Browse Surnames

Joseph English, French
Derived from the given name Joseph.

Daly Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Dálaigh meaning "descendant of Dálach".

Matei Romanian
Derived from the given name Matei.

Pavlović Croatian, Serbian
Means "son of Pavle".

Edwards English
Means "son of Edward".

Pop Romanian
Variant of Popa.

Guerrero Spanish
Means "warrior" in Spanish, an occupational name for a soldier. It is derived from Late Latin werra "war", of Germanic origin.

Blom Swedish
Means "bloom, flower" in Swedish.

Tarasenko Ukrainian
From the given name Taras.

Comtois French
Indicated a person from Franche-Comté, a province in eastern France, which translates to "free county".

Petraitytė f Lithuanian
Feminine form of Petraitis. This form is used by unmarried women.

Zvirbulis m Latvian
Means "sparrow" in Latvian.

Cəfərova f Azerbaijani
Feminine form of Cəfərov.

Gottlieb German
Derived from the given name Gottlieb.

Zdunowska f Polish
Feminine form of Zdunowski.

Rasputina f Russian
Feminine form of Rasputin.

Amadori Italian
Means "son of Amatore".

Klerks Dutch
Variant of De Klerk.

Jakeman English
Means "servant of Jack".

Grimm German
From a nickname for a stern person, derived from Old High German grim "stern, severe, angry". Famous bearers include Jacob (1785-1863) and Wilhelm Grimm (1786-1859), known for compiling German folktales.

Cline German (Anglicized), Jewish
Anglicized spelling of Klein.

Niemelä Finnish
From Finnish niemi meaning "peninsula, cape" with the suffix -la indicating a place.

Van Amstel Dutch
Means "from Amstel", a Dutch river that means "water area".

Echeverría Spanish
Derived from the Basque place name Etxeberria, which itself is derived from Basque etxe "house" and berri "new".

Alberghini Italian
Diminutive of Alberghi.

Padovan Italian
Regional variant of Padovano.

Isaksen Norwegian, Danish
Means "son of Isak".

Adolvsson Swedish (Rare)
Variant of Adolfsson.

Brodbeck German
Means "bread baker" from Middle High German brot "bread" and becke "baker".

Gaertner German
German form of Gardener.

Nigro Italian
Variant of Negri.

Donnell Irish
Variant of O'Donnell.

Fallon Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Fallamháin meaning "descendant of Fallamhán", a given name meaning "leader".

Manning 2 Irish
Anglicized form of Irish Ó Mainnín meaning "descendant of Mainchín".

Sessa Italian
Originally indicated a person from from Sessa or Sessa Cilento, Italy (from Latin Suessa, of uncertain meaning).

Alma Frisian
Means "son of Ale 2", the suffix -ma indicating that it is of Frisian origin.

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

Xylander German
From Greek ξύλον (xylon) meaning "wood, timber" and ἀνδρός (andros) meaning "man". This surname was a Greek translation of German surnames of the same meaning.

Miyata Japanese
From Japanese 宮 (miya) meaning "temple, shrine, palace" and 田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy".

Pallesen Danish
Means "son of Palle".

Huddleston English
From the name of a town in the Yorkshire region of England, which means "Hudel's town" in Old English.

Avcı Turkish
Means "hunter" in Turkish.

Nemes Hungarian
Means "noble, gentle" in Hungarian.

Okorie Igbo
From the given name Okorie.

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

Battle English
From 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.

Maradona Spanish
From the name of a place near Lugo in northern Spain. A notable bearer is the former Argentinian soccer star Diego Maradona (1960-2020).

Haley English
From the name of an English town meaning "hay clearing", from Old English heg "hay" and leah "woodland, clearing".

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

Tamura Japanese
From Japanese 田 (ta) meaning "field, rice paddy" and 村 (mura) meaning "town, village".

Yo'ldosheva f Uzbek
Feminine form of Yo'ldoshev.

Konstantinidou f Greek
Feminine form of Konstantinidis.

O'Malley Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Máille.

Neri Italian
From Italian nero "black", indicating a person with a dark complexion or dark hair.

Clarkson English
Patronymic form of Clark.

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

Sarkisyan Armenian
Alternate transcription of Armenian Սարգսյան (see Sargsyan).

Vázquez Spanish
Variant of Vásquez.

Bandini Italian
From the Latin name Bandinus, a derivative of Bandus, which is of unknown meaning.

Knopf German
Means "button" in German, originally belonging to a button maker or button seller.

Joly French
From Old French joli meaning "happy, jolly, pretty".

French English
Originally denoted a French person, from Middle English Frensch, Old English Frencisc.

Szwedko Polish
Variant of Szweda.

Hoàng Vietnamese
Vietnamese form of Huang, from Sino-Vietnamese 黃 (hoàng).

Montanari Italian
Means "from the mountain" in Italian.

Van Heel Dutch
Means "from Heel", a small town in the province of Limburg in the Netherlands.

Mayer 3 English
Occupational name for a mayor, from Middle English mair, derived via Old French from Latin maior.

Barnet English
Variant of Barnett.

Merx Dutch, Flemish
From the given name Mark.

Danailova f Bulgarian
Feminine form of Danailov.

O'Shaughnessy Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Seachnasaigh.

Carnevale Italian
From an Italian nickname meaning "carnival", perhaps given to a festive person.

Podsedníková f Czech
Feminine form of Podsedník.

Baas Dutch
Means "boss, overseer" in Dutch.

Charron French
Means "cart" in Old French, used to denote a carter or a cartwright.

Dubicka f Polish
Feminine form of Dubicki.

Nishikawa Japanese
From Japanese 西 (nishi) meaning "west" and 川 (kawa) meaning "river, stream".

Wardrobe English
From Old French warder "to guard" and robe "garment", an occupational name for a servant responsible for the clothing in a household.

Vancheva f Bulgarian
Feminine form of Vanchev.

Adamo Italian
Italian form of Adam.

Chung Korean
Alternate transcription of Korean Hangul 정 (see Jeong).

Tómasson Icelandic
Means "son of Tómas".

Haralampiev m Bulgarian
Means "son of Haralampi".

Chaykovskaya f Russian
Feminine form of Chaykovsky.

Venner Dutch
Variant of Van der Veen.

Cory English
Variant of Corey.

Kárpáty Hungarian
Variant of Kárpáti.

Mylonas m Greek
Means "miller" in Greek, from μύλος (mylos) meaning "mill".

Galilei Italian (Rare)
From the given name Galileo. A notable bearer was the Italian astronomer and physicist Galileo Galilei (1564-1642). Both his given name and surname were from an earlier 15th-century ancestor (a doctor).

Inoue Japanese
Means "above the well", from Japanese 井 (i) meaning "well, mine shaft, pit", an unwritten possessive marker の (no), and 上 (ue) meaning "above, top, upper".

Szwarc Polish
Polish phonetic spelling of German Schwarz.

Haraldsen Norwegian
Means "son of Harald".

Foster 2 English
Occupational name for a scissor maker, derived from Old French forcetier.

Iwamoto Japanese
From Japanese 岩 (iwa) meaning "cliff, rocks" and 本 (moto) meaning "base, root, origin".

Rybová f Czech
Czech feminine form of Ryba.

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

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

Tarr Hungarian
Variant of Tar.

Donovan Irish
Anglicized form of the Irish name Ó Donndubháin meaning "descendant of Donndubán".

Alink Dutch
Means "(farm) belonging to Ale 2" in Dutch.

Sargent English
Variant of Sergeant.

Kawakami Japanese
From Japanese 川 (kawa) meaning "river, stream" and 上 (kami) meaning "above, top, upper".

Ó Maolmhuaidh Irish
Means "descendant of Maolmhuadh", Maolmhuadh being a given name meaning "proud chief", derived from Gaelic maol meaning "chief" and muadh meaning "proud, noble".

Mendelssohn Jewish
Means "son of Mendel".

Silverstein Jewish
Variant of Zilberstein.

Sparks English
From an Old Norse nickname or byname derived from sparkr meaning "sprightly".

Triggs English
From a byname derived from Old Norse tryggr meaning "true, loyal".

Acqua Italian
Means "water" in Italian, indicating one who dwelt by or transported water.

Bonaccorsi Italian
From the medieval given name Bonaccorso.

Bristol English
From the name of a city in England meaning "the site of the bridge".

Szombathy Hungarian
From Hungarian szombat meaning "Saturday".

Asís Spanish
Originally denoted a person from the Italian city of Assisi (called Asís in Spanish).

Stanković Serbian
Means "son of Stanko".

Browne English
Variant of Brown.

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

Faucher French
Occupational name meaning "mower" in French, ultimately from Latin falx meaning "sickle, scythe".

Liang Chinese
From Chinese 梁 (liáng) referring to the ancient state of Liang, which existed from the 8th to 7th centuries BC in what is now Shaanxi province.

Rasmussen Danish, Norwegian
Means "son of Rasmus".

Zangari Italian
Southern Italian name, derived from Greek τσαγκάρης (tsankaris) meaning "shoemaker, cobbler".

Cuevas Spanish
Derived from Spanish cueva meaning "cave".

Voß German
Variant of Voss.

Power 2 English
From Middle English povre meaning "poor", via Old French from Latin pauper. It could have been a nickname for someone who had no money or a miser.

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

Hearn Irish
Anglicized form of Ó hEachthighearna.

Vång Swedish
Swedish variant of Wang 3.

Golob Slovene
Means "pigeon" in Slovene.

Ó Suaird Irish
Means "descendant of Suart" in Irish. Suart is derived from the Old Norse name Sigurd.

Baumgarten German
Variant of Baumgartner.

Atwood English
From Middle English meaning "dweller at the wood".

Mohammed Arabic, Urdu, Bengali
Derived from the given name Muhammad.

Clery Irish
Variant of Cleary.

Kwok Chinese (Cantonese)
Cantonese romanization of Guo.

Matthiasen Danish
Means "son of Matthias".

Assink Dutch
From a place name meaning "(farm) belonging to Asse".

Douglas Scottish
From the name of a town in Lanarkshire, itself named after a tributary of the River Clyde called the Douglas Water, derived from Gaelic dubh "dark" and glais "water, river" (an archaic word related to glas "grey, green"). This was a Scottish Lowland clan, the leaders of which were powerful earls in the medieval period.

Perez Spanish
Unaccented variant of Pérez.

Van Herten Dutch
Means "from Herten", a small town in the province of Limburg in the Netherlands. The town's name comes from Dutch herten, the plural of hert meaning "deer".

Symons English
Derived from the given name Simon 1.

Darcy English
From Norman French d'Arcy, originally denoting someone who came from the town of Arcy in La Manche, France. A notable fictional bearer is Fitzwilliam Darcy from Jane Austen's novel Pride and Prejudice (1813).

Cəfərov m Azerbaijani
Means "son of Cəfər".

Siekert German (Rare)
Derived from the given name Sieghard.

Gallo Italian, Spanish
Means "rooster", ultimately from Latin gallus. This was a nickname for a proud person.

Järvinen Finnish
Derived from Finnish järvi meaning "lake". It is one of the most common surnames in Finland.

Žagar Slovene
Occupational name for a woodcutter, from Slovene žaga meaning "saw".

Travere French
French variant of Travers.

Nejem Arabic
Alternate transcription of Arabic نجم (see Najm).

Nenci Italian
Means "son of Nencio", a Tuscan diminutive of the name Lorenzo.

Babayeva f Azerbaijani
Feminine form of Babayev.

Dinu Romanian
From the given name Dinu.

Acheson Scottish
Scots form of Atkinson.

Scott English, Scottish
Originally given to a person from Scotland or a person who spoke Scottish Gaelic.

Trengove English
Originally indicated a person from Trengove in Cornwall, England.

Gustavsson Swedish
Means "son of Gustav".

Skinner English
Occupational name for a person who skinned animals, from Old Norse skinn.

Gavrilyuk Ukrainian
Alternate transcription of Ukrainian Гаврилюк (see Havrylyuk).

Stieber German
Derived from Middle High German stiuben meaning "to run away". It may have been given as a nickname to a cowardly person or a thief.

Cavallo Italian
Means "horse" in Italian, an occupational name for a horseman.

Spitznagel German
Means "sharp nail" in German, an occupational name for a nailsmith.

Benn English
From a short form of Benedict.

Kozioł Polish
Means "male goat" in Polish, probably used to denote a goatherd.

Glover English
Occupational name for a person who made or sold gloves, from Middle English glovere.

Mora Spanish
Derived from Spanish mora meaning "mulberry", of Latin origin.

Myer English
From Old French mire meaning "doctor", derived from Latin medicus.

Lehr German
From Old High German loh meaning "meadow, clearing".

Haanraadts Dutch
Variant of Haanraads.

Maina Kikuyu
Derived from the given name Maina.

Moray Scottish
Variant of Murray 1.

Harrelson English
Means "son of Harold". A famous bearer of this surname is the American actor Woody Harrelson (1961-).

Hancock English
From a diminutive of the medieval name Hann.

Oikonomou Greek
Derived from Greek οικονόμος (ikonomos) meaning "housekeeper, steward".

Tremblay French
From French tremble meaning "aspen". It is especially widespread in Quebec, being the most common surname there.

Borgogni Italian
From the name of the French region of Burgundy (called Bourgogne in French), which is named after the Germanic tribe the Burgundians, meaning "people from the high land".

Sokołowska f Polish
Feminine form of Sokołowski.

Ready 2 Scottish
Originally denoted a person from Reedie farm in Angus, Scotland.

Mercado Spanish
Means "market" in Spanish, originally given to a person who lived near a market or worked in one.

Casale Italian
Italian cognate of Casal.

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

Bukoski Polish (Anglicized)
Variant of Bukowski.

Porcher English, French
Means "swineherd" from Old French and Middle English porchier, from Latin porcus "pig".

Irvin Scottish, English
Variant of Irvine 1 or Irwin.

Ilić Serbian, Croatian
Means "son of Ilija".

Isayev m Russian
Means "son of Isay".

Filipowski m Polish
Either a patronymic from the given name Filip, or a habitational name denoting a person from the Polish town of Filipów (also derived from the given name).

Espensen Norwegian
Means "son of Espen".

Küçük Turkish
Means "small" in Turkish.

Espina Spanish
Means "thorn" in Spanish, a name for someone who lived near a thorn bush.

Ruzsa Hungarian
Dialectical variant of Rózsa.

Andrysiak Polish
Means "son of Andrzej".

Rosenberger German, Jewish
Variant of Rosenberg.

Henry English
Derived from the given name Henry.

Williamson English
Means "son of William".

Georgieva f Bulgarian
Feminine form of Georgiev.

Drummond Scottish
From various Scottish place names that are derived from Gaelic drumainn, a derivative of druim meaning "ridge".

Frye English
Variant of Fry.

Otis English
Means "son of Ode".

Abélard History
Adopted by the 12th-century French philosopher Pierre le Pallet, thereafter known as Pierre Abélard (or Peter Abelard in English). It is not certain how he contrived it. Possibly he was inspired by the given name Abel.

Ó Caoimháin Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Cavan.

Kohout m Czech
Czech cognate of Kohut.

Siliņa f Latvian
Feminine form of Siliņš.

Pedersen Danish, Norwegian
Means "son of Peder".

Salvatici Italian
Italian form of Savage.

Baasch Low German
From Middle Low German bas meaning "boss".

Aloi Italian
From a dialectal form of the name Aloisio.

Dunn English, Scottish, Irish
Derived from Old English dunn "dark" or Gaelic donn "brown", referring to hair colour or complexion.

Văn Vietnamese
Vietnamese form of Wen, from Sino-Vietnamese 文 (văn).

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

Czinege Hungarian
Variant of Cinege.

Badem Turkish
Derived from a Turkish word meaning "almond".

Lovell English
Variant of Lowell.

Melvin Scottish
Variant of Melville.

Musiał Polish
Polish cognate of Musil.

Babayev m Azerbaijani
Means "son of Baba".

Ruggles English
From a medieval diminutive of the given name Roger.

Knight English
From Old English cniht meaning "knight", a tenant serving as a mounted soldier.

Ognyanova f Bulgarian
Feminine form of Ognyanov.

Paulissen Dutch
Means "son of Paul".

Germain French
From the French given name Germain.

Strickland English
From the name of a town in Cumbria, derived from Old English stirc "calf, young bullock" and land "cultivated land".

Pražak m Czech
Means "from Prague" in Czech.

Arntzenius Dutch
Latinized form of Arntzen.

Karimi Persian, Arabic
Derived from the given name Karim.

Mac Dhuibhinse Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Vincent 2.

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

Abbate Italian
Variant of Abate.

Moses Jewish, English
Derived from the given name Moses.

Aiello Italian
From various place names in Italy, such as Aiello del Friuli, Aiello del Sabato and others. They are derived from Latin agellus meaning "little field".

Sorg German
Variant of Sorge.

Růžičková f Czech
Feminine form of Růžička.

Vastagh Hungarian
Variant of Vastag.

Ó Buachalla Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Buckley 2.

McKinney Irish, Scottish
Variant of McKenna.

Bozhidarov m Bulgarian
Means "son of Bozhidar".

Goossens Flemish
From the Germanic given name Gozzo.

Martinsson Swedish
Means "son of Martin".

Nishiyama Japanese
From Japanese 西 (nishi) meaning "west" and 山 (yama) meaning "mountain, hill".

Leoni Italian
Derived from the given name Leone 1.

Qodirov m Uzbek, Tajik
Means "son of Qodir".

Chalupová f Czech
Feminine form of Chalupa.

Lauritsen Danish
Means "son of Laurits".

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

Tornincasa Italian
From a medieval Italian name given to a boy born after the death of a previous one, derived from Italian ritorna in casa "come back home".

Qurbanov m Azerbaijani
Means "son of Qurban".

Yi Korean
Variant of Lee 2.

Cervantes Spanish
Possibly from Old Spanish servanto meaning "servant" or ciervo meaning "stag". A famous bearer was the Spanish novelist Miguel de Cervantes (1547-1616).

Boyadjiev m Bulgarian
Alternate transcription of Bulgarian Бояджиев (see Boyadzhiev).

Trucco Italian
Denoted a person coming from a place of this name in northern Italy.

De Campo Italian
Locative surname derived from place names called Campo (meaning "field").

Clemensen Danish
Means "son of Clemens".

Walters English
Derived from the given name Walter.

Abbà Italian
Variant of Abate.

Kamiński m Polish
From Polish kamień meaning "stone", a name for a stonecutter or for one who lived at a place with this name.

Pethes Hungarian
Derived from Pete, a diminutive of Péter.

Katırcı Turkish
Derived from Turkish katır meaning "mule", a name for a person who made transports by mule.

Waldo English
From the Anglo-Scandinavian given name Waltheof.

Perrier French
Occupational name for a person who worked with stone, derived from French pierre meaning "stone", from Latin petra, Greek πέτρα (petra).

Curry Irish
Anglicized form of Ó Comhraidhe or Ó Corra.

Pellegrini Italian
Variant of Pellegrino.

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

Bayer German
Originally denoted a person from Bavaria, from its German name Bayern.

Frazier Scottish
Variant of Fraser.

Lundberg Swedish
Derived from Swedish lund (Old Norse lundr) meaning "grove" and berg meaning "mountain".

Fairburn English
From a place name meaning "fern stream", from Old English fearn "fern" and burna "stream".

Bruce Scottish
Possibly from the name of the town of Brix in Normandy, which is of unknown meaning. It was brought to Scotland in the 12th century by the Anglo-Norman baron Robert de Brus. It was later borne by his descendant Robert the Bruce, a hero of the 14th century who achieved independence from England and became the king of Scotland.

Mały Polish
Polish cognate of Malý.

Norton English
From the name of various towns in England meaning "north town" in Old English.

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

Grgić Croatian
Means "son of Grgur".

Uggeri Italian
Derived from the given name Edgardo.

Vieira Portuguese
Denoted a person who came from a Portuguese town by this name, derived from vieria meaning "scallop". The scallop was a symbol of Saint James, and was traditionally worn by pilgrims to the shrine of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia.

Mirzoev m Tajik
Means "son of Mirzo".

Albu Romanian
From Romanian alb meaning "white".

Bellincioni Italian
Means "son of Bellincione", from a medieval name (borne for example by Dante's grandfather) that was probably a derivative of Italian bello "beautiful, fair".

Cocks English
Patronymic form of Cock.

Chaudhary Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati, Nepali
From a title meaning "holder of four", from Sanskrit चतुर् (catur) meaning "four" and धुरीय (dhurīya) meaning "bearing a burden".

Henriksson Swedish
Means "son of Henrik".

Tisza Hungarian
From the river name Tisza, Hungary's second largest river.

Martinov m Bulgarian
Means "son of Martin".

Raskopf German
Possibly from German rasch "quick" and Kopf "head".

Ellisson English
Variant of Ellison.

Friedrich German
Derived from the given name Friedrich.

Prohászka Hungarian
Hungarian form of Procházka.

Ferguson Irish, Scottish
Means "son of Fergus".

Ó Cuana Irish
Irish Gaelic form of Cooney.

Waxweiler German
Denoted a person from Waxweiler, a village in the Eifel region of Germany.

Lukáč m Slovak
Slovak form of Lukács.

Trump German
Derived from Middle High German trumbe meaning "drum". This surname is borne by the American president Donald Trump (1946-).

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

Utkin m Russian
Derived from Russian утка (utka) meaning "duck".

Slováková f Slovak, Czech
Feminine form of Slovák.

Ferber German
Variant of Färber.

Schuyler Dutch
Possibly a Dutch form of Schuler.

Morales Spanish
Derived from Spanish moral meaning "mulberry tree", of Latin origin.

Gutierrez Spanish
Variant of Gutiérrez.

Negri Italian
Nickname derived from Italian negro "black", used to refer to someone with dark hair or dark skin.

Foss English
Variant of Fosse.

Callaghan Irish
Variant of Callahan.

Van Ogtrop Dutch
Variant of Ogtrop.

Hartman Dutch, German
Dutch and Americanized form of Hartmann.

Schubert German
Variant of Schuchardt. This name was borne by the Austrian composer Franz Schubert (1797-1828).

Anker Dutch, Danish, Norwegian
Metonymic surname for a sailor, meaning "anchor" in Dutch, Danish and Norwegian.