Ancient Origin Surnames

Van Althuis Dutch
Dutch cognate of Althaus.

Van As Dutch
Means "from Asch", a town in the Netherlands, meaning "ash tree".

Van Asch Dutch
Variant of Van As.

Van Beek Dutch
Means "from the creek" in Dutch.

Vance English
Indicated a dweller by a fen, from Old English fenn meaning "fen, marsh".

Vanchev m Bulgarian
Means "son of Vancho".

Vancheva f Bulgarian
Feminine form of Vanchev.

Vančura m Czech
Derived from the given name Václav.

Vančurová f Czech
Feminine form of Vančura.

Van Daal Dutch
Variant of Van Dalen.

Van Daalen Dutch
Variant of Van Dalen.

Van Dael Dutch
Variant of Van Dalen.

Van Daele Dutch
Variant of Van Dalen.

Van Dale Dutch
Variant of Van Dalen.

Vandale Dutch
Variant of Van Dalen.

Van Dalen Dutch
Means "from the valley", from Old Dutch dal meaning "valley".

Van Dam Dutch
Means "from the dam" in Dutch.

Van Damme Flemish
Means "from Damme", the name of a town in Belgium, derived from Dutch dam meaning "dam". A famous bearer is the Belgian actor Jean-Claude Van Damme (1960-), who was born with the surname Van Varenberg.

Van den Akker Dutch
Means "from the field" in Dutch.

Van den Berg Dutch
Means "from the mountain", derived from Dutch berg meaning "mountain".

Van den Brink Dutch
Means "from the village center" in Dutch.

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

Van der Aart Dutch
Means "from the earth", derived from Dutch aarde "earth". It perhaps referred to either an earth bank or to a farmer.

Van der Beek Dutch
Variant of Van Beek.

Van der Berg Dutch
Variant of Van den Berg.

Van Der Heijden Dutch
Means "from the heathland" in Dutch.

Van der Hout Dutch
Variant of Van Houten.

Van der Linden Dutch
Means "from the linden trees", from Dutch linde meaning "linden tree".

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

Van der Veen Dutch
Means "from the swamp", from Dutch veen meaning "fen, swamp, peat". It originally indicated a person who resided in a peat district or fen colony.

Van der Ven Dutch
Variant of Van der Veen.

Van der Venne Dutch
Variant of Van der Veen.

Van der Vennen Dutch (Rare)
Variant of Van der Veen.

Van der Wal Dutch
Means "from the wall" in Dutch.

Van de Ven Dutch
Variant of Van der Veen.

Vaněk m Czech
From an old diminutive of the given name Václav.

Vanev m Bulgarian
Means "son of Vane", a diminutive of Ivan.

Vaneva f Bulgarian
Feminine form of Vanev.

Vång Swedish
Swedish variant of Wang 3.

Vang 1 Norwegian, Danish
Variant of Wang 3.

Vang 2 Yiddish
Variant of Wang 4.

Van Hautum Dutch
Variant of Van Houten.

Van Hofwegen Dutch
Means "from Hofwegen", a town in the province of South Holland in the Netherlands, itself derived from Dutch hof "garden, courtyard" and weg "way, path, road".

Van Hoorn Dutch
Dutch form of Horn.

Van Horn Dutch
Dutch form of Horn.

Van Hout Dutch
Variant of Van Houten.

Van Houte Dutch
Variant of Van Houten.

Van Houtem Dutch
Variant of Van Houten.

Van Houten Dutch
Means "from forests", derived from Dutch hout "forest".

Van Houttum Dutch
Variant of Van Houten.

Van Houtum Dutch
Variant of Van Houten.

Vankov m Bulgarian
Means "son of Vanko", a diminutive of Ivan.

Vaňková f Czech
Feminine form of Vaněk.

Vankova f Bulgarian
Feminine form of Vankov.

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.

Vann English
From Old English fenn meaning "fen, swamp", indicating a person who lived near such a place.

Van Rijn Dutch
Means "from the Rhine". A famous bearer was the Dutch painter Rembrandt van Rijn (1606-1669).

Van Rompa Flemish (Rare)
Variant of Van Rompaey.

Van Rompaey Flemish, Dutch
Means "from the wide path", derived from Middle Dutch ruum "roomy, spacious" combined with pat "path".

Van Rompay Flemish, Dutch
Variant of Van Rompaey.

Van Rompaye Flemish (Rare)
Variant of Van Rompaey.

Van Rompu Flemish (Rare)
Variant of Van Rompaey.

Van Rompuy Flemish
Variant of Van Rompaey. A famous bearer is the Flemish politician Herman Van Rompuy (1947-), a Prime Minister of Belgium.

Van 't Hout Dutch
Variant of Van Houten.

Van Veen Dutch
Variant of Van der Veen.

Van Veenen Dutch
Variant of Van der Veen.

Van Vliet Dutch
Means "from the stream" in Dutch.

Van Wijk Dutch
Means "from the settlement", from Dutch wijk meaning "neighbourhood, district, settlement".

Van Willigen Dutch
Means "from the willows", from Old Dutch wilga "willow".

Vardanyan Armenian
Means "son of Vardan".

Varnham English
Variant of Farnham.

Vartanian Armenian
Alternate transcription of Armenian Վարդանյան (see Vardanyan).

Vašek m Czech
Derived from a diminutive of the given name Václav.

Vasić Serbian
Means "son of Vaso 1".

Vasile Romanian
Derived from the given name Vasile.

Vasileiou Greek
Alternate transcription of Greek Βασιλείου (see Vasiliou).

Vasilescu Romanian
Means "son of Vasile".

Vasilev m Bulgarian
Means "son of Vasil".

Vasileva f Bulgarian
Feminine form of Vasilev.

Vasiliauskaitė f Lithuanian
Feminine form of Vasiliauskas. This form is used by unmarried women.

Vasiliauskas m Lithuanian
Means "son of Vasilijus".

Vasiliauskienė f Lithuanian
Feminine form of Vasiliauskas. This form is used by married women.

Vasiliev m Russian
Alternate transcription of Russian Васильев (see Vasilyev).

Vasilieva f Russian
Alternate transcription of Russian Васильева (see Vasilyeva).

Vasiliou Greek
Means "son of Vasilios".

Vasilyev m Russian
Means "son of Vasil".

Vasilyeva f Russian
Feminine form of Vasilyev.

Vaško m Slovak
Derived from a diminutive of the given name Václav.

Vašková f Czech, Slovak
Feminine form of Vašek or Vaško.

Vassiliou Greek
Alternate transcription of Greek Βασιλείου (see Vasiliou).

Vasylenko Ukrainian
From the given name Vasyl.

Vasylyk Ukrainian
Derived from the given name Vasyl.

Vasylyshyn Ukrainian
Means "son of Vasyl".

Vaughan Welsh
From Welsh bychan (mutated to fychan) meaning "little". It was a descriptive name to distinguish father from son.

Vaughn Welsh
Variant of Vaughan.

Vávra m Czech, Slovak
Derived from the given name Vávra, a diminutive of Vavřinec.

Vávrová f Czech, Slovak
Feminine form of Vávra.

Veenstra Dutch
Derived from Dutch veen meaning "fen, swamp, peat".

Velichkov m Bulgarian
Means "son of Velichko".

Velichkova f Bulgarian
Feminine form of Velichkov.

Velitchkov m Bulgarian
Alternate transcription of Bulgarian Величков (see Velichkov).

Velitchkova f Bulgarian
Alternate transcription of Bulgarian Величкова (see Velichkova).

Vencel Hungarian
Derived from the given name Vencel.

Venczel Hungarian
Derived from the given name Vencel.

Venner Dutch
Variant of Van der Veen.

Ventura Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan
From the given name Bonaventura.

Verboom Dutch
Means "from the tree" in Dutch.

Vergoossen Dutch
Means "son of Goswin".

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

Vermeulen Flemish
Means "from the mill" in Dutch.

Vernersen Danish
Means "son of Verner".

Verona Italian
From the name of the city of Verona, one of the most important historical cities of northern Italy. The meaning of the city's name is uncertain.

Veronesi Italian
Variant of Verona.

Vervloet Flemish
Means "from the stream" in Dutch.

Veselá f Czech, Slovak
Feminine form of Veselý.

Veselý m Czech, Slovak
From a nickname meaning "cheerful" in Czech and Slovak.

Vestergaard Danish
From a place name, derived from Danish vest "west" and gård "farm, yard".

Vestri Italian
From the given name Silvestro.

Vicario Spanish, Italian
Means "vicar" in Spanish and Italian, an ecclesiastic title used to denote a representative of a bishop. It is derived from Latin vicarius meaning "substitute, deputy".

Vicente Spanish, Portuguese
From the given name Vicente.

Vico Italian, Spanish
Means "town, village", derived from Latin vicus.

Victor French, English
Derived from the male given name Victor.

Victors English
Derived from the given name Victor.

Victorsson Swedish
Means "son of Victor".

Vida Hungarian
From the given name Vid.

Vidal Spanish, Catalan, French
From the given name Vidal.

Vidović Croatian
Means "son of Vid".

Vieth German
From the given name Veit.

Vigo Italian, Spanish
Variant of Vico.

Vik Norwegian
Means "cove, inlet" in Norwegian.

Viktorov m Russian, Bulgarian
Means "son of Viktor".

Viktorova f Russian, Bulgarian
Feminine form of Viktorov.

Vila Catalan
Catalan form of Villa.

Vilar Portuguese, Galician, Catalan
Means "hamlet, farm" in Portuguese, Galician and Catalan, from Late Latin villare, a derivative of Latin villa.

Vilaró Catalan
Catalan variant of Vilar.

Vilhjálmsson Icelandic
Means "son of Vilhjálmur".

Villa Italian, Spanish
Means "town" in Italian and Spanish, from Latin. It was originally given to a person who came from a town, as opposed to the countryside.

Villalba Spanish
Denoted a person from one of the various Spanish places by this name. It is derived from Spanish villa "town" and alba "white".

Villalobos Spanish
Habitational name for a person from the town of Villalobos, Spain, which is derived from Spanish villa "town" and lobo "wolf".

Villanueva Spanish
Originally denoted someone who came from one of the various Spanish towns by this name, derived from villa "town" and nueva "new".

Villar Spanish
Spanish cognate of Vilar.

Villaverde Spanish
Originally denoted a person from one of the various Spanish towns by this name, derived from villa "town" and verde "green".

Villeneuve French
French cognate of Villanueva.

Vincent 1 English, French
From the given name Vincent.

Vinci 1 Italian
From the given name Vincenzo.

Vincze Hungarian
From the given name Vince.

Vinković Croatian
Means "son of Vinko".

Vinogradov m Russian
Means "vineyard" in Russian (ultimately from German), referring to a person who worked at a vineyard or lived near one.

Vinogradova f Russian
Feminine form of Vinogradov.

Vinter Danish, Norwegian, Swedish
Scandinavian variant of Winter.

Viola Italian
From the given name Viola.

Visscher Dutch
Variant of Visser.

Visser Dutch
Occupational name meaning "fisherman" in Dutch.

Vitale Italian
From the given name Vitale.

Vitali Italian
From the given name Vitale.

Vivas Catalan
From the Catalan byname vivas meaning "may you live", which was bestowed upon children to bring good luck.

Vives Catalan
Variant of Vivas.

Vlachos m Greek
Means "Romanian, Wallachian" in Greek, from Old Slavic volxŭ "Romance-speaker" (of Germanic origin).

Vlachou f Greek
Feminine form of Vlachos.

Vlad Romanian
From the given name Vlad.

Vladimirescu Romanian
Means "son of Vladimir".

Vlahos m Greek
Alternate transcription of Greek Βλάχος (see Vlachos).

Vlahou f Greek
Alternate transcription of Greek Βλάχου (see Vlachou).

Vlahović Serbian, Croatian
Patronymic from Serbo-Croatian Vlah meaning "Romanian, Wallachian".

Vlašić Croatian
Patronymic from the nickname Vlah meaning "Romanian, Wallachian".

Vlašič Slovene
Patronymic from the nickname Vlah meaning "Romanian, Wallachian".

Vlček m Czech, Slovak
Diminutive form of Czech and Slovak vlk meaning "wolf".

Vlčková f Czech, Slovak
Feminine form of Vlček.

Voclain French
From the Old French given name Vauquelin.

Vogel German, Dutch
From Old High German and Old Dutch fogal meaning "bird". It was originally an occupational name for a bird catcher, or a nickname for a person who liked to sing.

Vogels Dutch
Variant of Vogel.

Vogt German
Occupational name from Middle High German voget meaning "bailiff, administrator, steward", ultimately from Latin advocatus.

Vogts German
Patronymic variant of Vogt.

Voigt German
Variant of Vogt.

Voigts German
Patronymic variant of Vogt.

Volk German
Derived from given names beginning with the Old High German element folk meaning "people".

Volkov m Russian
Derived from Russian волк (volk) meaning "wolf".

Volkova f Russian
Feminine form of Volkov.

Voll 1 Norwegian
Originally indicated a person who lived in a meadow, from Old Norse vǫllr "meadow, field".

Voll 2 German
Variant of Volk.

Vollan Norwegian
Variant of Voll 1.

Von Brandt German
Means "from the area cleared by fire", from Middle High German brant.

Von Essen German
Means "from Essen", a city in Germany, possibly a derivative of Old High German asc meaning "ash tree".

Voronin m Russian
Derived from Russian ворона (vorona) meaning "crow".

Voronina f Russian
Feminine form of Voronin.

Vos Dutch
Dutch cognate of Voss.

Voss German
From Middle Low German vos meaning "fox". It was originally a nickname for a clever person or a person with red hair.

Voß German
Variant of Voss.

Vrabcová f Czech, Slovak
Feminine form of Vrabec.

Vrabec um Croatian, Slovene, Czech, Slovak
Means "sparrow" in several languages, from Old Slavic vorbĭ.

Vroom Dutch, Flemish
From a nickname derived from Dutch vroom meaning "pious, devout".

Vroomen Dutch, Flemish
Variant of Vroom.

Vrubel m Czech
From a dialectal variant of Czech vrabec "sparrow".

Vrublová f Czech
Feminine form of Vrubel.

Wägner German
Variant of Wagner.

Wagner German
From Middle High German wagener meaning "wagon maker, cartwright". This name was borne by the German composer Richard Wagner (1813-1883).

Wähner German
Variant of Wagner.

Wahner German
Variant of Wagner.

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

Walczak Polish
Derived from a diminutive of the given name Walenty.

Waldfogel Jewish
Variant of Waldvogel.

Waldo English
From the Anglo-Scandinavian given name Waltheof.

Waldvogel German, Jewish
From a nickname for a carefree person, derived from German Wald meaning "forest" and Vogel meaning "bird". As a Jewish name it is ornamental.

Walentowicz Polish
Means "son of Walenty".

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

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".

Wall English
Originally denoted a person who lived near a prominent wall, from Old English weall.

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)".

Waller 2 English
Derived from Old English weall meaning "wall", denoting a builder of walls or someone who lived near a prominent wall.

Waller 3 English
From Old English wille meaning "well, spring, water hole".

Wallin Swedish
From Swedish vall meaning "wall, bank" (ultimately of Latin origin).

Wallis Scottish, English
Variant of Wallace.

Walmsley English
Originally denoted a person from the English town of Walmersley.

Walsh English, Irish
From Old English wælisc meaning "foreigner, stranger, Celt".

Walter English, German
Derived from the given name Walter.

Walters English
Derived from the given name Walter.

Walterson English
Means "son of Walter".

Waltersson Swedish
Variant of Walterson.

Walther German
From the given name Walther.

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".

Waltz German
From a diminutive of the given name Walther.

Wang 2 German, Dutch
From Middle High German and Middle Dutch wange meaning "cheek", possibly a nickname for someone with round or rosy cheeks.

Wang 3 German, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish
From Old High German wang or Old Norse vangr meaning "grassy slope, meadow".

Wang 4 Yiddish
Name for a Jew from Hungary, ultimately from Russian Венгрия (Vengriya) meaning "Hungary".

Ward 1 English
Derived from Old English weard meaning "guard, guardian".

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

Warner German, English
Variant of Werner.

Warrick English
Variant of Warwick.

Warshawsky Jewish
Variant of Warszawski.

Warszawska f Polish
Feminine form of Warszawski.

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.

Warwick English
From the name of an English town, itself derived from Old English wer "weir, dam" and wic "village, town".

Wash English
Derived from the Norman name Wazo.

Washington English
From a place name meaning "settlement belonging to Wassa's people", from the given name Wassa and Old English tun meaning "enclosure, yard, town". A famous bearer was George Washington (1732-1799), the first president of the United States. This surname was sometimes adopted by freed slaves, resulting in a high proportion of African-American bearers.

Wasilewska f Polish
Feminine form of Wasilewski.

Wasilewski m Polish
Means "son of Wasyl".

Waterman 1 English
Means "servant of Walter".

Waterman 2 English, Dutch
Occupational name for a boatman or a water carrier. It could also describe a person who lived by water.

Waters 1 English
Originally given to a person who lived near the water.

Waters 2 English
Derived from the given name Walter.

Watkins English
Derived from the Middle English given name Wat or Watt, which was a diminutive of the name Walter.

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).

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

Wauters Dutch
Means "son of Wouter".

Wawrzaszek Polish
Means "son of Wawrzyniec".

Way English
From Old English weg meaning "way, road, path".

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".

Weaver 1 English
Occupational name for a weaver, derived from Old English wefan "to weave".

Webb English
Occupational name meaning "weaver", from Old English webba, a derivative of wefan "to weave".

Weber German
German cognate of Weaver 1.

Webster English
Occupational name meaning "weaver", from Old English webba, a derivative of wefan "to weave".

Wechsler German, Jewish
Means "money changer, banker", from German wechseln "to exchange".

Wedekind German
From the given name Widukind.

Weeber German
German cognate of Weaver 1.

Weekes English
Variant of Weeks.

Weeks English
Derived from Old English wic meaning "village, town".

Wegener Low German
Low German variant of Wagner.

Wegner Low German
Low German variant of Wagner.

Wehner German
Variant of Wagner.

Wehnert German
Variant of Wagner.

Wehunt German (Anglicized)
Americanized form of German Wiegand.

Weigand German
From the given name Wiegand.

Weimann German
From German Wein meaning "wine", an occupational name for a wine seller or producer.

Weiner German
Variant of Wagner.

Weiss German, Yiddish
From Middle High German wiz or Yiddish װייַס (vais) meaning "white". This was originally a nickname for a person with white hair or skin.

Weiß German
Variant of Weiss.

Welch English
Variant of Walsh.

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

Welter German
Derived from the given name Walter.

Wembley English
From the name of a town, now part of Greater London, meaning "Wemba's clearing" in Old English.

Wendel German
Derived from the given name Wendel.

Wendell German
Variant of Wendel (typically American).

Werner German
From the given name Werner.

Wernher German
From the given name Werner.

Wescott English
Variant of Westcott.

Wesley English
Variant of Westley.

West English, German
Denoted a person who lived to the west of something, or who came from the west.

Westbrook English
From the name of places in England, derived from Old English west "west" and broc "brook, stream".

Westcott English
From any of the several English towns by this name, derived from Old English meaning "west cottage".

Westenberg Dutch
Means "west of the mountain", originally referring to a person who lived there.

Westerberg Swedish
Derived from Swedish *väster (Old Norse vestr) meaning "west" and berg meaning "mountain".

Westley English
From the name of various English towns, derived from Old English west "west" and leah "woodland, clearing".

Weston English
From the name of various English towns, derived from Old English west "west" and tun "enclosure, yard, town".

Wetzel German
From the given name Wenzel.

Wexler Jewish
Variant of Wechsler.

Whalen Irish
Variant of Whelan.

Wheatley English
From any of the various places in England with this name, meaning "wheat clearing" in Old English.

Whelan Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Faoláin meaning "descendant of Faolán".

Whitaker English
From a place name composed of Old English hwit "white" and æcer "field".

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

Whitehead English
Nickname for someone with white or light-coloured hair, from Old English hwit "white" and heafod "head".

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

Whittaker English
Variant of Whitaker.

Whittemore English
From various English place names derived from Old English hwit "white" and mor "moor, heath, bog".

Whittle English
From various English place names derived from Old English hwit "white" and hyll "hill".

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".

Wieck German
Means "village, town", derived from Latin vicus.