Appelhof DutchIndicated a person who lived by or at an apple garden, from Dutch
appel "apple" and
hof "yard, court".
Appelo DutchIndicated a person who was from a farm called Aperloo, probably a derivative of
appel meaning "apple".
Appleby EnglishFrom the name of various English towns, derived from Old English
æppel "apple" and Old Norse
býr "farm, settlement".
Appleton EnglishFrom the name of several English towns, meaning "orchard" in Old English (a compound of
æppel "apple" and
tun "enclosure, yard").
Aquino Italian, SpanishFrom the name of an Italian town near Rome, derived from Latin
aqua meaning "water", the home town of the 13th-century saint Thomas Aquinas. In Italy the surname is derived directly from the town's name. As a Spanish-language surname, it was sometimes bestowed by missionaries in honour of the saint as they evangelized in Spanish colonies.
Arenas SpanishFrom various Spanish place names, which are derived from Spanish
arena meaning
"sand".
Arkwright EnglishOccupational name meaning
"chest maker", from Middle English
arc meaning "chest, coffer" and
wyrhta meaning "maker, craftsman".
Årud NorwegianFrom Norwegian
å meaning "river, stream" and the archaic word
rud meaning "cleared land".
Arzt DutchMeans
"doctor, physician" in German, ultimately from Latin
archiater.
Ash EnglishFrom Old English
æsc meaning
"ash tree", indicating a person who lived near ash trees.
Ashley EnglishDenoted a person hailing from one of the many places in England that bear this name. The place name itself is derived from Old English
æsc "ash tree" and
leah "woodland, clearing".
Ashton EnglishDenoted a person from one of the towns in England that bear this name, itself derived from Old English
æsc "ash tree" and
tun "enclosure, yard, town".
Ashworth EnglishFrom an English place name meaning "ash enclosure" in Old English.
Asís SpanishOriginally denoted a person from the Italian city of Assisi (called
Asís in Spanish).
Assenberg DutchFrom Dutch
es meaning "ash tree" (plural
essen) and
berg meaning "mountain".
Assendorp DutchFrom the name of a place called Assendorp, composed of Dutch
essen and
dorp, meaning "ash tree village".
Åström SwedishFrom Swedish
å meaning "river, stream" and
ström (Old Norse
straumr) meaning "stream, current, flow".
Attar PersianFrom Persian
عطر ('atr) meaning
"fragrance, perfume", ultimately from Arabic. It probably denoted a seller of perfume.
Atteberry EnglishMeans
"dweller at the fortified town" from Middle English
at and
burh "fortified place".
Aue GermanFrom German meaning
"meadow by a river, wetland". There are many places with this name in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
Auer GermanFrom German
Aue, Old High German
ouwa, meaning
"meadow by a river, wetland".
Averill EnglishFrom Middle English
aueril, Old French
avrill meaning
"April", perhaps indicating a person who was baptized in that month.
Ayton EnglishFrom the name of towns in Berwickshire and North Yorkshire. They are derived from Old English
ea "river" or
ieg "island" combined with
tun "enclosure, yard, town".
Baarda FrisianFrom the name of the town of
Baard in the Netherlands, possibly derived from a given name that was a variant of
Bert.
Baardwijk DutchFrom the name of a town in the Netherlands, possibly from
Baard, a variant of
Bert, and
wijk meaning "neighbourhood, district".
Baart DutchMeans
"beard" in Dutch, originally describing a person who wore a beard.
Babić Serbian, CroatianMatronymic surname derived from Serbo-Croatian
baba "grandmother, old woman".
Bach 1 GermanTopographic name for someone who lived by a stream, from Middle High German
bach meaning
"stream". This name was borne by members of the Bach musical family, notably the composer Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750).
Bachmann GermanDenoted a person who lived near a stream, from Middle High German
bach "stream" and
man "man".
Bachmeier GermanOriginally referred to a farmer whose farm was beside a stream, from Middle High German
bach "stream" and
meier "steward, tenant farmer".
Baggins LiteratureCreated 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.
Baggio ItalianOriginally denoted a person from the Italian town of Baggio (now part of Milan). It is probably derived from Latin
Badalocum meaning "watch place".
Bagni ItalianFrom Italian
bagno "bath", derived from Latin
balneum, referring to a person who worked as a bath house attendant.
Bailey EnglishFrom Middle English
baili meaning
"bailiff", which comes via Old French from Latin
baiulus "porter".
Baines 2 EnglishFrom a nickname derived from Old English
ban "bones", probably for a thin person.
Bak DanishMeans
"slope, hillside" in Danish, from Old Norse
bakki "bank".
Baker EnglishOccupational name meaning
"baker", derived from Middle English
bakere.
Bakke NorwegianMeans
"slope, hillside" in Norwegian, from Old Norse
bakki "bank".
Bakken NorwegianMeans
"the slope, the hillside" in Norwegian, from Old Norse
bakki "bank".
Baldinotti ItalianDerived from the given name
Baldinotto, from the Latin name
Baldinoctus, a diminutive of
Baldo.
Barclay English, ScottishFrom the English place name
Berkeley, derived from Old English
beorc "birch" and
leah "woodland, clearing". The surname was imported to Scotland in the 12th century.
Bardolph LiteratureThe name of a drunken thief and frequent companion of John
Falstaff in four of William Shakespeare's plays. Shakespeare probably adapted it from the aristocratic English surname
Bardolf, now rare, which was itself derived from the Germanic given name
Bardulf.
Barnett EnglishDerived from Old English
bærnet meaning "place cleared by burning".
Barros Portuguese, SpanishFrom the Portuguese and Spanish word
barro meaning
"clay, mud". This could either be an occupational name for a person who worked with clay or mud such as a builder or artisan, or a topographic name for someone living near clay or mud.
Barsotti ItalianProbably from the medieval Latin word
baro meaning
"man, freeman" (of Frankish origin).
Barton EnglishFrom a place name meaning "barley town" in Old English.
Basso ItalianOriginally a nickname for a short person, from Latin
bassus "thick, low".
Battle EnglishFrom a nickname for a combative person. In some cases it may come from the name of English places called
Battle, so named because they were sites of battles.
Bauer GermanFrom Old High German
bur meaning
"peasant, farmer".
Baumgartner GermanOccupational name for a person who worked or lived at an orchard, from German
Baumgarten "orchard" (derived from
Baum "tree" and
Garten "garden").
Baumhauer GermanOccupational name meaning
"woodcutter", derived from German
Baum "tree" and
hauen "to chop".
Beasley EnglishFrom the name of a place in Lancashire, from Old English
beos "bent grass" and
leah "woodland, clearing".
Beauchêne FrenchFrom French place names derived from
beau "beautiful" and
chêne "oak".
Beaufort FrenchFrom various French place names derived from
beau "beautiful" and
fort "strong place, fortress".
Beaulieu FrenchFrom various French place names derived from
beau "beautiful" and
lieu "place".
Becker GermanDerived from Middle High German
becker meaning
"baker".
Becskei HungarianIndicated a person from Becske, a town in Hungary, which might be derived from the given name
Benedek.
Beech 2 EnglishOriginally a name for a person who lived near a beech tree, from Old English
bece.
Beethoven Dutch (Archaic)From a place name derived from Dutch
beet "beet, beetroot" and
hoven "farms". This name was borne by the German composer Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827), whose family was of Flemish origin. The surname is now mostly extinct.
Begbie ScottishFrom the name of a town in East Lothian, Scotland. It is derived from the Old Norse given name
Baggi and
býr "farm, settlement".
Belcher EnglishFrom a Middle English version of Old French
bel chiere meaning
"beautiful face". It later came to refer to a person who had a cheerful and pleasant temperament.
Bello Spanish, ItalianMeans
"beautiful" in Spanish and Italian, originally a nickname for an attractive person.
Bellomo ItalianFrom a nickname derived from Italian
bello "beautiful, fair" and
uomo "man".
Bentley EnglishFrom a place name derived from Old English
beonet "bent grass" and
leah "woodland, clearing". Various towns in England bear this name.
Benton EnglishDenoted someone who came from Benton, England, which is derived from Old English
beonet "bent grass" and
tun "enclosure".
Beran m CzechDerived from Czech
beran meaning
"ram, male sheep".