Surnames on the United States Popularity List

Norris 2 English
Means "wet nurse, foster mother" from Old French norrice, from Latin nutricius.

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.

Noschese Italian
From the name of the town of Nusco in Campania, southern Italy.

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

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

Nováček m Czech
Diminutive of Novak.

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.

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.

Novosad m Czech
From place names meaning "new orchard" in Czech.

Novosel Croatian
Means "new settler" in Croatian.

Novotný m Czech
Czech variant of Novak.

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

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

Nowell English
Variant of Noel.

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.

Nozawa Japanese
From Japanese 野 (no) meaning "field, wilderness" and 沢 or 澤 (sawa) meaning "marsh".

Nunes Portuguese
Means "son of Nuno".

Núñez Spanish
Means "son of Nuño".

Nurmi Finnish
Means "meadow, field" in Finnish. It was the surname of the athlete Paavo Nurmi (1897-1973).

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

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

Nye English
Originally indicated a person who lived near a river, from Middle English atten eye meaning "at the river".

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

Nyitrai Hungarian
Indicated someone from Nitra, a city and historic principality of Slovakia (formerly in Hungary). Its name is derived from that of a local river, which is of unknown meaning.

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.

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).

Obama Luo
From a rare Luo given name meaning "crooked, bent". It was possibly originally given to a baby who had an arm or leg that looked slightly bent immediately after birth or who was born in the breech position.

Obando Spanish
Habitational name for someone who came from Obando in Extremadura, Spain.

O'Beirne Irish
Variant of O'Byrne.

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

Oberst German
From Old High German obar meaning "above, upper", indicating a person from the uppermost end of a village or the top of a house.

Oberti Italian
Derived from the given name Uberto.

Oberto Italian
Derived from the given name Uberto.

Oblak Slovene
Means "cloud" in Slovene.

O'Boyle Irish
Variant of Boyle.

Obradović Serbian
Means "son of Obrad".

O'Brian Irish
Variant of O'Brien.

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

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

O'Callaghan Irish
Variant of Callahan.

Ochoa Spanish
Spanish form of Otxoa.

O'Connell Irish
Variant of Connell.

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

Odell English
Originally denoted a person who was from Odell in Bedfordshire, derived from Old English wad "woad" (a plant that produces a blue dye) and hyll "hill".

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

Oelberg German
Means "oil hill" from Middle High German öl "oil" and berg "mountain, hill".

Ogawa Japanese
From Japanese 小 (o) meaning "small" and 川 (kawa) meaning "river, stream".

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

O'Gorman Irish
Variant of Gorman 2.

Oh Korean
Korean form of Wu 1, from Sino-Korean 吳 (o).

O'Hara Irish
From the Irish Ó hEaghra, which means "descendant of Eaghra", Eaghra being a given name of uncertain origin. Supposedly, the founder of the clan was Eaghra, a 10th-century lord of Luighne. A famous fictional bearer of this surname is Scarlett O'Hara, a character in Margaret Mitchell's Gone With The Wind (1936).

O'Hearn Irish
Anglicized form of Ó hEachthighearna.

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

Oja Estonian
Means "brook, creek" in Estonian.

Ojala Finnish, Estonian
From Finnish and Estonian oja meaning "ditch, channel, brook" with the suffix -la indicating a place.

Ojeda Spanish
From the name of the Ojeda river in Soria, Spain, possibly derived from Latin folia "leaves".

Okabe Japanese
From Japanese 岡 (oka) meaning "hill, ridge" and 部 (be) meaning "part, section".

Okafor Igbo
From the given name Okafor.

Okamoto Japanese
From Japanese 岡 (oka) meaning "hill, ridge" and 本 (moto) meaning "base, root, origin".

Okamura Japanese
From Japanese 岡 (oka) meaning "hill, ridge" and 村 (mura) meaning "town, village".

O'Kane Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Catháin.

Okazaki Japanese
From Japanese 岡 (oka) meaning "hill, ridge" and 崎 (saki) meaning "cape, peninsula".

O'Keefe Irish
Variant of Keefe.

Okeke Igbo
From the given name Okeke.

Okonkwo Igbo
From the given name Okonkwo.

Okorie Igbo
From the given name Okorie.

Okumura Japanese
From Japanese 奥 (oku) meaning "inside" and 村 (mura) meaning "town, village".

Ola Basque
From Basque ola meaning "hut, small house, forge".

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

Olander Swedish
Denoted someone from the islands of Öland (eastern Sweden) or Åland (western Finland).

Olayinka Yoruba
From the given name Olayinka.

O'Leary Irish
From Irish Ó Laoghaire meaning "descendant of Laoghaire".

Olesen Danish
Means "son of Ole".

Olguín Spanish
Variant of Holguín.

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.

Oliverson English
Means "son of Oliver".

Olivier French
Derived from the given name Olivier.

Oliynyk Ukrainian
Derived from Ukrainian олія (oliya) meaning "oil, fat".

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.

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".

Olszewski m Polish
Originally denoted someone who lived near an alder tree, from Polish olsza meaning "alder tree".

O'Malley Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Máille.

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

Omar Arabic
From the given name Umar.

Omdahl Norwegian
Denoted a person hailing from any one of a number of farms in Norway called either Åmdal or Omdal meaning "elm valley".

Ó Meara Irish
Variant of Ó Meadhra.

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.

Ong Chinese (Hokkien)
Min Nan romanization of Wang 1.

Ongaro Italian
Variant of Ungaro.

Ono Japanese
From Japanese 小 (o) meaning "small" and 野 (no) meaning "field, wilderness".

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

Oppenheimer German
Originally indicated a person from Oppenheim, Germany, perhaps meaning "marshy home". A notable bearer was the American physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer (1904-1967).

Oprea Romanian
From a medieval given name or nickname derived from Romanian opri meaning "stop".

Oquendo Spanish
Originally indicated a person from the town of Okondo in Álava, northern Spain, possibly derived from Basque ukondo "elbow".

Orbán Hungarian
Derived from the given name Orbán.

O'Reilly Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Raghailligh.

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.

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

Orlando Italian
Derived from the given name Orlando.

Orlov m Russian
Derived from Russian орёл (oryol) meaning "eagle".

Orlova f Russian
Feminine form of Orlov.

Orman Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Ruaidh.

Ormond Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Ruaidh.

Ormonde Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Ruaidh.

Orosz Hungarian
Means "Russian" in Hungarian.

Orozco Spanish
From the name of a valley in the Basque region of Spain.

Orr Scottish
From a nickname derived from Gaelic odhar meaning "dun-coloured, greyish brown, tan".

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

Ortega Spanish
From a Spanish place name (belonging to various villages) derived from ortiga "nettle".

Ortiz Spanish
Means "son of Orti", a byname deriving either from Latin fortis meaning "brave, strong" or fortunius meaning "fortunate".

Osborne English
Derived from the given name Osborn.

Osbourne English
Derived from the given name Osborn.

O'Shaughnessy Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Seachnasaigh.

O'Shea Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Séaghdha.

Ōshiro Japanese
From Japanese 大 (ō) meaning "big, great" and 城 (shiro) meaning "castle". It is especially common on Okinawa.

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".

Ostrowski m Polish
From Polish ostrów meaning "river island".

O'Sullivan Irish
Variant of Sullivan.

Otero Spanish
Means "hill, knoll, height" in Spanish.

Otieno Luo
Derived from the given name Otieno.

Otis English
Means "son of Ode".

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

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".

Oursler German
Originally a name designating a person from Ursel (now Oberursel) in Hesse, Germany.

Outlaw English
Means simply "outlaw" from Middle English outlawe.

Overton English
Denoted a person who hailed from one of the various places in England called Overton, meaning "upper settlement" or "riverbank settlement" in Old English.

Ovesen Norwegian
Means "son of Ove".

Owen Welsh, English
From the Welsh given name Owain.

Owens Welsh
From the Welsh given name Owain.

Owston English
Denoted a person who came from any one of the places in Britain called Ouston or Owston.

Ozoliņš m Latvian
Derived from Latvian ozols meaning "oak tree".

Ozols m Latvian
Means "oak tree" in Latvian.

Pabst German
From German Papst, a cognate of Pope.

Pace Italian
Derived from the Italian given name Pace meaning "peace".

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

Paddon English
Variant of Patton.

Paden English
Variant of Patton.

Padilla Spanish
From various Spanish place names, derived from Spanish padilla, Latin patella meaning "shallow dish", used to indicate a depression in the landscape.

Padmore English
Originally indicated a person from Padmore in England, derived from Old English padde "toad" and mor "moor, marsh".

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.

Page English, French
Occupational name meaning "servant, page". It is ultimately derived (via Old French and Italian) from Greek παιδίον (paidion) meaning "little boy".

Paget English, French
Diminutive of Page.

Pahlke German
Low German cognate of Peel.

Paige English
Variant of Page.

Pain English
Variant of Payne.

Paisley Scottish
From the name of a town near Glasgow, which may ultimately be derived from Latin basilica "church".

Pajari Finnish
Means "boyar", the Finnish form of the Russian noble title боярин (boyarin).

Pakulski m Polish
Originally denoted a person from Pakuly, Poland.

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.

Palencia Spanish
Habitational name from the city or region of Palencia in northern Spain.

Palladino Italian
From Italian paladino meaning "knight, defender", from Late Latin palatinus meaning "palace officer".

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.

Palmisano Italian
Locative name from the town of Palmi in the Calabria region of southern Italy.

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

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

Pan 1 Provençal
Means "baker", from Latin panis meaning "bread".

Pan 2 Chinese
From Chinese 潘 (pān) meaning "water in which rice has been rinsed", and also referring to a river that flows into the Han River.

Panagiotopoulos m Greek
Means "son of Panagiotis".

Pander Dutch
Variant of Penders.

Panossian Armenian
Alternate transcription of Armenian Փանոսյան (see Panosyan).

Panosyan Armenian
Means "son of Panos".

Pantoja Spanish
Originally indicated a person from the town of Pantoja, in Toledo, Spain.

Panza Italian, Literature
From a variant of the Italian word pancia meaning "stomach, paunch", originally a nickname for a chubby person. The Spanish author Miguel de Cervantes used it in his novel Don Quixote (1605), where it is the surname of Don Quixote's squire Sancho Panza. Not a common Spanish surname, Cervantes may have based it directly on the Spanish word panza (a cognate of the Italian word).

Pap Hungarian
Variant of Papp 1.

Papadakis m Greek
From a diminutive of Greek πάπας (papas) meaning "priest".

Papadimitriou Greek
Means "son of Dimitrios the priest", from Greek πάπας (papas) combined with the given name Dimitrios.

Papadopoulos m Greek
Means "son of the priest", from Greek πάπας (papas) combined with the patronymic suffix πουλος (poulos).

Papageorgiou Greek
Means "son of Georgios the priest", from Greek πάπας (papas) combined with the given name Georgios.

Papaioannou Greek
Means "son of Ioannis the priest", from Greek πάπας (papas) combined with the given name Ioannis.

Papanikolaou Greek
Means "son of Nikolaos the priest", from Greek πάπας (papas) combined with the given name Nikolaos.

Papathanasiou Greek
Means "son of Athanasios the priest", from Greek πάπας (papas) combined with the given name Athanasios.

Pape French
French cognate of Pope.

Papke Low German
Low German diminutive form of papa (see Pope).

Papoutsis m Greek
Means "shoemaker" in Greek, from παπούτσι (papoutsi) meaning "shoe" (ultimately of Persian origin).

Papp 1 Hungarian
From a nickname meaning "priest, cleric" in Hungarian.

Papp 2 German
Nickname perhaps related to Late Latin pappare meaning "to eat".

Pappa f Greek
Feminine form of Pappas.

Pappas m Greek
Means "priest" in Greek.

Paquet 1 French
Occupational name for a firewood gatherer, from Old French pacquet "bundle".

Paquet 2 French
From a diminutive of the given name Pascal.

Pardo Spanish
Means "brown" in Spanish, originally a nickname for someone with brown hair.

Paredes Portuguese, Spanish
Denoted a person who lived near a wall, from Portuguese parede and Spanish pared meaning "wall", both derived from Latin paries.

Parent English, French
Derived from Old French parent meaning either "notable" (from Latin pārēre meaning "to be apparent") or "parent" (from Latin parere meaning "to produce, to give birth").

Paris English, French
Variant of Parish 1.

Parish 1 English
Originally denoted a person who came from the French city of Paris, which got its name from the ancient Celtic tribe known as the Parisii.

Parish 2 English
Derived from the medieval given name Paris, an Old French diminutive form of Patrick.

Parisi Italian
Italian form of Parish 1.

Park 1 Korean
From Sino-Korean 樸 or 朴 (bak) meaning "plain, unadorned, simple". This is the third most common surname in South Korea.

Park 2 English
From Middle English park, from Latin parricus, of Frankish origin. This was a name for someone who worked in or lived in a park.

Park 3 English
From the medieval name Perkin, a diminutive of Peter.

Parker English
Means "keeper of the park" in Middle English. It is an occupational name for a person who was a gamekeeper at a medieval park.

Parkins English
Means "son of Parkin", a medieval diminutive of Peter.

Parkinson English
Means "son of Parkin", a medieval diminutive of Peter.

Parks English
Patronymic form of Park 3.

Parma Italian
From the city of Parma in northern Italy, the name of which is probably of Etruscan origin.

Parodi Italian
From the name of a village near Genoa in northern Italy.

Parra Spanish
Means "vine, trellis" in Spanish.

Parrino Sicilian
From a Sicilian variant of Italian padrino meaning "godfather".

Parris English, French
Variant of Parish 1.

Parrish English
Variant of Parish 1.

Parry Welsh
Derived from ap Harry meaning "son of Harry".

Parsons English
Originally denoted a son of a parson, a derivative of Latin persona "person".

Partanen Finnish
Derived from Finnish parta meaning "beard".

Pascal French
Derived from the given name Pascal.

Pascual Spanish
From the given name Pascual.

Passerini Italian
From Italian passero meaning "sparrow".

Pasternack Polish (Anglicized), Yiddish
Americanized form of Pasternak.

Pasternak Polish, Ukrainian, Russian, Yiddish
Means "parsnip" in various Slavic languages, ultimately from Latin pastinaca. A famous bearer was Boris Pasternak (1890-1960), author of Doctor Zhivago.

Pastor Spanish
Means "shepherd" in Spanish.

Pastore Italian
Means "shepherd" in Italian.

Paszek Polish
Derived from a diminutive of Paweł.

Pásztor Hungarian
Means "shepherd" in Hungarian.

Pataki Hungarian
Derived from Hungarian patak meaning "creek, brook" (a word of Slavic origin). It was given to people who lived near a creek.

Patel Gujarati
Means "landowner" in Gujarati.

Patenaude French (Quebec)
French form of Paternoster.

Paternoster English, Italian
Occupational name for a maker of rosaries, also called paternosters. They are derived from the Latin phrase pater noster "our Father", the opening words of the Lord's Prayer.

Paterson English, Scottish
Means "son of Patrick".

Patil Marathi
Means "village chief" in Marathi.

Patrick English
From the given name Patrick.

Patterson English, Scottish
Means "son of Patrick".

Patton English, Scottish
Diminutive of the medieval name Pate, a short form of Patrick.

Paul English, French, German, Dutch
From the given name Paul.

Paulauskas m Lithuanian
From the given name Paulius.

Paulis Dutch
From the given name Paul.

Paulsen Norwegian, Danish
Means "son of Paul".

Paulson English
Means "son of Paul".

Pauwels Dutch, Flemish
Means "son of Paul".

Pavesi Italian
Variant of Pavia.

Pavía Spanish
Spanish form of Pavia.

Pavia Italian
From the name of the city of Pavia in Lombardy, Italy. It is of unknown meaning.

Pavić Croatian
Means "son of Pavle".

Pavičić Croatian
Means "son of Pavao".

Pavlenko Ukrainian
From the given name Pavlo.

Pavletić Croatian
Derived from a diminutive of the given name Pavle.

Pavlík m Slovak, Czech
From a diminutive of the given name Pavol or Pavel.

Pavlov m Russian, Bulgarian
Means "son of Pavel". A famous bearer of this surname was the Russian scientist Ivan Pavlov (1849-1936), known for his discovery of the conditioned reflex.

Pavlova f Russian, Bulgarian
Feminine form of Pavlov.

Pavlović Croatian, Serbian
Means "son of Pavle".

Pavlovski m Macedonian
Means "son of Pavle".

Pavlovsky m Russian
Means "son of Pavel".

Pavlyuk Ukrainian
From the given name Pavlo.

Pavone Italian
Means "peacock" in Italian. It was originally a nickname for a proud or haughty person.

Pavoni Italian
Variant of Pavone.

Pawlak Polish
Means "son of Paweł".

Pawłowski m Polish
Habitational name for someone from a town named Pawłowo, derived from the given name Paweł.

Paxton English
From an English place name meaning "Pœcc's town". Pœcc is an Old English name of unknown meaning.

Payne English
From a medieval given name or nickname derived from Latin paganus meaning "heathen, pagan" (from an earlier sense "rural, rustic"), which was given to children whose baptism had been postponed or adults who were not overly religious.

Payton English
From the name of the town of Peyton in Sussex. It means "Pæga's town".

Paz Spanish
Means "peace" in Spanish, originally a nickname for a calm person.

Peacock English
From Middle English pecok meaning "peacock". It was originally a nickname for a proud or haughty person.

Peak English
Originally indicated a dweller by a pointed hill, from Old English peac "peak". It could also denote a person from the Peak District in Derbyshire, England.

Pearce English
From the given name Piers.

Pearson English
Variant of Pierson.

Pecháček m Czech
From a diminutive of the given name Petr.

Peck 1 English
Variant of Peak.

Peck 2 English
Occupational name for a maker of pecks (vessels used as peck measures), derived from Middle English pekke.

Pecora Italian
Means "sheep" in Italian, an occupational name for a shepherd.

Pedersen Danish, Norwegian
Means "son of Peder".

Pedrotti Italian
From a diminutive of the given name Pietro.

Peel English
Nickname for a thin person, derived from Old French pel, Latin palus meaning "stake, post" (related to English pole).

Peerenboom Dutch
From Dutch meaning "pear tree", referring to someone who lived or worked at a pear orchard.

Peeters Dutch, Flemish
Dutch and Flemish variant of Peters.

Pei Chinese
From Chinese 裴 (péi), possibly referring to an ancient city.

Pék Hungarian
Means "baker" in Hungarian.

Peláez Spanish
Means "son of Pelayo".

Pellé French
From French pelé meaning "bald".

Pellegrini Italian
Variant of Pellegrino.