Ancient Origin Surnames

Bergman Swedish
From Swedish berg meaning "mountain" and man (Old Norse maðr) meaning "person, man", originally a name for a person living on a mountain.

Bergmann German
From Old High German berg meaning "mountain" and man meaning "man", originally denoting someone who lived on a mountain.

Bergqvist Swedish
From Swedish berg meaning "mountain" and qvist (Old Norse kvistr) meaning "twig, branch".

Bergström Swedish
Derived from Swedish berg meaning "mountain" and ström (Old Norse straumr) meaning "stream".

Béringer French
From the given name Bérenger.

Beringer German, English
From the given name Berengar.

Berkovich Jewish
Means "son of Berko" in Yiddish, Berko being a derivative of Ber.

Berkowicz Jewish
Variant of Berkovich.

Berkowitz Jewish
Variant of Berkovich.

Bermúdez Spanish
Means "son of Bermudo".

Bernard u & m French, English, Dutch, German, Czech, Slovene
From the given name Bernard.

Bernardi Italian
From the given name Bernardo.

Bernardino Portuguese, Spanish
From the given name Bernardino.

Bernardo Portuguese
From the given name Bernardo.

Bernardová f Czech
Czech feminine form of Bernard.

Bernat Catalan
Derived from the given name Bernat.

Berne Irish
Variant of O'Byrne.

Bernhard German
From the given name Bernhard.

Bernhardsson Swedish
Means "son of Bernhard".

Berntsen Norwegian, Danish
Means "son of Bernt".

Berntsson Swedish
Means "son of Bernt".

Berry English
Derived from a place name, which was derived from Old English burh "fortification".

Berti Italian
Derived from the given name Berto.

Bertolini Italian
Derived from a diminutive of the given name Bertoldo.

Bertrand French
Derived from the given name Bertrand.

Beulen Dutch
Means "son of Boele".

Beulens Dutch
Means "son of Boele".

Beumer Dutch
Possibly a Dutch form of Baumer or Böhmer.

Beumers Dutch
Possibly a Dutch form of Baumer or Böhmer.

Beutel German
From Middle High German biutel meaning "bag", originally belonging to a person who made or sold bags.

Bevan Welsh
Derived from Welsh ap Evan meaning "son of Evan".

Beverley English
From the name of an English city, derived from Old English beofor "beaver" and (possibly) licc "stream".

Beverly English
Variant of Beverley.

Beyer German
Variant of Bayer.

Beyersdorf German
Means "farmers village", from German Bauer meaning "farmer" and Dorf meaning "village".

Bezuidenhout Dutch
From Dutch zuid "south" and hout "forest". It refers to the south of the forest in The Hague.

Biagi Italian
Means "son of Biagio".

Biancardi Italian
Italian form of Blanchard.

Bianchi Italian
From Italian bianco meaning "white", originally given to a person who was white-haired or extremely pale.

Bianco Italian
Variant of Bianchi.

Bieber German, Jewish
From Middle High German biber meaning "beaver", possibly a nickname for a hard worker.

Biondi Italian
Means "fair-haired, blond" in Italian. This name was borne by the American swimmer Matt Biondi (1965-).

Biondo Italian
Variant of Biondi.

Bird English
Occupational name for a person who raised or hunted birds.

Bischoffs German
German cognate of Bishop.

Bishop English
Means simply "bishop", ultimately from Greek ἐπίσκοπος (episkopos) meaning "overseer". It probably originally referred to a person who served a bishop.

Biškup Croatian
Croatian cognate of Bishop.

Biskup Polish
Polish cognate of Bishop.

Bjarnesen Danish
Means "son of Bjarne".

Björk Swedish
From Swedish björk meaning "birch tree", Old Norse bjǫrk.

Björklund Swedish
From Swedish björk (Old Norse bjǫrk) meaning "birch tree" and lund (Old Norse lundr) meaning "grove".

Björkman Swedish
From Swedish björk (Old Norse bjǫrk) meaning "birch tree" and man (Old Norse maðr) meaning "person, man".

Björnsson Swedish, Icelandic
Means "son of Björn".

Black English
Means either "black" (from Old English blæc) or "pale" (from Old English blac). It could refer to a person with a pale or a dark complexion, or a person who worked with black dye.

Blackbourne English
Variant of Blackburn.

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

Blackman English
From a nickname, a variant of Black.

Blackwood English, Scottish
From an English place name meaning "black wood".

Bláha m Czech
Derived from a diminutive of the given name Blažej.

Bláhová f Czech
Feminine form of Bláha.

Blain Scottish
From the given name Bláán.

Blaine Scottish
From the given name Bláán.

Blaise French
Derived from the given name Blaise.

Blake English
Variant of Black. A famous bearer was the poet and artist William Blake (1757-1827).

Blakeley English
From name of various English places, derived from Old English blæc "black" and leah "woodland, clearing".

Blakely English
Variant of Blakeley.

Blakeslee English
Variant of Blakesley.

Blakesley English
From the name of a town in Northamptonshire, itself meaning "Blæcwulf's meadow" in Old English. Blæcwulf is a byname meaning "black wolf".

Blanc French
Means "white" in French. The name referred to a person who was pale, or whose hair was blond.

Blanchard French, English
Derived from the given name Blanchard.

Blanchet French
From a diminutive of the name Blanc.

Blanchett French (Anglicized)
Anglicized form of Blanchet or Blanchette.

Blanchette French (Quebec)
Variant of Blanchet.

Blanco Spanish
Means "white" in Spanish. The name most likely referred to a person who was pale or had blond hair.

Blanxart Catalan
Catalan form of Blanchard.

Blau German
Means "blue" in German, most likely used to refer to a person who wore blue clothes.

Blažek m Czech, Slovak
Derived from a given name that was a diminutive of Blažej.

Blažeková f Slovak
Slovak feminine form of Blažek.

Blažević Croatian
Means "son of Blaž".

Blažková f Czech
Czech feminine form of Blažek.

Blevins Welsh
Derived from the Welsh given name Bleddyn.

Blom Swedish
Means "bloom, flower" in Swedish.

Blomgren Swedish
From Swedish blomma (Old Norse blóm) meaning "flower" and gren (Old Norse grein) meaning "branch".

Blomqvist Swedish
From Swedish blomma (Old Norse blóm) meaning "flower" and qvist (Old Norse kvistr) meaning "twig, branch".

Bloodworth English
Originally indicated someone from the town of Blidworth in Nottinghamshire, which was derived from the Old English byname Blīþa (meaning "happy, blithe") combined with worð "enclosure".

Blue English
From a nickname for a person with blue eyes or blue clothing.

Blum German, Jewish
Means "flower" in German and Yiddish.

Blumenthal German, Jewish
Derived from German Blumen "flowers" and Thal "valley".

Blumstein Jewish
Ornamental name meaning "flower stone" in German.

Blythe English
From Old English meaning "happy, joyous, blithe".

Boatwright English
Occupational name meaning "maker of boats".

Bodilsen Danish
Means "son of Bodil".

Boelens Dutch
Means "son of Boele".

Boels Dutch
Means "son of Boele".

Boer Dutch
Dutch cognate of Bauer.

Boerio Italian
From Italian boaro meaning "cowherd".

Boesch German, Low German
Variant of Bösch 1 or Bösch 2.

Bogdán Hungarian
From the given name Bogdan.

Bogdanić Croatian
Means "son of Bogdan".

Bogdanov m Russian, Bulgarian
Means "son of Bogdan".

Bogdanova f Russian, Bulgarian
Feminine form of Bogdanov.

Bogdanović Serbian, Croatian
Means "son of Bogdan".

Bognár Hungarian
Hungarian form of Wagner.

Böhm German
Originally indicated a person from the region of Bohemia (Böhmen in German).

Böhme German
Variant of Böhm.

Böhmer German, Jewish
Variant of Böhm.

Bohn German
Occupational name for a bean grower, derived from Middle High German bone "bean".

Bologna Italian
From the name of the city of Bologna in northern Italy. It may derive from a Celtic word meaning "settlement".

Bolton English
From any of the many places in England called Bolton, derived from Old English bold "house" and tun "enclosure".

Bonaccorsi Italian
From the medieval given name Bonaccorso.

Bonaccorso Italian
From the medieval given name Bonaccorso.

Bonaventura Italian
From the given name Bonaventura.

Bone 1 English
Derived from Old French bon meaning "good".

Bone 2 English
Variant of Baines 2.

Bonfils French
Derived from Old French bon fils meaning "good son".

Bonham English
English form of Bonhomme.

Bonheur French
From Old French bonne heure meaning "good time" or "lucky".

Bonhomme French
Derived from Old French bon homme meaning "good man".

Bonnaire French
French form of Bonner.

Bonnay French
Variant of Bonnet.

Bonner English
From Middle English boneire "kind, courteous", derived from Norman French bon aire "good bloodline".

Bonnet French
From the given name Bonitus.

Bonomo Italian
Italian cognate of Bonhomme.

Boon 1 English
Variant of Bone 1.

Boon 3 Dutch
Dutch cognate of Bohn.

Boone English
Variant of Boon 1 or Boon 2.

Boothman English
Variant of Booth.

Borbély Hungarian
Hungarian cognate of Barber.

Borchard German
Derived from the given name Burkhard.

Borchardt German
Derived from the given name Burkhard.

Borde French
From Old French bord meaning "board, plank", derived from Frankish *bord. This name belonged to a person who lived in a house made of planks.

Borg Swedish
From Swedish borg meaning "fortification, castle".

Borghi Italian
Locative origin, from the common place name Borgo meaning "village".

Borislavov m Bulgarian
Means "son of Borislav".

Borislavova f Bulgarian
Feminine form of Borislavov.

Bos Dutch
Variant of Bosch 1.

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.

Bosco Italian
Means "forest" in Italian.

Boško m Slovak
Derived from Slovak bosý meaning "barefoot".

Bosko Polish
Derived from Polish bosy meaning "barefoot".

Bošková f Slovak
Feminine form of Boško.

Bosque Spanish
Spanish form of Bosco.

Both Dutch
From the Low German given name Bode.

Botha Afrikaans
South African variant of Both.

Bothe Dutch
Variant of Both.

Botwright English
Variant of Boatwright.

Bouchard French
From the Old German given name Burkhard.

Boulos Arabic
From the given name Bulus.

Bourdillon French
Diminutive form of Borde.

Bourke English
Variant of Burke.

Bourne English
Derived from Old English burna "stream, spring".

Bouvier French
Means "cowherd" in French, from Latin boviarus, a derivative of bos "cow".

Bove Italian
Derived from an Italian nickname meaning "bull, ox".

Bover Catalan
Catalan cognate of Bove.

Boveri Italian
Variant of Bove.

Bowen Welsh
From Welsh ap Owain meaning "son of Owain".

Bower English
From Old English bur meaning "dwelling, room".

Bowers English
Variant of Bower.

Boyanov m Bulgarian
Means "son of Boyan".

Boyanova f Bulgarian
Feminine form of Boyanov.

Boyce English
From Old French bois meaning "wood", originally given to someone who lived by or in a wood.

Boyer Occitan
Occitan cognate of Bouvier.

Bozhidarov m Bulgarian
Means "son of Bozhidar".

Bozhidarova f Bulgarian
Feminine form of Bozhidarov.

Braam Dutch
Derived from the given name Bram.

Braddock English
From various locations derived from Old English meaning "broad oak".

Bradford English
Derived from the name of the city of Bradford in West Yorkshire, which meant "broad ford" in Old English. This is also the name of other smaller towns in England.

Bradley English
From a common English place name, derived from brad "broad" and leah "woodland, clearing".

Brahms German
Derived from the given name Abraham. A famous bearer of this surname was the German composer Johannes Brahms (1833-1897).

Brams Danish
Derived from the given name Bram.

Bramson Jewish
Means "son of Bram".

Brand 1 German, Dutch, English
Derived from the Old German given name Brando or its Old Norse cognate Brandr.

Brand 2 German, Dutch
From Old High German brant or Old Dutch brand meaning "fire", originally a name for a person who lived near an area that had been cleared by fire.

Brändle German
Derived from a diminutive of the Old German given name Brando.

Brandt German, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Dutch
Variant of Brand 1 or Brand 2.

Branković Serbian, Croatian
Means "son of Branko".

Brankovič Slovene
Slovene form of Branković.

Brankovich Serbian
Alternate transcription of Serbian Бранковић (see Branković).

Brannon Irish
Variant of Brennan.

Branson English
Means "son of Brandr".

Brant German, English
Variant of Brand 1 and Brand 2.

Brantley German (Anglicized)
Americanized form of Brändle.

Brauer Low German
Derived from Middle Low German bruwer meaning "brewer".

Braun German
Means "brown" in German.

Braune German
Variant of Braun.

Bravo Spanish, Portuguese
From a nickname meaning "angry, bold, brave" in Spanish and Portuguese.

Breen Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Braoin meaning "descendant of Braon", a byname meaning "rain, moisture, drop".

Breitbarth German
From Old High German breit "broad" and bart "beard", originally a nickname for someone with a full beard.

Brennan Irish
From Irish Ó Braonáin meaning "descendant of Braonán", a byname meaning "rain, moisture, drop" (with a diminutive suffix).

Bret French
French form of Brett.

Brett English
Originally a name given to someone who was a Breton or a person from Brittany.

Brewer English
Occupational name for a maker of ale or beer.

Brewster English
Variant of Brewer, originally a feminine form of the occupational term.

Brice English
From the given name Brice.

Bridges English
Originally denoted a person who lived near a bridge, or who worked as a bridgekeeper, derived from Middle English brigge, Old English brycg.

Brierley English
From an English place name, derived from brer "briar" and leah "woodland, clearing".

Briggs English
Variant of Bridges.

Brigham English
Originally referred to one who came from a town called Brigham, meaning "homestead by the bridge" in Old English. This is the name of towns in Cumberland and Yorkshire.

Briley English
Possibly a variant of Brierley.

Brinley English
Possibly from English places named Brindley, derived from Old English berned "burned" and leah "woodland, clearing".

Brittain English
Variant of Britton.

Britton English
Originally given to a person who was a Briton (a Celt of England) or a Breton (an inhabitant of Brittany).

Brkić Croatian, Serbian
Derived from Serbo-Croatian brk meaning "moustache, whisker".

Broadbent English
From a place name derived from Old English brad "broad" and beonet "bent grass".

Bronson English
Patronymic form of Brown.

Brook English
Denoted a person who lived near a brook, a word derived from Old English broc.

Brooke English
Variant of Brook.

Brooks English
Variant of Brook.

Brose German
Derived from the given name Ambrose.

Brouwer Dutch
Occupational name for a brewer of beer or ale, Middle Dutch brouwer.

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.

Browne English
Variant of Brown.

Brownlow English
From Old English brun meaning "brown" and hlaw meaning "mound, small hill". The name was probably given to a family living on a small hill covered with bracken.

Broz Croatian
Derived from Broz, a diminutive of Ambrozije. This was the birth surname of the Yugoslavian dictator Josip Broz Tito (1892-1980).

Brož m Czech
Derived from Brož, a diminutive of Ambrož.

Broż Polish
Derived from Broż, a diminutive of Ambroży.

Brožová f Czech
Feminine form of Brož.

Bruhn German
Variant of Braun.

Bruin Dutch
Dutch cognate of Brown.

Brun French, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish
Means "brown" in French, Danish, Norwegian and Swedish. It was originally a nickname for a person who had brown hair or skin.

Brune German
Variant of Braun.

Brunet French
From a diminutive of French brun meaning "brown".

Brunetti Italian
Diminutive of Bruno.

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).

Bryan English
From the given name Brian.

Bryant English
From the given name Brian.

Bryce English
From the given name Brice.

Bryson English
Means "son of Brice".

Buchholz German
From Middle High German buoche "beech" and holz "wood".

Buckholtz German (Anglicized)
Anglicized form of Buchholz.

Buckley 1 English
From an English place name derived from bucc "buck, male deer" and leah "woodland, clearing".

Bueno Spanish
From a nickname meaning "good" in Spanish.

Buhr Low German
Low German form of Bauer.

Bul Dutch
Dutch cognate of Bull.

Bulgarelli Italian
Diminutive of Bulgari.

Bulgari Italian
Originally denoted a person who came from Bulgaria, which is named after the Turkic tribe of the Bulgars, itself possibly from a Turkic root meaning "mixed".

Bull English
From a nickname for a person who acted like a bull.

Bulle Dutch
From the given name Boele.

Bullens Dutch
Means "son of Boele".

Bullock English
From a nickname meaning "young bull".

Bumgarner German
Variant of Baumgartner.

Bunker English
Derived from Old French bon cuer meaning "good heart".

Buono Italian
From a nickname meaning "good" in Italian.

Burgess English
From Middle English and Old French burgeis meaning "city-dweller", ultimately from Frankish burg "fortress".

Burgstaller German
From German Burg "fortress, castle" and Stelle "place, position". This was a name given to a person dwelling at or near such a site.

Burke English, Irish
Derived from Middle English burgh meaning "fortress, fortification, castle". It was brought to Ireland in the 12th century by the Norman invader William de Burgh.

Burnett English
Means "brown" in Middle English, from Old French brunet, a diminutive of brun.

Burnham English
From the name of various towns in England, typically derived from Old English burna "stream, spring" and ham "home, settlement".

Burns 1 English, Scottish
Derived from Old English burna "stream, spring". A famous bearer was the Scottish poet Robert Burns (1759-1796).

Burns 2 Irish
Variant of O'Byrne.

Burton English
From a common English place name, derived from Old English meaning "fortified town".

Busch German
Means "bush" in German, a name for someone who lived close to a thicket.

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

Bustillo Spanish
From the name of Spanish towns, diminutive forms of Busto.

Busto Spanish, Italian
From the name of towns in Spain and Italy, derived from Late Latin bustum meaning "ox pasture".

Bustos Spanish
Variant of Busto.

Byquist Swedish
Variant of Byqvist.

Byqvist Swedish
Derived from Swedish by (Old Norse býr) meaning "village" and qvist (Old Norse kvistr) meaning "twig, branch".

Byrd English
Variant of Bird.

Byrne Irish
Variant of O'Byrne.

Byrnes Irish
Variant of O'Byrne.

Byström Swedish
From Swedish by (Old Norse býr) meaning "village" and ström (Old Norse straumr) meaning "stream".

Caballero Spanish
From a nickname derived from Spanish caballero meaning "knight", a cognate of Chevalier.

Cabral Portuguese
From places named from Late Latin capralis meaning "place of goats", derived from Latin capra meaning "goat".

Cabrera Spanish
From various place names derived from Late Latin capraria meaning "place of goats", from Latin capra meaning "goat".

Cadwallader Welsh
From the given name Cadwalader.

Caiazzo Italian
From the name of a city near Naples, originally Caiatia in Latin, a derivative of the given name Caius.

Caivano Italian
From the name of the town of Caivano near Naples, derived from Latin Calvianum, derived from the Roman cognomen Calvus.

Caldwell English
From various English place names derived from Old English ceald "cold" and wille "spring, stream, well".

Callaghan Irish
Variant of Callahan.

Callahan Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Ceallacháin meaning "descendant of Cellachán".

Callan Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Cathaláin meaning "descendant of Cathalán".

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

Calvo Spanish, Italian, Portuguese
Means "bald" in Spanish, Italian and Portuguese, from Latin calvus.

Camacho Spanish, Portuguese
Meaning unknown, possibly related to the Celtic root *kambos meaning "crooked, twisted".

Campana Italian, Spanish
Occupational name from Late Latin campana meaning "bell", ultimately derived from the Italian region of Campania, where bells were produced.

Campo Spanish, Italian
Means "field" in Spanish and Italian.

Campos Portuguese, Spanish
Portuguese and Spanish variant of Campo.

Caomhánach Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Kavanagh.

Capela Portuguese
Portuguese form of Kappel.

Capella Catalan
Catalan form of Kappel.

Capello 1 Italian
From Late Latin cappa meaning "cloak, cape, hood". This was a name for one who made or wore cloaks.

Capilla Spanish
Spanish form of Kappel.

Capitani Italian
Occupational name meaning "captain" in Italian, ultimately from Latin caput "head".

Carbone Italian
From a nickname for a person with dark features, from Italian carbone meaning "coal".

Carboni Italian
Variant of Carbone.

Cardoso Portuguese, Spanish
From a place name meaning "thorny" in Portuguese and Spanish, ultimately from Latin carduus.

Cardozo Spanish
Variant of Cardoso.

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

Carl English, German
From the given name Carl.

Carlisle English
From the name of a city in northern England. The city was originally called by the Romans Luguvalium meaning "stronghold of Lugus". Later the Brythonic element ker "fort" was appended to the name of the city.

Carlsen Danish, Norwegian
Means "son of Carl".

Carlson Swedish
Means "son of Carl".

Carlsson Swedish
Means "son of Carl".

Carlyle English
Variant of Carlisle.

Carman 1 English
Occupational name for a carter, from Middle English carre "cart" (of Latin origin) and man "man".

Caro Spanish, Italian
From Spanish and Italian caro meaning "beloved".