meaning "person, man".

Nyquist Swedish
Variant of Nyqvist.

Nyqvist Swedish
From Swedish ny (Old Norse nýr) meaning "new" and qvist (Old Norse kvistr) meaning "twig, branch".

Nyström Swedish
Ornamental name derived from Swedish ny (Old Norse nýr) meaning "new" and ström (Old Norse straumr) meaning "stream".

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

O'Beirne Irish
Variant of O'Byrne.

Öberg Swedish
From Swedish ö (Old Norse ey) meaning "island" and berg meaning "mountain".

O'Berne Irish
Variant of O'Byrne.

Oberti Italian
Derived from the given name Uberto.

Oberto Italian
Derived from the given name Uberto.

Ó Braoin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Breen.

Ó Braonáin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Brennan.

Ó Briain Irish
Irish Gaelic form of O'Brien.

O'Brian Irish
Variant of O'Brien.

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

Ó Broin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of O'Byrne.

O'Byrne Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Broin meaning "descendant of Bran 1".

O'Callaghan Irish
Variant of Callahan.

Ó Caoimh Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Keefe.

Ó Caoimháin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Cavan.

Ó Caoindealbháin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Quinlan.

Ó Catháin Irish
Means "descendant of Cathán".

Ó Cathaláin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Callan.

Ó Cathasaigh Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Casey.

Ó Ceallacháin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Callahan.

Ó Ceallaigh Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Kelly 1.

Ó Ciardha Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Carey.

Ó Cinnéidigh Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Kennedy.

Ó Cléirigh Irish
Means "descendant of the clerk" in Irish.

O'Clery Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Cléirigh.

Ó Coileáin Irish
Means "descendant of Coileán" in Irish.

Ó Conaill Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Connell.

Ó Conchobhair Irish
Irish Gaelic form of O'Connor.

O'Connell Irish
Variant of Connell.

O'Connor Irish
From Irish Ó Conchobhair meaning "descendant of Conchobar".

Ó Cuinn Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Quinn.

Ó Cuinneagáin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Cunningham 2.

Ó Dálaigh Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Daly.

Ó Damháin Irish
Means "descendant of Damhán".

Ó Deasmhumhnaigh Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Desmond.

Ó Domhnaill Irish
Irish Gaelic form of O'Donnell.

Ó Donnchadha Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Donoghue.

Ó Donndubháin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Donovan.

O'Donnell Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Domhnaill meaning "descendant of Domhnall".

O'Doyle Irish
Variant of Doyle.

Ó Dubháin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Duane.

Ó Dubhghaill Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Doyle.

Ó Dubhshláin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Dolan.

Ó Dubhshláine Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Delaney 2.

Ó Dubhthaigh Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Duffy 1.

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

Ó Faoláin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Whelan.

Ó Fearghail Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Farrell.

Ó Fionnagáin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Finnegan.

Ó Fionnáin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Fannon.

Ó Flannagáin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Flanagan.

Ó Floinn Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Flynn.

Ó Frighil Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Friel.

Ó Gallchobhair Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Gallagher.

Ogden English
From a place name derived from Old English ac "oak" and denu "valley".

Ognianov m Bulgarian
Alternate transcription of Bulgarian Огнянов (see Ognyanov).

Ognianova f Bulgarian
Alternate transcription of Bulgarian Огнянова (see Ognyanova).

Ognyanov m Bulgarian
Means "son of Ognyan".

Ognyanova f Bulgarian
Feminine form of Ognyanov.

Ó hAodha Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Hayes 2.

Ó hAonghuis Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Hennessy.

Ó hEachthighearna Irish
Means "descendant of Echthigern" in Irish.

O'Hearn Irish
Anglicized form of Ó hEachthighearna.

Ohme German
From Middle High German oem meaning "maternal uncle".

O'Kane Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Catháin.

O'Keefe Irish
Variant of Keefe.

Oláh Hungarian
Means "Romanian, Wallachian" in Hungarian, from Old Slavic volxŭ "Romance-speaker" (of Germanic origin).

Olasz Hungarian
Means "Italian" in Hungarian, from Old Slavic volxŭ "Romance-speaker" (of Germanic origin).

Olesen Danish
Means "son of Ole".

Oliveira Portuguese
Means "olive tree" in Portuguese, ultimately from Latin oliva. It indicated a person who lived near or worked with olive trees.

Oliver English, Catalan, German, French
Derived from the given name Oliver.

Oliversen Norwegian
Means "son of Oliver".

Oliverson English
Means "son of Oliver".

Oliversson Swedish
Means "son of Oliver".

Olivier French
Derived from the given name Olivier.

Olmo Spanish
Means "elm tree" in Spanish, ultimately from Latin ulmus. The name originally indicated a person who lived near such a tree.

Olmos Spanish
Variant of Olmo.

Olofsdotter Swedish
Means "daughter of Olof".

Olofsson Swedish
Means "son of Olof".

Olsen Norwegian, Danish
Means "son of Ole".

Olson Swedish (Anglicized), Norwegian (Anglicized), Danish (Anglicized)
Americanized form of Olsson or Olsen.

Olsson Swedish
Means "son of Olaf".

Ölvirsson Icelandic
Means "son of Ölvir".

Ó Mainnín Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Manning 2.

Öman Swedish
From Swedish ö (Old Norse ey) meaning "island" and man (Old Norse maðr) meaning "person, man".

Ó Maoil Eoin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Malone.

Ó Maoil Riain Irish
Means "descendant of a follower of Rian", derived from Irish maol meaning "follower".

Ó Maoilsheachlainn Irish
Means "descendant of Maolsheachlann" in Irish.

Ó Maol Aodha Irish
Means "descendant of a follower of Saint Aodh". It is derived from Irish maol meaning "follower, servant".

Ó Maol Bhréanáin Irish
Means "descendant of a follower of Saint Brendan" in Irish.

Ó Mathghamhna Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Mahoney.

Ó Muircheartach Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Moriarty.

Ó Muireadhaigh Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Murray 2.

Ó Murchadha Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Murphy.

O'Neal Irish
From Irish Ó Néill meaning "descendant of Neil".

O'Neill Irish
Variant of O'Neal.

Ó Néill Irish
Irish Gaelic form of O'Neal.

Ongaro Italian
Variant of Ungaro.

O'Niall Irish
Variant of O'Neal.

Oomen Dutch
Patronymic derived from Middle Dutch oom meaning "(maternal) uncle".

Orbán Hungarian
Derived from the given name Orbán.

Orellana Spanish
Originally indicated a person from one of the two towns named Orellana in Badajoz, Spain. Their names are probably derived from Latin Aureliana meaning "of Aurelius".

Orenstein Jewish
Means "horn stone" in German.

Ó Riagáin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Reagan.

Ó Riain Irish
Means "descendant of Rian".

Ó Ríoghbhárdáin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Riordan.

Oriol Catalan
From Catalan or meaning "gold", originally a nickname for a person with blond hair.

Orlando Italian
Derived from the given name Orlando.

Orman Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Ruaidh.

Ormond Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Ruaidh.

Ormonde Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Ruaidh.

Orsini Italian
From a nickname meaning "little bear" in Italian, from Latin ursus "bear".

Ó Ruadháin Irish
Means "descendant of Ruadhán" in Irish.

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

Osborne English
Derived from the given name Osborn.

Osbourne English
Derived from the given name Osborn.

Ó Séaghdha Irish
Means "descendant of Séaghdha".

Ó Seanáin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Shannon.

O'Shea Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Séaghdha.

Östberg Swedish
From Swedish öst (Old Norse austr) meaning "east" and berg meaning "mountain".

Østberg Norwegian
Norwegian form of Östberg.

Øster Danish
From Danish øst meaning "east", originally denoting a dweller on the eastern side of a place.

Østergaard Danish
Variant of Østergård.

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

Ó Suaird Irish
Means "descendant of Suart" in Irish. Suart is derived from the Old Norse name Sigurd.

Ó Taidhg Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Teague 1.

Ó Tíghearnaigh Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Tierney.

Otis English
Means "son of Ode".

O'Toole Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Tuathail meaning "descendant of Túathal".

Ó Treasaigh Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Tracey 2.

Ott English, German
From the given name Otto.

Otten Dutch
Means "son of Otto".

Otto German
From the given name Otto.

Ottosen Danish, Norwegian
Means "son of Otto".

Ottosson Swedish
Means "son of Otto".

Ó Tuathail Irish
Irish Gaelic form of O'Toole.

Outterridge English
Derived from the Old English given name Uhtric.

Ovesen Norwegian
Means "son of Ove".

Owen Welsh, English
From the Welsh given name Owain.

Owens Welsh
From the Welsh given name Owain.

Pabst German
From German Papst, a cognate of Pope.

Pacheco Spanish, Portuguese
Possibly from a diminutive of the given name Francisco.

Paddon English
Variant of Patton.

Paden English
Variant of Patton.

Padovan Italian
Regional variant of Padovano.

Padovano Italian
Originally denoted one who came from the city of Padua in Italy, from Italian Padova, itself from Latin Patavium, of unknown meaning.

Pagani Italian
Italian cognate of Payne.

Pagano Italian
Italian cognate of Payne.

Pahlke German
Low German cognate of Peel.

Pain English
Variant of Payne.

Pál Hungarian
Derived from the given name Pál.

Palacio Spanish
Spanish cognate of Palazzo.

Palacios Spanish
Spanish cognate of Palazzo.

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.

Pallesen Danish
Means "son of Palle".

Palmeiro Portuguese
Portuguese form of Palmer.

Palmer English
Means "pilgrim", ultimately from Latin palma "palm tree", since pilgrims to the Holy Land often brought back palm fronds as proof of their journey.

Palomer Provençal
Means "pigeon keeper" from Latin palumbes "pigeon".

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

Palumbo Italian
From Italian palombo meaning "pigeon" (also "dogfish"). This form is typical of southern Italy.