Pesaro ItalianFrom the name of the city of Pesaro, in the Marche region (Latin
Pisaurum).
Petit French, Catalan, EnglishMeans
"small, little" derived from Old French and Catalan
petit. It was perhaps used for a short, small person or to denote the younger of two individuals.
Pfaff GermanFrom a nickname meaning
"priest, cleric" from Old High German
pfaffo, from Latin
papa.
Pfeiffer GermanOccupational name meaning
"pipe player" in German, from Middle High German
pfifen "to whistle".
Pfenning GermanFrom Old High German
pfenning meaning
"penny, coin". It was used in reference to feudal tax obligations.
Philips English, DutchMeans
"son of Philip". Famous bearers of this surname were Frederick Philips (1830-1900) and his son Gerard (1858-1942), the Dutch founders of the company Philips.
Piazza ItalianMeans
"plaza" in Italian, indicating that the residence of the original bearer was near the town square. It is derived from Latin
platea.
Pini ItalianName for a person who lived near a pine tree, from Italian
pino, Latin
pinus.
Piper EnglishOriginally given to a person who played on a pipe (a flute).
Plank German, EnglishMeans
"plank", from Old French, itself from Late Latin
planca. This could have referred to a person who lived by a plank bridge over a stream, someone who was thin, or a carpenter.
Platt EnglishFrom Old French
plat meaning
"flat, thin", from Late Latin
plattus, from Greek
πλατύς (platys) meaning "wide, broad, flat". This may have been a nickname or a topographic name for someone who lived near a flat feature.
Pleško SloveneNickname for a bald person, from Slovene
pleša meaning
"bald patch".
Poggio ItalianMeans
"hillock, small hill" in Italian, a derivative of Latin
podium meaning "balcony, platform".
Poirier FrenchMeans
"pear tree" in French, originally a nickname for someone who lived close to such a tree.
Poirot French, LiteratureFrom 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.
Poletti ItalianFrom a diminutive of the given name
Paolo. This name is typical of northern and central Italy.
Poole EnglishFrom Old English
pol meaning
"pool", referring to a person who lived by a small body of water.
Popa RomanianFrom Romanian
popă "priest", from Old Church Slavic
popŭ. This is the most common surname in Romania.
Pope EnglishFrom a nickname that originally designated a person who played the part of the pope in a play or pageant. Otherwise the name could be used as a nickname for a man with a solemn, austere, or pious appearance. It is derived from Latin
papa, ultimately from Greek
πάππας (pappas) meaning "father".
Popescu RomanianPatronymic derived from Romanian
popă "priest". This is the second most common surname in Romania.
Porcher English, FrenchMeans
"swineherd" from Old French and Middle English
porchier, from Latin
porcus "pig".
Porras Spanish, CatalanFrom a nickname meaning
"club" in Spanish and Catalan, ultimately from Latin
porrum meaning "leek".
Porter EnglishOccupational name meaning
"doorkeeper", ultimately from Old French
porte "door", from Latin
porta.
Porto ItalianDesignated a person who lived near a harbour, from Italian
porto, Latin
portus.
Power 2 EnglishFrom Middle English
povre meaning
"poor", via Old French from Latin
pauper. It could have been a nickname for someone who had no money or a miser.
Prescott EnglishFrom the name of various English places meaning
"priest's cottage" in Old English.
Preston EnglishOriginally derived from various place names meaning
"priest town" in Old English.
Prinsen DutchMeans
"son of the prince", the term prince would have denoted someone who acted in a regal manner.
Prinz German, JewishMeans
"prince", used as an ornamental name by Jews or as a nickname for someone who acted in a princely manner.
Provenza ItalianFrom the name of the Provence region of southern France (in Italian
Provenza). It is derived from Latin
provincia "province", a territorial division.
Puerta SpanishMeans
"door, gate", a topographic name for a person who lived near the gates of the town.
Purcell EnglishFrom Old French
pourcel "piglet", from Latin
porcellus, a derivative of
porcus "pig". This was a nickname or an occupational name for a swineherd.
Quick EnglishNickname for a quick or agile person, ultimately from Old English
cwic meaning
"alive".
Quincy EnglishOriginally from various place names in Normandy that were derived from the given name
Quintus.
Quinlan IrishFrom Irish
Ó Caoindealbháin, which means
"descendant of Caoindealbhán", a given name meaning "handsome form" (using a diminutive suffix).
Quinn IrishAnglicized form of Irish
Ó Cuinn meaning
"descendant of Conn".
Quiñones SpanishFrom various Spanish place names derived from
quiñón meaning
"shared piece of land", derived from Latin
quinque "five".
Quintana Spanish, CatalanOriginally 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.
Radcliff EnglishFrom various place names in England that mean "red cliff" in Old English.
Rademaker DutchFrom the occupation of
rademaker meaning
"maker of wheels", from Dutch
rad meaning "wheel".
Raine 1 EnglishFrom a nickname derived from Old French
reine meaning
"queen".
Raine 2 English, FrenchDerived from a Germanic name that was short for longer names beginning with the element
ragin meaning "advice, counsel".
Rake EnglishOriginally a name for a dweller on a narrow pass or hillside, from Old English
hrace meaning
"throat, gorge".
Rapp 2 GermanFrom Middle High German
raben meaning
"raven", a nickname for a person with black hair.
Raskopf GermanPossibly from German
rasch "quick" and
Kopf "head".
Ravn DanishMeans
"raven" in Danish, from Old Norse
hrafn.
Read 1 EnglishMeans
"red" from Middle English
read, probably denoting a person with red hair or complexion.
Reagan IrishAnglicized form of Irish
Ó Riagáin meaning
"descendant of Riagán". A famous bearer was the American president Ronald Reagan (1911-2004).
Redondo SpanishMeans
"round" in Spanish, originally a nickname for a plump person, ultimately from Latin
rotundus.
Reeve EnglishOccupational name derived from Middle English
reeve, Old English
(ge)refa meaning
"sheriff, prefect, local official".
Regenbogen German, JewishFrom a German nickname meaning
"rainbow", probably a habitational name for someone who lived in a house with the sign of a rainbow. As a Jewish surname it is ornamental.
Reich German, JewishNickname for a wealthy or powerful person, from Old High German
rihhi "rich, powerful".
Reiher GermanMeans
"heron" in German, a nickname for a person with long legs.
Reis German, JewishFrom Middle High German
ris meaning
"twig, branch, bush", denoting a person who lived in an overgrown area. As a Jewish name it is ornamental.
Rey 1 English, Spanish, French, CatalanMeans
"king" in Old French, Spanish and Catalan, ultimately from Latin
rex (genitive
regis), perhaps originally denoting someone who acted like a king.
Rey 2 EnglishMeans
"female roe deer" from Old English
ræge, probably denoting someone of a nervous temperament.
Rhodes EnglishTopographic name derived from Old English
rod meaning
"cleared land", or a locational name from any of the locations named with this word.
Ribeiro PortugueseMeans
"little river, stream" in Portuguese, ultimately from Latin
riparius meaning "riverbank".
Ricci ItalianFrom Italian
riccio meaning
"curly", a nickname for someone with curly hair. It is ultimately from Latin
ericius meaning "hedgehog".
Riley 1 EnglishFrom the name of the town of Ryley in Lancashire, derived from Old English
ryge "rye" and
leah "woodland, clearing".
Rios PortugueseOriginally denoted a person who lived near a river, from Portuguese
rios "river", ultimately from Latin
rivus.
Ripley EnglishFrom 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.
Ritter GermanFrom Middle High German
riter meaning
"rider, knight", a cognate of
Ryder.
Riva ItalianMeans
"bank, shore" in Italian, from Latin
ripa, denoting one who lived by a river or a lake.
Rivera SpanishFrom Spanish
ribera meaning
"bank, shore", from Latin
riparius.
Rivers EnglishDenoted a person who lived near a river, from Middle English, from Old French
riviere meaning
"river", from Latin
riparius meaning "riverbank".
Roach EnglishFrom Middle English and Old French
roche meaning
"rock", from Late Latin
rocca, a word that may be of Celtic origin. It indicated a person who lived near a prominent rock, or who came from a town by this name (such as Les Roches in Normandy).
Robledo SpanishMeans
"oak wood" from Spanish
roble "oak", ultimately from Latin
robur.
Robles SpanishOriginally indicated a person who lived near an oak tree or forest, from Spanish
roble "oak", from Latin
robur.
Roig CatalanMeans
"red" in Catalan, from Latin
rubeus, originally a nickname for a person with red hair or a red complexion.
Rojo SpanishMeans
"red" in Spanish, referring to the colour of the hair or complexion.
Romagna ItalianFrom the region of Romagna, on the Adriatic coast of Italy. It is derived from Latin
Romania meaning "land of the Romans".
Romano 2 ItalianDenoted a person from the city of
Rome, either a resident or someone who visited as a pilgrim. In Calabria it was also used to designate a person from New Rome, a name for Constantinople.
Romanov m RussianMeans
"son of Roman". This was the surname of the last dynasty of Russian tsars.