Clay EnglishMeans simply
"clay", originally referring to a person who lived near or worked with of clay.
Cock EnglishDerived from the medieval nickname
cok meaning
"rooster, cock". The nickname was commonly added to given names to create diminutives such as
Hancock or
Alcock.
Coelho PortugueseFrom the Portuguese word for
"rabbit", either a nickname or an occupational name referring to a hunter or seller of rabbits.
Coiro ItalianFrom Italian
cuoio meaning
"leather", ultimately from Latin
corium. This was an occupational surname for a leather worker or tanner.
Colombera ItalianFrom a derivative of Italian
colomba "dove" indicating a house where doves were held.
Colombo ItalianEither from Italian
colomba "dove" indicating a dove keeper, or from the given name
Colombo, which is derived from the same word. This was the Italian surname of the 15th-century explorer Christopher Columbus.
Colt EnglishOccupational name for a keeper of horses, derived from Middle English
colt.
Cook EnglishDerived from Old English
coc meaning
"cook", ultimately from Latin
coquus. It was an occupational name for a cook, a man who sold cooked meats, or a keeper of an eating house.
Coombs EnglishFrom Old English
cumb meaning
"valley", the name of several places in England.
Correia PortugueseMeans
"leather strap, belt" in Portuguese, denoting a person who worked with leather products.
Ćosić Croatian, SerbianFrom Croatian and Serbian
ćosav "beardless", ultimately from Persian
کوسه (koseh) meaning "shark".
Costa Portuguese, Italian, CatalanMeans
"riverbank, slope, coast" in Portuguese, Italian and Catalan, ultimately from Latin meaning "side, edge".
Coupe EnglishFrom Middle English
coupe meaning
"barrel", a name for a barrel maker or cooper.
Cross EnglishLocative name meaning
"cross", ultimately from Latin
crux. It denoted one who lived near a cross symbol or near a crossroads.
Curtis EnglishNickname for a courteous person, derived from Old French
curteis meaning
"refined, courtly".
Dahl Norwegian, Swedish, DanishFrom Old Norse
dalr meaning
"valley". A famous of this surname was author Roald Dahl (1916-1990) who is mostly remembered for children's stories such as
Matilda and
Henry Sugar.
Dale EnglishFrom Old English
dæl meaning
"valley", originally indicating a person who lived there.
Dam Dutch, DanishMeans
"dike, dam" in Dutch and Danish. In modern Danish it also means "pond".
Dane 2 EnglishOriginally denoted a Dane, that is a person from Denmark.
De Campo ItalianLocative surname derived from place names called Campo (meaning "field").
De Jong DutchMeans
"young" in Dutch, from Middle Dutch
jonc. This is the most common surname in the Netherlands.
Delacroix FrenchMeans
"of the cross" in French. It denoted one who lived near a cross symbol or near a crossroads.
Delaney 1 EnglishDerived from Norman French
de l'aunaie meaning
"from the alder grove".
Delgado Spanish, PortugueseMeans
"thin" in Spanish and Portuguese, ultimately from Latin
delicatus meaning "delicate, tender, charming".
Demir TurkishMeans
"iron" in Turkish, originally referring to an ironworker.
Deng ChineseFrom Chinese
邓 (dèng) referring to the ancient state of Deng, which existed during the Shang and Zhou dynasties in what is now either Henan or Hubei province.
Desrosiers FrenchMeans
"from the rose bushes", from French
rosier "rose bush". It probably referred to a person who lived close to, or cared for a rose garden.
Devin 2 French, EnglishNickname for a person who acted divinely or prophetically, from Old French
devin meaning
"divine" or
"seer, fortune teller", ultimately from Latin
divinus.
De Vries DutchMeans
"the Frisian" in Dutch, referring to a person from Friesland.
De Witte DutchMeans
"the white" in Dutch, a nickname for a person with white hair.
Dior FrenchPossibly from French
doré meaning
"golden". A famous bearer was the French fashion designer Christian Dior (1905-1957).
Donne Scottish, IrishFrom Gaelic
donn meaning
"brown", a nickname for a person with brown hair.
Doubek CzechMeans
"small oak" in Czech, derived from
dub "oak".
Downer EnglishName for someone who lived on or near a down, which is an English word meaning
"hill".
Drake EnglishDerived from the Old Norse byname
Draki or the Old English byname
Draca both meaning
"dragon", both via Latin from Greek
δράκων (drakon) meaning "dragon, serpent".
Du ChineseFrom Chinese
杜 (dù) meaning
"stop, prevent" or
"birchleaf pear tree".
Dubois FrenchMeans
"from the forest", from French
bois "forest".
Dufort FrenchMeans
"from the fort", from French
fort "stronghold".
Dufour FrenchOccupational name for a baker, from French
four "oven".
Duke EnglishFrom the noble title, which was originally from Latin
dux "leader". It was a nickname for a person who behaved like a duke, or who worked in a duke's household.
Dumas FrenchMeans
"from the farm", from Occitan
mas "farmhouse", from Latin
mansus "dwelling". A famous bearer was the French author Alexandre Dumas (1802-1870).
Dumont FrenchMeans
"from the mountain", from French
mont "mountain".
Dunn English, Scottish, IrishDerived from Old English
dunn "dark" or Gaelic
donn "brown", referring to hair colour or complexion.
Dupont FrenchMeans
"from the bridge", from French
pont "bridge".
Dupuis FrenchMeans
"from the well", from Old French
puts, Latin
puteus "well".
Dupuy FrenchMeans
"from the hill", from Occitan
puy "hill", from Latin
podium "platform".
Durand French, EnglishFrom Old French
durant meaning
"enduring", ultimately from Latin
durans. This was a nickname for a stubborn person.
Dykstra FrisianFrom Frisian
dyk meaning
"dike, ditch". The name was given to a person living near a dyke or embankment.
Earl EnglishFrom the aristocratic title, which derives from Old English
eorl meaning
"nobleman, warrior". It was either a nickname for one who acted like an earl, or an occupational name for a person employed by an earl.
Eichel GermanMeans
"acorn" in German, indicating a person who lived near an oak tree.
Eld SwedishFrom Old Norse
eldr, modern Swedish
eld, meaning
"fire".
English EnglishDenoted a person who was of English heritage. It was used to distinguish people who lived in border areas (for example, near Wales or Scotland). It was also used to distinguish an Anglo-Saxon from a Norman.
Espina SpanishMeans
"thorn" in Spanish, a name for someone who lived near a thorn bush.
Espinosa SpanishFrom Spanish
espinoso meaning
"thorny", ultimately from Latin
spinosus, a derivative of
spina meaning "thorn, spine".
Esposito ItalianMeans
"exposed" in Italian and denoted a child who was rescued after being abandoned by its parents.
Fabbri ItalianFrom Italian
fabbro meaning
"blacksmith", ultimately from Latin
faber.
Falco ItalianDerived from Italian
falco "falcon". The name was used to denote a falconer or a person who resembled a falcon in some way.
Farina ItalianOccupational name for a miller, derived from Italian
farina "flour".
Faucher FrenchOccupational name meaning
"mower" in French, ultimately from Latin
falx meaning "sickle, scythe".
Faulkner English, ScottishOccupational name meaning
"keeper of falcons", from Middle English and Scots
faulcon, from Late Latin
falco, of Germanic origin.
Fay French, EnglishReferred to a person who came from various places named Fay or Faye in northern France, derived from Old French
fau "beech tree", from Latin
fagus.
Feld German, JewishMeans
"field" in German. The name was originally given to someone who lived on land cleared of forest.
Feng 1 ChineseFrom Chinese
冯 (féng), which referred to an ancient city in Henan province.
Fenn EnglishFrom a name for someone who dwelt near a marsh, from Old English
fenn meaning
"fen, swamp, bog".
Ferrari ItalianOccupational name for a metalworker or smith, derived from Latin
ferrarius, a derivative of
ferrum meaning "iron".
Ferreira Portuguese, GalicianDenoted a person from a town named because it was near an iron mine, from Latin
ferrum meaning "iron".
Ferro Italian, SpanishMeans
"iron", ultimately from Latin
ferrum. This was an occupational name for one who worked with iron.
Fèvre FrenchOccupational name meaning
"blacksmith" in Old French, derived from Latin
faber.
Fields EnglishName for a person who lived on or near a field or pasture, from Old English
feld.
Fleming EnglishGiven to a person who was a Fleming, that is a person who was from
Flanders in the Netherlands.
Flower EnglishFrom Middle English
flour meaning
"flower, blossom", derived from Old French
flur, Latin
flos. This was a nickname given to a sweet person. In other cases it could be a metonymic occupational name for a maker of flour (a word derived from the same source).
Fontaine FrenchDerived from Old French
fontane meaning
"well, fountain", a derivative of Latin
fons.
Ford EnglishName given to someone who lived by a ford, possibly the official who maintained it. A famous bearer was the American industrialist Henry Ford (1863-1947).
Forest English, FrenchOriginally belonged to a person who lived near or in a forest. It was probably originally derived, via Old French
forest, from Latin
forestam (silva) meaning "outer (wood)".
Forester EnglishDenoted a keeper or one in charge of a forest, or one who has charge of growing timber in a forest (see
Forest).
Forney GermanName for someone who lived near ferns, from Old High German
farn "fern".
Forst GermanDerived from Old High German
forst "forest". Probably unrelated to the Old French word
forest, which was derived from Latin, Old High German
forst was derived from
foraha meaning "fir tree".
Fortier FrenchDerived from Old French
fort "stronghold", indicating a person who lived near or worked at such a place.
Fortune EnglishFrom Middle English, ultimately from Latin
fortuna meaning
"fortune, luck, chance". This was possibly a nickname for a gambler.
Fournier FrenchOccupational name for a baker, from French
fourneau meaning
"oven".
Fox EnglishFrom the name of the animal. It was originally a nickname for a person with red hair or a crafty person.
Franklin EnglishDerived from Middle English
frankelin meaning
"freeman". It denoted a landowner of free but not noble birth, from Old French
franc meaning "free".
Frei GermanMeans
"free" in German, probably referring to someone outside the feudal system.
French EnglishOriginally denoted a French person, from Middle English
Frensch, Old English
Frencisc.
Freud German, JewishMeans
"joy" in German, a nickname for a cheerful person. A famous bearer was the psychologist Sigmund Freud (1856-1939).
Fries GermanDenoted someone from Frisia, an area along the coastal region of the North Sea stretching from Netherlands to Germany.
Fromm GermanFrom a nickname derived from Middle High German
vrume meaning
"noble, honourable".
Frost English, GermanFrom Old English and Old High German meaning
"frost", a nickname for a person who had a cold personality or a white beard.
Fry EnglishFrom Old English
frig (a variant of
freo) meaning
"free".
Fuchs GermanFrom Old High German
fuhs meaning
"fox". It was originally a nickname for a person with red hair.
Fuentes SpanishMeans
"spring, well" in Spanish, derived from Latin
fons.
Gage French, EnglishOccupational name derived either from Old French
jauge "measure" (a name for an assayer) or
gage "pledge, payment" (a name for a moneylender). Both words were ultimately of Frankish origin.
Gagneux FrenchDerived from Old French
gagnier meaning
"to farm, to cultivate".
Gallo Italian, SpanishMeans
"rooster", ultimately from Latin
gallus. This was a nickname for a proud person.
Garner 1 EnglishFrom Old French
gernier meaning
"granary", a derivative of Latin
granum meaning "grain". This name could refer to a person who worked at a granary or lived near one.
Garnett 1 EnglishOccupational name referring to a person who made hinges, from Old French
carne "hinge".
Gatti ItalianMeans
"cat" in Italian, originally a nickname for an agile person.
Gerber GermanMeans
"tanner, leather dresser" in German, derived from Old High German
garawen meaning "to prepare".
Gerst GermanOccupational name for a barley farmer, derived from Old High German
gersta "barley".
Giffard French, EnglishPossibly from Old French
gifart meaning
"chubby" or possibly from the Germanic name
Gebhard. Walter Giffard was one of the Norman companions of William the Conqueror.
Glass English, GermanFrom Old English
glæs or Old High German
glas meaning
"glass". This was an occupational name for a glass blower or glazier.
Glenn Scottish, EnglishFrom place names derived from Gaelic
gleann "valley". A famous bearer was the American astronaut John Glenn (1921-2016).
Glynn Welsh, CornishTopographic name for someone who lived in a valley, from Welsh
glyn and Cornish
glin, or a habitational name from a place named with this word.
Gold English, German, JewishFrom Old English and Old High German
gold meaning
"gold", an occupational name for someone who worked with gold or a nickname for someone with yellow hair. As a Jewish name it is ornamental.
Good EnglishFrom a nickname meaning
"good", referring to a kindly person.
Grasso ItalianMeans
"fat" in Italian, originally a nickname for a stout person. It is derived from Latin
crassus.
Graves EnglishOccupational name for a steward, derived from Middle English
greyve, related to the German title
Graf.
Gray EnglishFrom a nickname for a person who had grey hair or grey clothes.
Green EnglishDescriptive name for someone who often wore the colour green or someone who lived near the village green.
Grieve ScottishOccupational name meaning
"steward, farm manager" in Middle English, related to the German title
Graf.
Griffin 2 EnglishNickname from the mythological beast with body of a lion with head and wings of an eagle. It is ultimately from Greek
γρύψ (gryps).
Gros FrenchMeans
"thick, fat, big" in French, from Late Latin
grossus, possibly of Germanic origin.
Groß GermanFrom Old High German
groz meaning
"tall, big".
Groves EnglishFrom Old English
graf meaning
"grove". This originally indicated a person who lived near a grove (a group of trees).